President Barack Obama vigorously defended Wednesday the proposed nuclear deal with Iran in remarks delivered at American University in Washington D.C. During his speech, Obama called the agreement, “the most consequential foreign policy debate that our country has had since the invasion of Iraq”.
Advertisement
Congress is expected to vote in September on whether to approve or disapprove of the deal.
In the poll, 35 percent of Americans said they support the deal, 33 percent said they oppose it, and another 32 percent said they don’t know enough to have an opinion.
“What we object to is the President’s lack of realism”, they added.
“That’s how arms control agreements work”, Obama said. It’s those hardliners chanting “Death to America” who have been most opposed to the deal.
Obama referenced Reagan’s assertion that peace is not the absence of conflict, but the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means, as well as Kennedy’s caution that the pursuit of peace is not as dramatic as the pursuit of war.
His comments came during a speech at American University – where 50 years ago former President John Kennedy famously spoke about the dangers of nuclear proliferation and the importance of diplomacy. The president emphasized that the most vocal domestic critics of the deal are many of those who supported that war.
Obama said that the deal builds upon the “tradition of strong, principled policy diplomacy” that prevented heightened tensions with Cuba from escalating into nuclear war, and ensured that Washington and Moscow agreed to curbs on their armaments during the Cold War.
“How can we in good conscience justify war before we have tested a diplomatic agreement that achieves our objectives?”
“[The] majority of the Iranian people have powerful incentives to urge their government to move in a different, less provocative direction – incentives that are strengthened by this deal”, he said. The agreement between the US, Iran and global powers aims to dismantle much of Tehran’s nuclear program in exchange for billions of dollars in relief from economic sanctions.
In the lengthy address, Obama rejected some of the most prominent arguments against the deal – voiced by critics like Republican Sens.
Senators John McCain and Republican presidential candidate Lindsey Graham accused Obama of relying on “endless straw men”. “And as president of the United States it would be an abrogation of my constitutional duty to act against my best judgment simply because it causes temporary friction with a dear friend and ally”.
Advertisement
Obama singled out Israel as an opponent of the deal, but said it would also benefit from an Iran blocked from gaining nuclear weapons.
