Donald Trump’s Bad Deal with Iran is an Admission of Defeat
WASHINGTON – After President Trump announced an agreement to end the war with Iran, Halie Soifer, CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA), released the following statement:
“Donald Trump’s deal with Iran isn’t a deal at all. At best, it’s a statement of intention – a ‘concept of a plan’ – lacking details. At worst, it’s an admission of defeat by the United States.
“The Strait of Hormuz will be reopened, returning to the pre-war status quo, but the Iranians will no doubt use the Strait as leverage in the future. This war has – for the first time – provided Iran with a chokehold on the American and global economy that they will continue to use against us. Trump would not have had to make concessions to Iran to reopen the Strait had he not started this reckless war in the first place.
“Any final agreement must verifiably ensure Iran cannot acquire a nuclear weapon, and all Trump received was a promise by Iran to negotiate. Before the war, there was an offer by Iran to dilute its existing highly enriched uranium. Now, they’re simply offering to discuss it. There are also no clear demands regarding Iran’s ballistic missile program and support for terrorist proxies, both of which continue to threaten the entire Middle East, especially Israel.
“Trump also failed to achieve regime change, and this war has solidified the existing regime, now with even more hard-line leadership. The Iranian people will suffer as a result of this concession because Trump’s deal strengthens the Iranian regime, including by releasing frozen assets and offering sanctions relief. Today, Iran is unquestionably further from regime change – and this Iranian regime is stronger – than before the war.
“Trump repeatedly berated the Obama administration for offering sanctions relief and unfreezing Iranian assets as part of the JCPOA. The amount of financial benefit Iran received from the JCPOA will be dwarfed by the amount of money going to Iran following Trump’s defeat. The JCPOA took 20 months to negotiate and included a strict inspections regime to verify Iranian compliance. The idea that Trump’s ‘concept of a plan’ could achieve anything close to that level of verification is wishful thinking, demonstrating that Trump is willing to accept far less than President Obama achieved.
“We remain concerned about the threat posed by Iran to Israel. Trump left Israel out of these negotiations, and it’s clear Israel was blindsided by the so-called “deal” that’s been reached. This tension was on full display yesterday, with Trump blasting Prime Minister Netanyahu as a ‘very difficult guy.’ Donald Trump was so desperate to get a deal with Iran that he was unabashedly willing to push Israel aside, demonstrating – yet again – that Trump has no loyalty or commitment to anyone other than himself.
“Unlike this illegal war, which 62 percent of Jewish voters oppose, there must be oversight of any agreement with Iran by Congress, allowing lawmakers to pass resolutions of approval or disapproval on any future treaty or agreement. In the absence of congressional oversight, Trump’s dangerous global chaos will continue.”
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