Obama Stands By Comparison Of GOP And Iranian Hardliners

In a bid to bag the party’s presidential nomination, Republican candidates took pot shots at each other in a bitterly-contested debate but were united in slamming President Barack Obama’s policies in tackling the threat posed by Islamic State and Iran’s nuclear programme.

During a speech at American University in Washington on Wednesday, Obama charged that the “Republican Caucus” – opposing the deal – is in line with “those hardliners [in Iran] chanting “Death to America” who have been most opposed to the deal”. Earnest responded. “I would concede the president did not pull any punches yesterday”.

Earnest contended that the president was only pointing out that Republicans and Iranian hardliners had the same position.

“That’s an absurd argument, and it’s the one they’ve made from the very beginning, that it’s either what the President negotiates with the Iranians or it’s war”, McConnell said.

Few people have as big a stake as Obama in who succeeds him, but the White House has often been loath to acknowledge that the president is concerned about the political circus of horse-race politics. And I can’t handicap the outcome, but my members will delve into the details and make a decision based upon what they think is in the best long-term interest of our country.

He added that Iranian hardliners chanting “Death to America” don’t represent all of Iran. “Why does the president see this in such stark terms and why are those who oppose the deal either ignorant or untruthful?” “But I’m confident that the highlights, or the lowlights, as you might describe them-or as I might describe them-that the president will get a chance to take a look at those”.

Told that the audience for the debate could be 15 million, Earnest said, “The phrase that comes to mind is, be careful what you wish for”.