Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton slammed a group of Senate Republicans who signed a letter to Iran meant to undermine the Obama administration’s efforts to strike a deal on the country’s nuclear program.
“Either these senators were trying to be helpful to the Iranians or harmful to the commander in chief in the midst of high stakes international diplomacy,” Clinton said Tuesday at a press conference at the United Nations. “Either answer does discredit to the letter’s signatories.”
Clinton’s comments came a day after 47 Senate Republicans signed a letter to Iranian leaders saying a nuclear deal with the Obama administration would likely not last beyond Obama’s time in office. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) took the lead on the letter. It came as Obama officials are said to be nearing an agreement that would end economic sanctions on Iran if its nuclear program is halted.
“The president and his team are in the midst of intense negotiations. Their goal is a diplomatic solution that would close off Iran’s pathways to a nuclear bomb and give us unprecedented access and insight into Iran’s nuclear program,” Clinton said. “Now reasonable people can disagree about what exactly it will take to accomplish this objective and we all must judge any final agreement on its merits. But the recent letter from Republican senators was out of step with those traditions of American leadership.”
