During a Wednesday speech on the nuclear deal with Iran, Hillary Clinton bashed the Republican candidates who have pledged to tear up the Iran deal if they are elected president.
“That’s not leadership, that’s recklessness,” Clinton said, noting that it would be riskier to walk away from the deal than it would be to accept and enforce it.
The former secretary of state also took a swing at former Vice President Dick Cheney, a fierce critic of the Iran deal. Clinton said that “Cheney may hope that the American people may forget” that Iran was “racing toward a nuclear capability” by the time President Obama took office. She said that U.S. sanctions alone did not prevent Iran from working toward a nuclear bomb, and boasted about her efforts to ramp up global sanctions on Iran.
Clinton, who has already expressed support for the Iran deal, laid out how she would implement the agreement as president. She said that she understands “skepticism” about the deal.
“There is absolutely no reason to trust Iran,” she said, but said that the deal is a “strong” agreement that will keep Iran from building a nuclear bomb.
Clinton said she would take a “distrust and verify” approach to enforcing the deal. She said that as president, she would penalize Iran for small violations and would be willing to reinstate sanctions on Iran if they violate the deal. She also said she make it clear to Iran that the U.S. will not let them build a bomb.
“The United States will never allow you to acquire a nuclear weapon,” she said.
The presidential candidate added that she would be willing to take military action against Iran if the country attempts to make a nuclear weapon.
