Obama Breaks His Silence and Challenges Trump's Iran Deal

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1:30Ben Meiselas:Former President Obama is finally surfacing and he is torching Donald Trump's horrible deal with Iran, which is far weaker than Obama's JCPOA, which for the past 15 to 20 years, Donald Trump has been attacking the JCPOA. He's been mocking Obama for it. But at the end of the day, Donald Trump just did a JCPOA flight, a C - version of the JCPOA, where Trump gave Iran more money. Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, and Donald Trump weakened the United States standing, not just in the Middle East, but across the entire world as a result of Donald Trump's weakness. Now, let me be very clear. My own view is I'm glad that there's a deal and that the United States is going to hopefully be out.

2:24Ben Meiselas:We can never trust anything that Donald Trump says or does, so we'll see what happens, but we should never have been involved in this unlawful and catastrophic war with Netanyahu in the first place. But for Donald Trump, who said that I'm only going to get total surrender, ended up Trump basically doing total surrender. I'm going to do a deal so much better than Obama's. You see, when you actually step into the arena and you're confronted by complex issues, it's not always all that easy. It's easy to tear deals apart and to criticize and attack, but actually doing and balancing different issues and different constituencies and stakeholders, you know, isn't, isn't a very easy thing.

3:06Ben Meiselas:So as you all know, I'll show you what Obama said in a moment. You had Donald Trump who said, we're doing this deal with Iran. We've got the deal. There's going to be allegedly a signing in Geneva with MB Galiboff, Iran's parliament leader, who used to be one of the big military leaders there as well. And JD Vance, apparently that's going to happen in Geneva. Donald Trump is apparently going to be giving Iran billions and billions of dollars,$24 billion in different tranches, and then potentially$300 billion in development monies throughout the, you know, for the Middle East, I mean, up to$300 billion.

3:46Ben Meiselas:Also, you know, Donald Trump's like, we're going to get all the nuclear dust and all the material. No, what Donald Trump actually told the New York Times is that Iran will be permitted to enrich at low levels. Not that all the material is going to be taken away. He said, it's at a level that can never be used by the Iran military. Donald Trump said, but yeah, that's what was in the JCPOA. But the JCPOA had a multilateral inspection mechanism. And this kind of is like, you're going to have to trust Iran to do it. So now let me show you what Obama said. I'll also show you another kind of key moment of Obama versus Donald Trump.

4:27Ben Meiselas:And I want to remind you of what Obama said back on May 8th, 2018, when Donald Trump withdrew from the JCPOA. And let's bring this all together, shall we? So here's what Donald Trump, well, first I'll show you what former President Obama said. Then we'll go into what Trump was saying. Here's what former President Obama told ABC about how all of this is a reminder that foreign policy problems can be complex. And this idea that we can just bomb our way out of things isn't always the right answer. It may seem enticing to some people, but you have to think through the different levels of consequences.

5:08Ben Meiselas:So here's what Obama said. Let's play it. It is doubtful that any agreement that arises is going to be significantly different or a significant improvement from the deal that we had in the first place and had worked for a long stretch of time before the United States pulled out of it. So I'm hopeful that bombing stops and ordinary people are no longer suffering as a consequence of the war. I've been in retrospect, it's a reminder that on a lot of difficult foreign policy problems, the notion that we can just bully our way or bomb our way to solutions may sometimes seem appealing. But the fact of the matter is that taking the time to explore diplomacy and exhaust the possibilities of coming up with deals that don't solve 100 % of the problem but solve 80, 90 % of the problem while avoiding the necessity of going to war, you'd think we would have learned that lesson by now.

6:39But it seems like every so often we have to relearn that lesson again. You can see Rob.

6:45Ben Meiselas:Now, I want to share with you just how prescient Obama was in May of 2018 when Trump pulled out of the JCPOA. But first, I want to also show you how Obama is haunting Donald Trump this week. Here's Obama when he goes to sporting events, how he's greeted. Let's play it.

7:21Ben Meiselas:Now contrast that to when Donald Trump went to the only game in the finals where the Knicks lost, how Donald Trump was greeted. So you can see for yourself. Then let's let's dig into the JCPOA, but let's just play this clip so you can see the contrast. Let's play.

7:42Ben Meiselas:So now I want to share with you what former President Obama said on May 8th, 2018. This was the statement that Obama issued then. And just think about how prescient he was. He knew what was going to happen. Here's what Obama writes when Donald Trump, during Trump's first term, pulled out of the non-nuclear deal with Iran. Obama wrote, there were a few issues more important to the security of the United States than the potential spread of nuclear weapons or the potential for even more destructive war in the Middle East. That's why the United States negotiated the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, JPOA, in the first place.

8:20Ben Meiselas:The reality is clear. The JCPOA is working. That is the view shared by European allies, independent experts, and the current U.S. Secretary of Defense. It was Mattis at that time, I believe. The JCPOA is in America's interest. It has significantly rolled back Iran's nuclear program, and the JCPOA is a model for what diplomacy can accomplish. Its inspections and verification regime is precisely what the United States should be working to put in place with North Korea. Indeed, at a time when we are all rooting for diplomacy with North Korea to succeed, walking away from the JCPOA risks losing a deal that accomplishes with Iran the very outcome that we are pursuing with the North Koreans.

9:04Ben Meiselas:Pause there because you see Donald Trump then allowed Kim Jong-un to get nuclear weapons. People don't talk about that enough. Donald Trump's back and forth love letters with Kim Jong-un ultimately resulted in Kim Jong-un getting nuclear weapons. And Trump withdrawing from the JCPOA in 2018 taught North Korea the lesson, we've got to rush to one delay by time, and then let's get a nuclear weapon. And then that's exactly what Kim Jong-un did. That is why today's announcement by Trump is so misguided. Again, this was May 8th, 2018. Walking away from the JCPOA turns our back on America's closest allies and an agreement that our country's leading diplomats, scientists, and intelligence professionals negotiated.

9:52Ben Meiselas:In a democracy, there will always be changes in policies and priorities from one administration to the next, but the consistent flouting of agreements that our country as a party to risks eroding America's credibility and puts us at odds with the world's major powers. Debates in our country should be informed by facts, especially debates that have proven to be divisive. So it's important to review several facts about the JCPOA. First, the JCPOA was not just an agreement between my administration and the Iranian government. After years of building an international coalition that can impose crippling sanctions on Iran, we reach the JCPOA together with the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the European Union, Russia, China, and Iran.

10:36Ben Meiselas:It is a multilateral arms control deal unanimously endorsed by the United Nations Security Council resolution. Second, the JCPOA has worked in rolling back Iran's nuclear program. For decades, Iran has steadily advanced its nuclear program, approaching the point where they could rapidly produce enough fissile material to build a bomb. The JCPOA put a lid on the breakout capacity. Since the JCPOA was implemented, Iran has destroyed the core of a reactor that could have produced weapons-grade plutonium, removed two-thirds of its centrifuges, over 13 ,000, and placed them under international monitoring, and eliminated 97 % of its stockpile of enriched uranium, the raw materials necessary for a bomb.

11:20Ben Meiselas:So by any measure, the JCPOA has imposed strict limitations on Iran's nuclear program and achieved real results. Third, the JCPOA does not rely on trust. It is rooted in the most far-reaching inspections and verification regime ever negotiated in an arms control deal. Iran's nuclear facilities are strictly monitored. International monitors also have access to Iran's entire nuclear supply chain so that we can catch them if they cheat. Without the JCPOA, the monitoring and inspection regime would go away. Fourth, Iran is complying with the JCPOA. That was not simply the view of my administration.

11:57Ben Meiselas:The United States intelligence community has continued to find that Iran is meeting its responsibilities under the deal and has reported as much to Congress. So have our closest allies and the international agency responsible for verifying Iranian compliance, the IAEA, the International Atomic Energy Agency. Fifth, the JCPOA does not expire. The prohibition on Iran ever obtaining nuclear weapons is permanent. Some of the most important and intrusive inspections codified by the JCPOA are permanent. Even as some of the provisions in the JCPOA do become less strict with time, this won't happen until 10, 15, 20, 25 years into the deal, so there's little reason to put those restrictions at risk today.

12:40Ben Meiselas:Finally, the JCPOA was never intended to solve all our problems with Iran. We were clear-eyed that Iran engages in destabilizing behavior, including supportive terrorism and threats towards Israel and its neighbors. But that's precisely why it was so important that we prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Every aspect of Iranian behavior that is troubling is far more dangerous if their nuclear program is unconstrained. Our ability to confront Iran's destabilizing behavior and to sustain a unity of purpose is strengthened with the JCPOA and weakened without it. Because of these facts, I believe the decision to put the JCPOA at risk without any Iranian violation of the deal is a serious mistake.

13:21Ben Meiselas:Without the JCPOA, the United States could eventually be left with a losing choice between a nuclear-armed Iran or another war in the Middle East. We all know the dangers of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon. It can embolden an already dangerous regime, threaten our friends with destruction, pose unacceptable dangers to America's own security, and trigger an arms race in the world's most dangerous region. If the constraints on Iran's nuclear program under the JCPOA are lost, we could be hastening the day when we are faced with the choice between living with that threat or going to war to prevent it.

13:55Ben Meiselas:In a dangerous world, America must be able to rely in part on strong principled diplomacy to secure our country. We have been safer in the years since we achieved the JCPOA, thanks in part to the work of our diplomats, many members of Congress, and our allies. Going forward, I hope that Americans continue to speak out in support of that kind of strong, principled, fact-based, and unifying leadership that can best secure our country and uphold our responsibilities around the world. Now, I'm sorry if it took me a long time to read that, but I think every one of those words was very important, especially as you reflect back on it now in 2026.

14:33Ben Meiselas:But here's how Trump made a political career, just attacking it and ripping apart. This is Trump in 2011 playing. Our president will start a war with Iran because he has absolutely no ability to negotiate. He's weak and he's ineffective. So the only way he figures that he's going to get reelected and as sure as you're sitting there is to start a war with Iran. Now, I'm more militant and more militaristic than the president. I believe in strength. But to start a war in order to get elected, and I believe that's going to happen, would be an out. This was Trump again in 2011. Let's play this clip.

15:16I can tell you that right now. But you know, you can use that military. They are in big trouble. You know, Saddam Hussein totally outplayed his hand. He overplayed his hand. Gaddafi overplayed his hand. They see that in Iran. And you know what? It's going to happen to them unless they come to the table. And if you had the right leader, you would have them at the table right now without having to waste lives and billions and billions of dollars. All right. So assume that we did have them at the table. What in the world do you think it is that we could offer them to persuade them, to convince them, to scare them, or whatever it is, for Iran to step down on a nuclear weapon development?

15:58It's survival. It's survival. That's what we offer them. It's pure and simple. A horrible thing to say, it's survival. They won't survive. I mean, they are in deep trouble if they carry it. And, you know, I've said before, I think Obama will go to war with Iran because I think he views it as good politically. And that's pretty sad. And it's a pretty sad thing to have to say. But I think he will absolutely go to war with Iran. I think he views that as a positive from a political standpoint. And I think he's just waiting for the right moment. And I think Iran better be damn careful because they are overplaying their hand, just like Gaddafi and just like Saddam Hussein.

16:36it you know ronald reagan um won the cold war by you know what uh and then you have

16:46Ben Meiselas:recently i mean this was donald trump april 2nd 2026 bragging about leaving the deal this was you know while the war was taking place let's play this clip you wouldn't have israel and you wouldn't have the middle east either you would not have uh you would have had a nuclear weapon And it started by taking out Soleimani. Then I terminated the Iran nuclear deal and was given to us by Barack Hussein Obama. And then you had Donald Trump sycophants like Pete Hegseth going on morning shows yesterday to try to justify how this is somehow better than Obama. And you'll see just how undisciplined, how immature someone like a Hegseth in the Trump regime is.

17:31Ben Meiselas:So here's what he says about why their deal is different than Obama's deal. Let's play it. Well, as I understand it, the first part of this deal would involve the clearing and reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. How quickly will the U.S. blockade on Iran end? How quickly will they be able to sell their oil? Immediately is what the president has said. And that'll be our expectation of the Iranians is that. So tomorrow you'll end the blockade if they sign it today. It's the problem here. So when it, again, it's performance-based, Margaret. So we're not going to, unlike Obama, President Trump is smart about these things.

18:09He's not going to just give it away. So ultimately the blockade will stay as the straight opens and then the blockade will open and then the straights open. And if that takes, you know, 30 days to fully mature or two weeks to fully mature, but it will start immediately as the president has said.

18:25Ben Meiselas:And then more from Hegseth right here. Let's play it. Oh, we'll make sure the military option is there. And that's the big difference between this and JCPOA and the way Obama did it. Obama, they begged Iran for a deal and we bombed Iran and then put in a blockade and then ran ships through and then have restarted when necessary to ensure that they come to the table for a great deal. So our military posture will be whatever it needs to be to ensure they're compelled over this 60 days through the memorandum of understanding that they live up to what they said they would do. The document says Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, won't seek one, won't buy one, won't have one.

19:07Jason Pua said that too. There'll be negotiations to make that final. But they didn't have the threat of military force the way that we do, that Iran respects in a very way that their regime is more devastated, more devastating, excuse me, more devastated than it's ever been in its 47 years. And that's why they're at the table. So the huge difference is we did this from a position of strength. President Trump led with military might. That military might will stay as long as necessary. You know, if the blockade comes off, then you pull back and you allow shipping to flow, just like Iran needs to allow shipping to go through the straits.

19:41But we can snap that blockade back at any point, and they can't do anything about it. And Iran knows that. And that's why we have the leverage in these talks, and we hope they'll go well. Okay. Well, as I understand.

19:52Ben Meiselas:So what they're saying is the reason that they went into this, that they think by getting a weaker and worse deal, but by blowing a bunch of things up and committing war crimes with Netanyahu, that that shows strength. And Obama was saying what actually shows strength is building multilateral coalitions and coming up with a solution that avoids war, that avoids war, making war the last option. So I'll let you judge for yourself. But I think Obama's words right now are ringing truer than ever. Here's what Obama says. Without the JCPOA, the United States could eventually be left with a losing choice between a nuclear armed Iran or another war in the Middle East.

20:40Ben Meiselas:I just want smart leadership back. That's all. I don't view this even as a political Democrat. I just want smart leadership back. Intelligent, thoughtful, science-based, fact-based, expert base. Let me know what you think. Hit subscribe. Let's get to 7 million. Thanks for watching. New Midas merch. Head to store.midastouch.com today and get yourself the best pro-democracy gear and show your support. That's store.midastouch.com.