President Obama stood by his charge that Iranian hardliners are making “common cause” with Republican lawmakers in opposing the landmark nuclear deal with Iran, insisting that such an accusation “is absolutely true, factually.”
“Inside of Iran, the people most opposed to the deal are the Revolutionary Guard, the Quds Force, hardliners who are implacably opposed to any cooperation with the international community,” Obama said in an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria broadcast Sunday. He had made the accusation earlier in the week, charging Republicans with opposing the deal for political reasons.
“The reason that Mitch McConnell and the rest of the folks in his caucus who oppose this jumped out and opposed it before they even read it, before it was even posted, is reflective of a ideological commitment not to get a deal done,” Obama said, naming the Senate Republican leader from Kentucky.