Obama slaps at Scott Walker as he defends Iran deal

President Barack Obama says his successor in the White House will not call into question the executive branch’s power to cut deals between the United States and other countries, such as the nuclear framework reached last week with Iran.

“I am confident that any president who gets elected will be knowledgeable enough about foreign policy and knowledgeable enough about the traditions and precedents of presidential power that they won’t start calling to question the capacity of the executive branch of the United States to enter into agreements with other countries,” Obama said in an interview with NPR’s “Morning Edition” set to air Tuesday.


Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who has expressed interest in running for the Republican nomination, has said that he would cancel the deal on Jan. 20, 2017, his first day in office.

Questioning the president’s power to negotiate agreements would harm America’s relationship with allies and embolden enemies, Obama said, adding that the Republican governor should take some time to catch up on foreign policy.

“And it would be a foolish approach to take, and, you know, perhaps Mr. Walker, after he’s taken some time to bone up on foreign policy, will feel the same way,” Obama told NPR’s Steve Inskeep.

Walker fired back on Tuesday morning, slamming Obama’s “failed leadership” around the world.

“Americans would be better served by a president who spent more time working with governors and members of Congress rather than attacking them,” Walker replied in a statement.

“Whether it is cutting a bad deal with Iran, calling ISIS the JV squad, or touting Yemen as a success story, Obama’s lack of leadership has hurt America’s safety and standing in the world,” he said.

The president also said Israelis are “right to be suspicious of Iran” but that the U.S. and Israel can deter any threat posed to the country.

“And if, over time, there are opportunities in which we see changes in the Iranian regime, all the better. But we don’t have to count on that,” Obama said. “We have to make sure that even if Iran doesn’t change, the Israeli people are safe.”

Obama said it would be hard to argue that the situation is better off with no breakout period, reiterating that Iran has agreed to “unprecedented” inspections and verifications of its nuclear program.

“What is a more relevant fear would be that in year 13, 14, 15, they have advanced centrifuges that enrich uranium fairly rapidly, and at that point, the breakout times would have shrunk almost down to zero,” Obama said, adding that options are still on the table should inspectors find that Iran has not satisfactorily complied.

The State Department sought to clarify the president’s remark at its daily news briefing later on Tuesday.

“That quote, I think, that people are referring to, I think his words were a little mixed up there, but what he was referring to was a scenario in which there was no deal,” spokeswoman Marie Harf said. “He was not indicating what would happen under an agreement in those years.”

The drafting of a final agreement will be difficult, Obama said, likening it to signing a contract to a home but waiting on the appraisal.

He also pushed back against assertions by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that applying more pressure would yield a better deal.

“You know, the country that is most isolated in the world is North Korea,” Obama said. “I think it would be hard to argue that by virtue of the fact that they can’t feed their people, and that they are almost entirely cut off from global trade, that that somehow has lessened their capacity for mischief and trouble-making.”

In a previously released segment from the interview, Obama rejected Netanyahu’s call for Iran to recognize the state of Israel as part of the final deal, calling it “a fundamental misjudgment.”