Obama says Trump’s Iran war has made the U.S. more vulnerable after diplomacy had previously curbed Tehran’s nuclear program

Former President Barack Obama attacked President Donald Trump’s handling of Iran, arguing that the United States had previously constrained Tehran’s nuclear program through diplomacy but is now paying a growing military and economic price for war.

“Iran didn’t have nuclear weapons. We had curbed their nuclear program,” Obama said during a campaign rally in Cleveland. “I had put in place a deal. I didn’t have to fire any missiles. I engaged in diplomacy.”

Obama was referring to the 2015 nuclear agreement reached between Iran and world powers during his presidency. Trump withdrew the United States from the deal in 2018.

Obama contrasted that approach with the current conflict, asking: “How is this war going?”

“Our allies and bases have been attacked. Americans have been killed. Hundreds of Americans have been wounded,” he said. “We have run down our stock of missiles, making us more vulnerable, and Iran now has veto power over the Strait of Hormuz.”

The Pentagon’s latest figures list 21 U.S. service members killed in operations connected to the Iran war and 865 wounded. The conflict has also consumed large quantities of U.S. munitions, while Iran continues to restrict and threaten shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Obama also mocked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, accusing him of focusing on “the jawline and testosterone levels of our troops” and “live-streaming executions” rather than the broader consequences of the conflict.

“These are not serious people, and we are all paying the price for their lack of seriousness,” Obama said.

In separate campaign remarks in Atlanta on Wednesday, Obama expanded his attack on the Trump administration, accusing the White House of “bending the knee” to Russian President Vladimir Putin and “selling out Ukrainians who are fighting for their freedom and democracy.”

He also returned to his criticism of Trump’s White House renovations, saying the president was “literally doing arts and crafts while we are fighting a war” and accusing him of using the presidency to enrich himself.

“You cannot trade the office of the presidency and policy that affects Americans to make yourself money,” Obama said. “That’s what dictators in other countries do.”