Likely Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton offered only a vague statement on the White House’s negotiations with Iran, but some in the news media interpreted her comments to be a full-throated endorsement of the still-forming deal.
President Obama on Thursday announced a “framework” of an agreement with Iran that would curb the country’s nuclear development program.
“President Obama and Secretary [of State John] Kerry have been persistent and determined in pursuit of this goal, building on a decade of bipartisan pressure and diplomacy,” Clinton said in a statement. The former Obama administration secretary of state, who is expected to file paperwork for a 2016 presidential campaign within the next two weeks, faces a delicate task in running on her record while maintaining a distance from Obama’s unpopular foreign policy moves — and her statement was extremely cautious. Clinton said she “strongly support[s]” ongoing talks but added that “the devil is always in the details in this kind of negotiation.”
Headlines, however, characterized Clinton’s lukewarm statement as ardent support for the deal.
“Hillary Clinton hails Iran agreement, warns ‘there is much to do,'” read a headline at NBC News.
Business Insider said Clinton “is very happy with the Iran nuclear deal.”
“Hillary Clinton backs Obama on Iran agreement,” said the left-leaning Huffington Post.
Clinton’s hesitant statement is in line with what she said in November. “The odds of reaching that comprehensive agreement are not good,” Clinton said at the time, according to the Washington Post. “I am also personally skeptical that the Iranians would follow through and deliver. I have seen their behavior over the years. But this is a development that is worth testing.”
