White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said the Trump administration won’t be taking any advice from former Secretary of State John Kerry on the Iran nuclear deal given President Trump’s opposition to what he has called the “worst deal ever.”
“I don’t think that we would take advice from somebody who created what the president sees to be one of the worst deals ever made,” Sanders told reporters during Monday’s White House press briefing. “I’m not sure why we would start listening to him now.”
Kerry, who served as the nation’s top diplomat during the Obama administration, reportedly has been involved in discussions with foreign officials, including Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, over how to salvage the 2015 deal.
Kerry’s actions have raised claims he may have violated the 219-year-old Logan Act, which prohibits citizens from acting on behalf of the U.S. in negotiations with foreign governments.
In a tweet Monday morning, Trump accused Kerry of engaging in “possibly illegal shadow diplomacy,” and said the U.S. doesn’t need the former secretary of state’s help regarding the “very badly negotiated” deal.
“He was the one that created this MESS in the first place!” Trump tweeted.
When asked whether Kerry’s actions would impact Trump’s deliberations over the Iran nuclear deal, Sanders told reporters the president “spoke out about that pretty clearly.”
The president is expected to make an announcement regarding the Iran nuclear deal Tuesday at 2 p.m. Trump has until May 12 to decide whether the U.S. will remain in the deal, but he has indicated at a minimum that he will push for significant changes.
