Hillary Clinton will forcefully back the Obama administration’s Iran nuclear deal during a speech on Wednesday in Washington, according to campaign aides, but will also take a cautious tone by urging lawmakers to take a “distrust and verify” posture with the nation.
Clinton will say that the Iran deal is not a step towards normalizing relations with Iran, aides said, and will devote a large portion of her speech to protecting Israel.
“I support this deal. I support it as part of a larger strategy toward Iran,” Clinton will say at the Brookings Institution, according to excerpts provided to CNN.
“It’s not enough to just say, ‘yes’ to this deal, of course it isn’t,” she will add. “We have to say, ‘Yes, and.’ Yes, and we will enforce it with vigor and vigilance. Yes, and we will embed it in a broader strategy to confront Iran’s bad behavior in the region.”
The speech will be familiar turf for Clinton, who spent a considerable amount of her time as secretary of state putting together sanctions against Iran.
Clinton will stress America’s commitment to Israel by continuing to guarantee Israel’s military edge over neighboring countries. The former secretary of state will pitch increasing support for Israel’s rocket and missile defenses, aides said, and will back selling Israel more sophisticated aircraft and weapons.
“We need to be clear-eyed about what we can expect from Iran,” Clinton will say. “This isn’t the start of some broader diplomatic opening. And we shouldn’t expect that this deal will lead to a broader change in their behavior. That shouldn’t be a premise for proceeding.”
On domestic policy in Iran, Clinton will say she won’t rest until every single American citizen detained in the country is brought home. Iran continues to detain three Americans of Iranian background. A fourth American, who was a CIA contractor, remains missing after visiting the country.
She will also call for expanding the U.S. military presence in the region, particularly to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, and push to build coalitions to counter Iran proxies like Hezbollah. That will include, aides spelled out, pressing for partners — including Turkey and Qatar — to treat the group as a terrorist organization.
“We need to be creative, committed, and I’ll say it again — vigilant,” Clinton will say. “And on every front, we need to keep working closely with our friends and partners.”
Democrats on Tuesday gave President Barack Obama the votes he needs to prevent the Senate from passing a measure disapproving of the Iran nuclear deal. Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Michigan Sen. Gary Peters and Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden on Tuesday all announced in rapid fire succession they would support the deal, putting Obama at 41 votes of support in the Senate.
Many Republicans remain against the deal and on Wednesday — the same day Clinton speaks at the Washington think-tank — 2016 Republicans Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, along with former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, will headline a rally on the West Front of the Capitol to express their displeasure over the deal.
