Transcription
We now have the full text of President Trump's memorandum of understanding with Iran. I have sat with this document all day today and I watched all the things that Trump has said about what the United States is getting out of this deal after more than 100 days of war, the loss of 13 American service members, and skyrocketing costs for all of us. And this video is long because I really want you to fully understand what the President of the United States has just signed us up for. And the only thing I can think is how very different the results today are from what Trump said would happen on the very first day of this war. So, I'm going to show you what he said then and what he is saying now in this video. By the way, President Trump signed a hard copy of this deal tonight while he was in France.
Now, I think the first thing you need to understand about this 14-point MOU is Iran's interpretation of what it was is accurate. They are getting a lot out of this deal. And what are we getting? That's new. Number five, Iran agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war capacity within 30 days. And for the next 60 days, they will not impose any toll or fee. However, Iran will consult with its neighbor Oman to define the future administration of maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz. I will remind you that the Strait of Hormuz was open, was not under the control of Iran, and was free to transit prior to the start of this war. But moving forward, according to this MOU, it appears the Trump administration negotiated that the Strait will be free for just the next 60 days and after that, it might not only be under the control of Iran and Oman, but also may require a fee for passage, which is going to add to the cost for oil and all the other goods that transit through the Strait.
But what about Iran's nuclear program and its nuclear ambitions? You know, the whole reason why President Trump started this war. I will remind you what he said about that on day one.
>> It has always been the policy of the United States, in particular, my administration, that this terrorist regime can never have a nuclear weapon. >>
So, what did the United States get? Number eight. The first line says the Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons. Okay, sounds great, right? Except President Obama's Iran nuclear deal that Trump ripped up in his first term, on page one said, Iran reaffirms that under no circumstances will Iran ever seek, develop, or acquire any nuclear weapons. Section eight of this MOU talks about what Trump calls the nuclear dust. Technically, it's the enriched uranium that is allegedly buried in Iran after those strikes last summer. The MOU says Iran and the United States will mutually agree on a mechanism to get rid of that stockpile. Which is also what was said in Obama's nuclear deal. And then today, President Trump shockingly said that Iran may still be able to keep their nuclear program.
>> Well, it is a little hard, though, when you say that somebody wants it, other people have it, other adjoining states have it, and you're not letting them have it for purposes of electricity and things like that. So, it's always a little tough. You have to use a little common sense. >>
The other win for Iran in this MOU that really stands out is the money they're going to get. It's true, number six of the MOU says the United States of America undertakes with regional partners to develop a definitive mutually agreed plan with at least $300 billion for the reconstruction and economic development of the Islamic Republic of Iran. But, the deal says Iran will not get access to that money until the final deal is signed in 60 days. But, Iran is going to access a ton of other money right now just by signing this MOU. Number 10 says the Treasury Department will immediately allow for waivers for Iran to start exporting their oil again, which could amount to hundreds of millions of dollars a week. Oh, and that's not all. Number 11 says the US will immediately release frozen Iranian assets, which we've been holding on to. That accounts for about a hundred billion dollars more.
Now, I want to be very clear here. For more than a decade, President Trump has railed on President Obama for doing this exact same thing, unfreezing Iranian assets and lifting sanctions when Iran signed his own nuclear deal. Trump called it the worst deal in history and that he would never under any circumstances give Iran money. I guess today he changed his tune.
>> And we have their money. We have taken their money. It's not our money, it's their money and we froze it at a certain point in time. I guess we're going to have to give it back. You know, if we didn't give it back, nobody would ever invest in the dollar again. >>
Just so you know, there is no enforcement mechanism in this MOU. Today Trump said that's fine. He's got an alternative.
>> I let him know. I said, "Look, if you don't adhere to the agreement, I don't want to do that, but we're going to bomb the hell out of you." >>
But that may be hard to do based on number four, which shockingly says the United States of America further undertakes to remove its forces from the proximity of the Islamic Republic of Iran within 30 days after the final deal. What does that mean? We have tens of thousands of US service members permanently stationed in the Middle East. Does that mean we're going to abandon all of those military bases?
But with no US military to protect our Middle East allies, surely this deal would address Iran's missile program. Here's what Trump had to say on day one about that.
>> We are going to destroy their missiles and raise their missile industry to the ground, it will be totally again obliterated. >>
But today, he said Iran's missile program is no big deal.
>> I'm saying that if other countries have them, it's a little bit unfair for them not to have some. A ballistic missile is not the same thing as what we're talking about when we talk nuclear. But if Saudi Arabia and Qatar and they all have some, I would say in relative proportion, I think it's okay. >>
For the record, this MOU says nothing about Iran's missile capabilities.
Now, even though President Trump was trying to sell this deal today as a win for America, he also suggested he has a backup plan if people think it's really a loss.
>> This way if it works out, I'm going to take the credit. If it doesn't work out, I'm blaming JD. You better be careful, JD. He's going to turn his plane around and get the hell out of here. Yeah, I I like that idea. I think it's a good idea. >>