During the final Democratic debate before the primaries, the candidates were asked about President Trump's statement that he will not allow Iran to possess nuclear weapons. Each of the candidates praised the nuclear deal that was negotiated under President Obama and condemned President Trump for pulling out if it. That shows that either a) they are stupid, b) they think that everyone else is stupid or c) they have no idea what was in the agreement but they are sure it must have been good if Trump opposed it.
The agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or the JCPOA did not stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power. It did just the opposite - it allowed Iran to be a nuclear power as long as they did it slowly. Validated in 2015, the JCPOA required Iran to wait 15 years before finishing nuclear weapons. The hope was that after 15 years the Iranian theocracy would give up its desire to spread it's version of Islam and become a more moderate country. Five years into the agreement, that looks like a bad bet. Iran used the funds freed up by Obama and the lifting of sanctions to organize militias in multiple countries, carving out whole sections that functioned as Iranian-controlled mini-states. It also continued the civil war in Syria.
Iran started cheating on the treaty before it was even signed. It did not disclose all of it's enrichment facilities as required. It also violated agreements on developing nuclear-capable missiles.
So why did the candidates support the treaty and act as if it was stopping Iran from having nuclear weapons? Even Obama's Vice President, Joe Biden, acted as if the JCPOA was keeping Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
I suspect that they don't want to come out and say that they would allow Iran to become a nuclear power by 2030. That would admit that Trump is right which is the worst thing a candidate could say on that stage. So they had to pretend that the JCPOA was keeping Iran from making nuclear weapons.
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