As news broke Tuesday morning that a nuclear deal had been reached between Iran, the United States and other Western nations, Republicans vying for the presidency unloaded on the Obama administration for allowing the Islamic Republic to bamboozle America.
"Shame on the Obama administration for agreeing to a deal that empowers an evil Iranian regime to carry out its threat to 'wipe Israel off the map' and bring 'death to America,'"
former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said in a statement, Reuters reports.
Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, the lone woman in the GOP field, suggested to CBS News that the U.S. caved to Tehran and that, despite President Barack Obama’s contention that the deal makes a nuclear arms race less likely, "our Arab allies have said just the opposite. So has Israel."
"So there’s reason for suspicion here that’s not partisan."
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A "whole set of Arab allies … that don't agree on very much" agree it’s a bad deal, Fiorina said.
Dr. Ben Carson said in an email statement that the Iran deal, "announced with fanfare and another heaping dose of false hope," is a mistake with "deadly consequences."
"This is not a good deal, but a recipe for disaster and the first fateful step toward a frenzied nuclear arms race in the Middle East," Carson's statement said.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio predicted Congress will vote to undo the deal because it compromises America’s security, according to Reuters.
"I have said from the beginning of this process that I would not support a deal with Iran that allows the mullahs to retain the ability to develop nuclear weapons, threaten Israel, and continue their regional expansionism and support for terrorism," Rubio said in a statement. "Based on what we know thus far, I believe that this deal undermines our national security."
During an appearance on MSNBC, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham characterized the "terrible" deal as "a possible death sentence for Israel" that will "make everything worse."
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"This is most dangerous, irresponsible step I've ever seen in the history of watching the Mideast," Graham said. "Barack Obama and John Kerry have been dangerously naive about the Mideast in general. They've taken it to a new level and any senator who votes for this is voting for a nuclear arms race in the Mideast, voting to give the largest state sponsor of terrorism $18 billion."
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, during his announcement speech for the 2016 race on Monday, vowed to "terminate" the deal on his first day in office.
Breaking Israel News reports that during Monday’s annual summit of Christians United for Israel in Washington, D.C.,
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, in a prerecorded interview, said the deal "has become a research and development program for the Iranian nuclear program."
"Under the terms we know, the Obama administration has already given up the entire store, and they are pushing it as a partisan political issue," said Cruz. "The president’s approach from Day One on Iran is that he wants a political legacy and doesn’t particularly care about the terms of the deal."
Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum warned that "the Iranians have never kept a deal, never."
"They're not going to keep this deal. They're going to do everything they can to stall, delay, cheat. And they will continue to export terrorism," Santorum told CNN. "There will be plenty of opportunity for the next president of the United States to make a compelling case to the world that this is fraudulent."
Newsmax reporter Melanie Batley contributed to this article.
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