Obama denies $400M payment to Iran was ransom
ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Barack Obama answers a question during a news conference after attending a National Security Council Meeting on efforts to counter the Islamic State today at the Pentagon in Washington.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry talks during a press conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina today.
WASHINGTON » President Barack Obama vigorously denied today that a $400 million cash payment to Iran was ransom to secure the release of four Americans jailed in Tehran. He defended the transaction as evidence that the nuclear accord with Iran has allowed for progress on other matters.
“This wasn’t some nefarious deal,” Obama said during a news conference at the Pentagon.
The money was delivered to the Iranian government in January, at the same time the nuclear deal was settled and the Americans were released. The payment was part of a decades-old dispute over a failed military equipment deal dating to the 1970s, before the Islamic revolution in 1979.
Obama also answered political questions at the news conference, pushing back at Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s suggestions that the November election might be rigged, calling the assertion “ridiculous.” He said his advice to Trump, a candidate he has declared “unfit” for the presidency, was to “go out there and try to win the election.”
Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton will soon be receiving classified briefings, giving them access to sensitive information about national security and America’s military posture. Asked whether he was worried about Trump having access to such material, Obama said simply that those who want to be president need to start acting like it.
“That means being able to receive these briefings and not spread them around,” he said.
The president’s appearance before reporters followed an hours-long meeting with military leaders at the Pentagon on the fight against the Islamic State group.
Obama said there have been gains in weakening IS in Iraq and Syria, but he conceded the extremist group still poses a threat to the United States as it shifts its tactics to carrying out attacks elsewhere around the world. While those attacks may result in less carnage, Obama said IS knows they still create “the kinds of fear and concern that elevates their profile.”
The rise of the Islamic State has kept Obama tied to the Middle East in a way he had hoped to avoid in his eighth and final year in office. While the U.S. has far fewer troops in the region than when he took office in 2009, Republicans argue that the drawdown of troops from Iraq created a vacuum that allowed the Islamic State to thrive.
Asked whether he feels any personal disappointment about not being able to do more to stop the Islamic State, Obama said “I haven’t gotten numb to it. It bugs me.”
On Syria, the president criticized Russia’s support of government attacks against opposition forces and its sieges of cities such as Aleppo. He accused Russia of failing to take steps to reduce violence in Syria — where a civil war has raged for much of Obama’s presidency — but said the U.S. would continue trying to push Moscow to focus on the fight against IS and other extremists.
On Iran, Obama expressed surprise at criticism of his administration’s cash payment to settle a longstanding legal claim, adamantly rejecting claims that it was a ransom paid for the release of the four Americans.
He pointed out that the payment, along with an additional $1.3 billion in interest to be paid later, was announced by the administration when it was concluded in January, a day after the implementation of a landmark nuclear agreement with Iran. “It wasn’t a secret. We were completely open about it,” he said.
Obama allowed that the one piece of new information, first reported this week by The Wall Street Journal, was that the $400 million was paid in cash. It was delivered to Iran on palettes aboard an unmarked plane.
“The only bit of news is that we paid cash,” he said. “The reason is because we couldn’t send them a check and we couldn’t wire the money. We don’t have a banking relationship with Iran which is part of the pressure we applied on them.”
The payment has revived allegations from Trump and other critics of the Iran nuclear deal. Trump’s campaign released a statement Thursday night accusing the administration of a “cover-up” and slamming “Obama’s refusal to acknowledge that these funds will end up being used to subsidize terror.”
The president’s session at the Pentagon occurred as the U.S. was bombing targets in and around the Libyan city of Sirte, a notable expansion of the U.S.-led coalition’s military mission against IS. At the urging of the Pentagon, Obama authorized the strikes that started this week and include precision attacks against IS tanks, rocket launchers and fighting positions.
Mired in chaos following the ouster of strongman Moammar Gadhafi in 2011, Libya became a target for IS extremists hoping to build a safe haven outside its initial territory in Iraq and Syria. Though the number of IS fighters in Libya has dwindled, the U.S. is hoping to help Libya’s fledgling U.N.-backed unity government finish the job.
27 responses to “Obama denies $400M payment to Iran was ransom”
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We need to stop giving money to governments like Iran who want to blow us off the map.
What are you talking about? This was Iran’s money that was in frozen accounts in the United States.
More spin from lurch.
So sad that we’ve reached the point of not believing anything that comes out of the mouth of a politician. What makes Kerry’s statement suspect is that, if he’s correct, that means that one arm of the government didn’t know what another arm was doing when both are significant issues. So it’s either BS or shows the level of incompetence that exists.
Hey this was reported in January in both the NY Times and The Hill. Suddenly this is a new report? I guess the likes of Faux News needed something to deflect from Chump’s follies.
The WSJ broke this story before Fox.
Anyone, who did the same thing as this administration, with these funds, would be immediately indicted on money laundering charges. This is the most inept, and corrupt government we’ve had in decades. Wake-up people! This is the same gang that traded the top Taliban leadership for a straight-up traitor. When was the last time you heard anything about B. Bergdahl? We can’t get rid of this administration fast enough.
Sometimes, it’s hard to believe that an adult wrote a posted comment. This is one of them.
You are equating the transfer of funds between sovereign governments to money laundering? How do you think up these things?
Do you have directions to access those reports? I tried to look but couldn’t find them. It’s hard to believe that this wouldn’t have been a big news item at that time unless it was buried in an article with a nondescript headline.
Does it even matter WHO reported it??!! What matters is it’s official..”OPEN SEASON for KIDNAPPING WESTERNERS (BONUS for Americans)!!!!
O is THE WORST potus in American history.
ps…maybe O likes Iran because they have something in common?
Hey cheese, it’s called the Hillary follies, and there’s plenty of show to watch. Hear about her promise to raise taxes on the middle class?
If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a duck.
If the $400 million was payment for military equipment that was never delivered due to the ousting of the Shah and subsequent ransacking of our Embassy and the taking of U.S. Embassy staff as hostages for more than one year, it never should have been returned and instead should have been used to compensate the hostages and for damages to our Embassy.
Of course, but that would have made far too much sense in these times. We are watching the most corrupt administration of all time, and I’m not talking about Iran.
Bill says: “In law school, Hillary worked on legal services for the poor.”
The facts are: Hillary’s main extra-curricular activity in law school was helping the Black Panthers, on trial in Connecticut for torturing and killing a federal agent. She went to court every day as part of a law student monitoring committee trying to spot civil rights violations and develop grounds for appeal.
Bill says: “Hillary spent a year after graduation working on a children’s rights project for poor kids.”
The facts are: Hillary interned with Bob Truehaft, the head of the California Communist Party. She met Bob when he represented the Panthers and traveled all the way to San Francisco to take an internship with him.
Bill says: “Hillary could have written her own job ticket, but she turned down all the lucrative job offers.”
The facts are: She flunked the DC bar exam; yes, flunked. It is a matter of record, and only passed the Arkansas bar. She had no job offers in Arkansas – none – and only got hired by the University of Arkansas Law School at Fayetteville because Bill was already teaching there. She did not join the prestigious Rose Law Firm until Bill became Arkansas Attorney General and was made a partner only after he was elected Arkansas Governor.
Bill says: “President Carter appointed Hillary to the Legal Services Board of Directors and she became its chairman.”
The facts are: The appointment was in exchange for Bill’s support for Carter in his 1980 primary against Ted Kennedy. Hillary then became chairman in a coup in which she won a majority away from Carter’s choice to be chairman.
Bill says: “She served on the board of the Arkansas Children’s Hospital.”
The facts are: Yes, she did. But her main board activity, not mentioned by Bill, was to sit on the Wal-Mart board of directors for a substantial fee. She was silent about their labor and health care practices.
Bill says: “Hillary didn’t succeed at getting health care for all Americans in 1994, but she kept working at it and helped to create the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) that provides five million children with health insurance.”
The facts are: Hillary had nothing to do with creating CHIP. It was included in the budget deal between Clinton and Republican Majority Leader Senator Trent Lott. I know; I helped negotiate the deal. The money came half from the budget deal and half from the Attorney Generals’ tobacco settlement. Hillary had nothing to do with either source of funds.
Bill says: “Hillary was the face of America all over the world.”
The facts are: Her visits were part of a program to get her out of town so that Bill would not appear weak by feeding stories that Hillary was running the White House. Her visits abroad were entirely touristic and symbolic and there was no substantive diplomacy on any of them.
Bill says: “Hillary was an excellent Senator who kept fighting for children’s and women’s issues.”
The facts are: Other than totally meaningless legislation like changing the names on courthouses and post offices, she has passed only four substantive pieces of legislation. One set up a national park in Puerto Rico . A second provided respite care for family members helping their relatives through Alzheimer’s or other conditions. And two were routine bills to aid 911 victims and responders which were sponsored by the entire NY delegation. Presently she is trying to have the US memorialize the Woodstock fiasco of 40 years ago.
Here is what bothers me more than anything else about Hillary Clinton: She has done everything possible to weaken the President and our country (that’s you and me!) when it comes to the war on terror.
1. She wants to close GITMO and move the combatants to the USA where they would have access to our legal system.
2. She wants to eliminate the monitoring of suspected Al Qaeda phone calls to/from the USA .
3. She wants to grant constitutional rights to enemy combatants captured on the battlefield.
4. She wants to eliminate the monitoring of money transfers between suspected Al Qaeda cells and supporters in the USA .
5. She wants to eliminate the type of interrogation tactics used by the military & CIA where coercion might be used when questioning known terrorists even though such tactics might save American lives.
One cannot think of a single bill Hillary has introduced or a single comment she has made that would tend to strengthen our country in the War on Terror. But, one can think of a lot of comments she has made that weaken our country and make it a more dangerous situation for all of us. Bottom line: She goes hand in hand with the ACLU on far too many issues where common sense is abandoned.
Share this with every democrat you know. Ask them to prove Dick Morris wrong. Think about it — Dick Morris has said all of this openly, thus if he were not truthful he’d be liable for defamation of character! And you better believe Hillary would sue him.
Is America ready for a woman president? Perhaps we are, but definitely NOT THIS one.
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IT has now been revealed by one of the hostages that their plane was delayed over and over again, into what turned-out to be overnight, because the Iranians were waiting for the other plane to arrive first. The other unmarked plane was carrying the pallets of cash. This is an outrageous deal, and another classic example of why this President should be removed from office immediately. He’s about to give a press conference where he certainly will lie, again.
Listen up. Baghdad Bob back on TV.
“Herman Munster” must think “We the People” are idiots! Why has it taken so long to “return” this supposed Money,Weapons for the Shah ? And why was it specifically orchestrated during the Iran Nuke Deal and release of the Hostages?? Generations of presidents have past and gone. Why? couldn’t they have done this too? Why only when Obama is president ? And yet Kerry claims that this has nothing to do with the iran nuke deal?…..This is damage control folks!
The way this was timed was bad enough,but not letting the American people and Congress(?)know before hand…..is HUGE! One Huge deception……where’s the transparency we were promised?
indeed,not only Hillary,but Kerry also needs to worry about Donald Trump becoming the next POTUS….It will be Shake ,Rattle and Roll! IMUA
see how the AP lies and spins this same as Obama and the SA printing it. this was a 400 million dollar deal to release the hostages not anything else, the reason why use an unmarked plane to deliver the money use a plane that has US markings, and also what the AP and SA and other news people did not tell us was that there was also foreign money mixed in with our money, if we were owing a debt we would use our own US currency not foreign money. it was a ransom.
Mr. Trump is now hallucinating, and discussing at rallies, that he saw footage of cash being taken off an airplane. When questioned, his campaign admitted that was not true. There is no such footage. But despite his own campaign saying essentially that he made up the whole thing, he keeps repeating it.
His supporters, no matter how dense they are (and boy … are they ever dense) must be able to see at this point that Mr. Trump is profoundly mentally ill.