FLASHBACK: Tim Walz Called The Iran Deal The ‘Best Path Forward’

As Israel braces for a strike from Iran and its terrorist proxies, Vice President Kamala tapped as her running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who voted in favor of the infamous deal that emboldened and enriched Iran.

Walz voted for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) as a member of Congress in 2015, calling it the “best path forward” CBS News reported at the time. He has remained a vocal defender of the plan, and criticized former President Donald Trump when the latter withdrew from the deal in 2018.

The JCPOA stipulates that Iran would halt any nuclear weapons programs and permit inspections of its nuclear energy facilities in exchange for the United States and its allies agreeing to lift economic sanctions and permit access to about $56 billion of its frozen assets.

Opponents of the JCPOA, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, doubted Iran’s commitment to transparent inspections, and argued that the deal didn’t address Iran’s ability to increase funding for its terrorist proxies with the lifted sanctions and unfrozen assets.

Since the United States agreed to the JCPOA, Iran’s military budget grew by approximately 30 percent, even as the country’s economy foundered. It is estimated that Iran could produce enough enriched uranium for a nuclear bomb in under a week, according to Bloomberg.

“This deal is far from perfect, and I harbor no illusions that the hate and violence of the Iranian regime will fade after it goes into effect,” he wrote. “I expect Iran will continue to be a destabilizing force in the region and a threat to America and our allies. But, I believe this agreement is our best path forward.” 

Walz said it was “disappointing” and “frustrating” when former President Donald Trump terminated the United States’ involvement in the JCPOA in 2018.

“Like so many things with President Trump — whether it’s the Paris Accords, the ACA, Dodd-Frank — how about we build upon those successes? We’re trying to erase President Obama’s legacy without any thought about how those things were built,” Walz told the MinnPost at the time.

Walz also condemned Trump’s move on X.

Preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb is critical to national and global security. The conversation about how to best protect the US and our allies must and will continue following @realDonaldTrump’s disappointing and shortsighted decision to walk away from the #IranDeal.

— Fmr. Rep. Tim Walz (@RepTimWalz) May 8, 2018

In his announcement to withdraw, Trump deemed the JCPOA “disastrous” and “a great embarrassment to me as a citizen and to all citizens of the United States.”

“The fact is this was a horrible, one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made,” Trump said. “It didn’t bring calm, it didn’t bring peace, and it never will.”

Trump added that Iran and its proxies have attacked American embassies and military installations and murdered hundreds of American service members in Beirut in 1983, and kidnapped, imprisoned, and tortured American citizens.

Anti-Israel members of the far-left “Squad” celebrated Harris naming Walz to the ticket on Tuesday, including Rep. Ilhan Omar (MN) who has a history of anti-Semitism.

“Congratulations to our next Vice President,” Omar wrote on X, adding that Walz is “Bringing Minnesota nice to the ticket.” 

Just days before Iran attacked Israel in April with about 170 drones and 30 cruise missiles, Omar called for the Biden-Harris administration to withhold “pending and future weapons assistance to Israel.” Following the attack, Omar doubled down, urging Washington to “exercise restraint.”

Along with Rep. Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, Omar demanded sanctions to be lifted on Iran in 2020.

In March, Walz called for a ceasefire in Israel’s war against Hamas, which began after Hamas killed about 1,200 Israelis in southern Israel on October 7.