Good Thursday evening. In this edition: Vance pushes back on GOP and Israeli critics of Iran deal.
Plus, Hegseth, Obama Presidential Center, Medal of Honor, DC mayoral race and Kean Jr.
Iran Deal
Vice President JD Vance gave a full-throated defense of the administration's preliminary deal with Iran, pushing back against Republican critics and rebuking Israeli officials who have scoffed at its terms.
"I think that when people get to understand not just the agreement, but our negotiating posture as a country, they will realize this is an excellent thing for the American people," he said at a White House briefing.
The deal, signed by President Trump at the Palace of Versailles on Wednesday, essentially sets up a 60-day ceasefire for further negotiations over Iran's nuclear program and reopens the Strait of Hormuz, the closure of which had spiked energy prices across the globe.
But detractors argue it gives Iran too much economic relief by providing sanctions waivers for the regime to sell its oil, unfreezing its assets and setting up a $300 billion reconstruction fund, while leaving its ballistic missile program unchecked.
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the chair of the Armed Services Committee, put out a statement saying he was concerned the deal "negotiates away the victories of Operation Epic Fury in ways that are completely out of step with the president's goals."
"Specifically, the $300 billion fund for the reconstruction and economic development of Iran — though not funded by U.S. taxpayers — would make Iran's payoff under President Obama's 2015 deal look like a pittance by comparison," the longtime senator wrote.
Sen. Wicker also called it an "error" to force Israel to stand down against Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and to lift sanctions in exchange for the country's "mere agreement to negotiate for another 60 days," arguing Tehran will use that money against U.S. interests.
"President Trump has pursued peace through strength. I hope the intermediaries working on this deal are not undermining that objective," he said.
Vice President Vance said a lot of what has been said about the deal is "fundamentally untrue" and urged his former colleagues to "have a little bit of faith" in President Trump.
"The idea that he is going to strike a deal that's bad for the American people, it's preposterous," he said. "He believes in this deal. He is going to see it to completion. And if the Iranians don't comply, we still have every single tool and point of leverage that we have today."
The vice president defended letting Iran keep its ballistic missile arsenal, saying it was impossible to tell any country they were not allowed to maintain their right to self-defense.
"You can't tell a country, whether Israel or Iran, that they're not allowed to have any self-defense," he said. "But we do expect that as part of the final deal they are not going to be able to build the kind of missiles that can broadly threaten the entire world."
U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, said at the start of the war that eliminating Iran's ballistic missile program was a key objective.
Tehran retains roughly 70% of its pre-war ballistic and cruise missile stockpile, according to a New York Times report based on classified U.S. intelligence assessments.
The vice president saved his sharpest criticism for Israeli leaders, who were completely shut out of the negotiating process and have reportedly expressed "deep concern" about the deal.
"Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time," he said. "If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world."
President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were aligned when launching the war on Feb. 28, but have since grown apart as their objectives diverge, with the president increasingly criticizing Israel's war in Lebanon.
Prime Minister Netanyahu has remained silent since the memorandum of understanding was made public on Wednesday, but his cabinet members and allies in the media have not held back.
Vice President Vance also sought to remind Israelis that two-thirds of the weapons "that have protected your homeland" were built and paid for by the U.S., saying the country's problem "is not Donald Trump."
"Anybody in Israel who thinks their biggest problem is the president of the United States needs to wake up and smell the reality of the situation in that country," he said.
The vice president, a potential 2028 presidential candidate who has largely become the administration's face of the deal, also dismissed the notion that he would receive the blame if the deal falls through.
President Trump quipped on Wednesday at the G7 that he would point the finger at his vice president if things didn't work out.
"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 said.
Vice President Vance said he understood the president to be "joking, as he often does."
"We're going to get to a good place," he said. "We're already at a good place. It's just a question of whether we can really get the icing on the top of fundamentally transforming Iran's relationship with the world."
Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said he had reservations about the agreement but authorized the negotiations to move forward while warning that Iran would not submit to "excessive demands."
"In-person negotiations that will take place in the future do not mean accepting the enemy's view," he said in a statement.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegsethlashed out at NATO allies, accusing them of "free riding" as he announced plans for a Pentagon review of the U.S. military presence in Europe aimed at reducing force levels in countries that spend the least on defense. "This will be a real review," he said at a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels. "It will be designed to ensure that NATO is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defense of Europe." The Pentagon chief also criticized allies that refused to allow U.S. forces access to their bases to launch attacks on Iran, calling it "shameful," and accused European countries of falling behind on their defense commitments while becoming preoccupied with issues such as migration and gender equality policies.
The Obama Presidential Center was unveiled on the South Side of Chicago with a star-studded celebration attended by all living presidents except President Trump, who was not extended an invitation. The event featured performances by Bruce Springsteen, Bono, the Roots, Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Hudson, among others. "It was here, in this city, the city of broad shoulders, that I found what I was looking for," President Obama said at the $850 million, 19-acre museum campus. "I hope this center will serve as an affirmation of just how special, how precious, our democracy truly is." The Obama Foundation, which paid for the new center through private donations, said it expected one million people to visit the campus each year.
President Trumpawarded the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military decoration, to retired Marine Maj. James Capers, the late Marine Col. John Ripley and medically retired Army Maj. Nicholas Dockery at a ceremony in the White House East Room. Maj. Capers and Col. Ripley were recognized for bravery under fire during the Vietnam War, while Maj. Dockery received the honor for his actions in Afghanistan. "As we approach the 250th anniversary of our founding, we remember that we owe everything to heroes like those we celebrate today," the president said. "Men who went willingly to the darkest and most dangerous corners, ordered to defeat evil so that we could live free."
Janeese Lewis George is now on a glide path to become the next mayor of Washington, DC, after winning the Democratic primary over Kenyan McDuffie, her next closest rival who conceded early Thursday. Ms. Lewis George — a 38-year-old Democratic socialist, DC Council member and former prosecutor — is heavily favored in the deep-blue city in November, putting her on track to succeed Mayor Muriel Bowser, a centrist who has led the nation's capital since 2015 and opted against running for a fourth term.
Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R-NJ), who has been absent from the Capitol since early March and has missed 135 votes in the process, plans to return to work on June 30, his spokesperson told the New Jersey Globe. The congressman, who is locked in a tight reelection fight in a hotly contested battleground district, has said he is recovering from an undisclosed "personal medical issue" without providing further details. The congressman's office said he "plans to be fully transparent regarding the nature of his health issue and you should expect to hear from him in person June 30."
For your radar…
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), the Judiciary Committee ranking member, joins judges, activists and others to address issues confronting the nation at the American Constitution Society's national convention in Washington, DC, on Friday. Watch LIVE on C-SPAN2 at 9:30am ET.
