Is Donald Trump copying Barack Obama? Well, Democratic senator Chris Coons of Delaware sure thinks so. During an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Coons claimed that the current administration’s attempts to strike a lasting peace deal with Iran bears an uncanny resemblance with the Obama-era agreement.
Ironically, Trump himself abandoned the negotiation deal during his first term.
During the interview, Sen. Chris Coons emphasized that the Trump administration needed to deliver a “full intelligence picture” to Congress about what exactly happened during the June 21 strikes on Iran’s nuclear program. He also demanded a comprehensive strategy on Iran.
The Democratic senator said, “I’ll just note that President Trump, by press accounts, is now moving toward negotiation and offering Iran a deal that looks somewhat similar to the Iran deal that Obama offered: tens of billions of dollars of incentives and reduced sanctions in exchange for abandoning their nuclear program.”
However, needless to say, Trump didn’t take this criticism in good spirits and lashed out at Coons in a later-night Truth Social rant.
“Tell phony Democrat Senator Chris Coons that I am not offering Iran ANYTHING, unlike Obama, who paid them $Billions under the stupid “road to a Nuclear Weapon JCPOA (which would now be expired!), nor am I even talking to them since we totally OBLITERATED their Nuclear Facilities,” he wrote.
President Trump has a message for Chris Coons. pic.twitter.com/hft65FfwXg
— MAGS (@TAftermath2020) June 30, 2025
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action adopted in 2015 called for sanctions against Iran to be phased out in exchange for Tehran agreeing to dismantle critical infrastructure, restrict enrichment capabilities, halt new research, and allow international monitoring.
In 2018, after taking over the office for the first time, Donald Trump withdrew from this Obama-era agreement. As a result, Iran’s nuclear program received a green light to surge ahead. Following his return to the White House in January, he began attempts to strike a new deal with the nation that one arms expert refers to as “dollar-store-JCPOA.”
According to the reports by CNN, the United States’ relationship with Iran drastically changed after Donald Trump joined hands with Israel to bomb the country’s nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan. As reported by the tabloid, he insisted that Iran’s nuclear program was “obliterated” and that he “doesn’t care” whether the administration reaches a comprehensive plan with Iran.
.@RepJeffries criticizes the Trump Administration — which just took out Iran’s nuclear capabilities — for abandoning Barack Obama’s approach to Iran, that included sending them pallets of cash.
You can’t make this up. pic.twitter.com/NMOKJeiIPC
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 29, 2025
However, the United Nations chief nuclear inspector insisted that although the damage was “severe,” it wasn’t “total.” Iran’s nuclear program could be up and running again within a few months, according to The New York Times.
During his interview, Coons pointed out there should be a loophole in how Iran managed to move almost 900 pounds of highly enriched uranium right before the strikes.
“It would fit in the back of an F-150 pickup truck and there are open-source pictures of trucks pulling up to two of these facilities and leaving afterwards,” he said.
Despite Trump’s nonchalantness, many of his own advisers believe a long-term negotiation with Iran should be in place to solidify the ceasefire agreement between the nation and Israel after the U.S. strikes.
