Obama says ‘tireless’ effort led to prisoner release

“It’s great that these prisoners have been released”, the Washington Post quoted Huckabee as telling reporters.

President Barack Obama Sunday touted American diplomacy after months of negotiations with Iran to scale back the country’s nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions that now fuel the country with billions of dollars in unfrozen assets. The decades that the US and Iran spent not engaging with each other didn’t advance USA interests, he said, while diplomacy – not war – led to the “historic success” evidenced this weekend.

News of the release, part of a prisoner swap in which the US offered clemency to seven Iranians, came as Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart were finalizing the deal to end economic sanctions on Iran, part of nuclear non-proliferation deal that Republican presidential candidates have decried and vowed to end if they are elected. He also noted that differences between the US and Iran remain, and pointed to new sanctions against Iran as evidence that the USA will remain steadfast in opposing Iranian violations of worldwide agreements.

HORSLEY: Well, you know, the administration has said all along that striking this nuclear deal with Iran would not solve all of our differences with that country.

As for his spat with GOP front-runner Donald Trump over his “New York Values” comment, Cruz said, “It strikes me as curious that he is displayed such outrage that anyone would even acknowledge that there’s a particular political view – and I would point out it’s a view echoed by far left liberal democratic politicians like Andrew Cuomo, like Bill de Blasio, like Hillary Clinton, and Donald Trump has supported those candidates and supported their positions on a lot of issues”. He then spoke at length about the achievement of Implementation Day, saying, “Today marks the first day of a safer world…” And as president, I decided that a strong, confident America could advance our national security by engaging directly with the Iranian government. “Congrats on this glorious victory!”

“I am very pleased that five American citizens, who were illegally imprisoned by Iran in flagrant violation of longstanding worldwide human rights norms, have finally been released”, the retired neurosurgeon said. “We celebrate all of them coming home”. “I am happy they are coming back, but it is a disgrace they have been there this long, a total disgrace”.

When asked if he’s saying that we shouldn’t have released them, he said, “I’m saying the question becomes is the policy of the U.S.to trade for innocent Americans those who are convicted of terrorism and other acts?”

“Surely bad parts of Obama’s latest deal, but prayers of thanksgiving that Pastor Saeed is coming home”. That has led to the lifting of global economic sanctions on Iran and a prisoner swap that saw five American prisoners released from Iranian jails. “Under no rational analysis is that a fair deal”, Santorum said in a statement. “These prisoners were held unjustly by a regime that continues to threaten the peace and security of the Middle East”. Now, to take it up a notch, we throw in this prisoner exchange.

Rubio also responded to the Obama administration’s deal. At the same time, as you heard, the president says, look, engagement makes a difference.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio said that while he is happy for the freed Americans and their families, the US “shouldn’t be involved in swaps”.

Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum said the deal “should give each of us pause”. “The fact of the matter is that this tells us everything we need to know about the Iranian regime-that they take people hostage in order to gain concessions. The region, the states and the world will be more secure”, the President continued. They didn’t actually leave Iran until this morning.

And we’re told by administration officials that those talks accelerated after the nuclear deal itself was concluded last summer.