Barack Obama
Democratic Incumbent
President Obama entered the White House pledging to open dialogue with Tehran without preconditions. In March 2009, in a Nowruz message, he told Iran's leaders his administration sought "engagement that is honest and grounded in mutual respect." Following the disputed Iranian presidential election in June 2009, Obama opted for a low-key response in the early days. But the Iranian government's violent crackdown on opposition supporters made diplomacy difficult, even as the Obama administration attempted to balance outreach with defense of human rights.
On the nuclear program, the administration brokered a deal backed by the IAEA that would see the international community provide fuel to Tehran's research reactor while implementing safeguards. While Iran agreed initially, it later withdrew support.
Tehran's continued violence against opposition supporters and new reports outlining Iran's enrichment-related activities--including that it was building a secret uranium- enrichment facility near Qom--hardened Obama's stance on Iran by 2010. Since then, Obama has worked to isolate Iran by imposing new sanctions and toughening existing ones against the regime, both unilaterally and through the United Nations. Some analysts say the administration has also used covert actions to sabotage Iran's nuclear program, such as the 2010 Stuxnet cyberattack, although there has been no official confirmation.
In November 2011, following a report by the IAEA that included strong indications of an Iranian nuclear weapons program, the administration upped efforts to squeeze the regime. For the first time, U.S. sanctions targeted Iran's petrochemical sector, and the entire banking sector--including the Central Bank of Iran. In February, Obama signed an executive order on financial sanctions (al-Jazeera) allowing U.S. institutions to freeze all property and interests of the Iranian government, the central bank, and all Iranian financial institutions that come within U.S. jurisdiction.
The Obama administration has said a military option is on the table, but stressed it would focus on a diplomatic approach to press Iran. In remarks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference in Washington March 4, President Obama, while calling for diplomacy, said that he would take "no options off the table" in preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, including a military contingency. "I firmly believe that an opportunity still remains for diplomacy–backed by pressure–to succeed," Obama said, adding that a nuclear Iran is counter both Israel and the United States' national security interests. "Iran's leaders should understand that I do not have a policy of containment; I have a policy to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon."
In late March, Obama said recently there is enough oil is being produced worldwide (NYT) to proceed with Iran sanctions aimed at slashing the country's oil revenue without suffering unbearable global oil price increases.
Ron Paul
Republican Candidate
Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) has spoken against using a military option to counter threats posed by Iran. He cautioned against any president taking military action without consent of Congress. He says presidents must abide by the Constitution in such matters. " You go to the Congress and find out if our national security is threatened," he said during a GOP debate on November 12.
Paul cautioned against warmongering on Iran. "I'm afraid what's going on right now is similar to the war propaganda that went on against Iraq," he added during the debate.
In a February debate in Arizona, Paul said there was no evidence that Iran has a nuclear weapon. "If you want to worry about nuclear weapons, worry about the nuclear weapons that were left over from the Soviet Union," he said.
Mitt Romney
Republican Candidate
Mitt Romney has said that it is "unacceptable for Iran to have a nuclear weapon" and he would apply a range of measures--economic, diplomatic, and ultimately military, to deter Tehran. "If you'd like me as the next president, they will not have a nuclear weapon," he said during a November GOP debate.
He has called for imposing additional economic sanctions and working with the insurgents to encourage regime change in the country. During a primary debate, he said Obama should have spoken out during the mass protests of 2009 and told protesters, "America is with you." He also called for covert support for dissidents.
During a January 2012 primary debate in Florida, Romney expressed concern about the shrinking size of the U.S. Navy in answering a question about tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. He said the number of ships being built should be raised from the current nine to fifteen per year. "Not because we want to go to war with anyone but because we don't want anyone to take the hazard of going against us," he said. "We want to show Iran, any action of that nature will be considered an act of war, an act of terror and -- and America is going to be keep those sea lanes open."
Romney said at a February debate in Arizona that it was important to communicate to Iran that the United States is considering military options to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weaponry. "They're not just on the table. They are in our hand," Romney said.
Romney, speaking at the AIPAC policy conference, said Iran needs to be sanctioned into capitulation but that he would be ready to take matters further if necessary. "I will make sure Iran knows of the very real peril that awaits if it becomes nuclear," he said. "As president, I will be ready to engage in diplomacy. But I will be just as ready to engage our military might." Romney also came out with an op-ed in the Washington Post on the same day discussing how he would deal with the Iran situation. "My plan includes restoring the regular presence of aircraft carrier groups in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf region simultaneously," he writes. "It also includes increasing military assistance to Israel and improved coordination with all of our allies in the area."
Newt Gingrich (*withdrew)
Editor's Note: Gingrich withdrew his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on May 2, 2012.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich calls for disrupting Iran's nuclear program through covert action, including "taking out their scientists" and cyberwarfare. He advocates the use of military force as a last resort: "If we get to a point where the military believes that they are truly on the verge of getting a nuclear weapon, I would be prepared to use military force."
Gingrich has also called for regime change in Iran (TheHill); if he became president he says he would set up a fund to support dissident groups, repeal restrictions on U.S. spies, cut off Iran's gasoline supply, and "basically wage economic warfare against them until the regime broke."
In a February debate in Arizona, Gingrich said that he would support the Israeli prime minister in dealing with the threat of a nuclear Iran. "I do believe there are moments when you preempt," Gingrich said. "If you think a madman is about to have nuclear weapons and you think that madman is going to use those nuclear weapons, then you have an absolute moral obligation to defend the lives of your people by eliminating the capacity to get nuclear weapons."
Gingrich also took a hard line (CBS) against Iran in remarks to AIPAC March 6. "As president, on my first day, undermine and replace the Iranian dictatorship by every available method short of war," he said.
Rick Santorum (*withdrew)
Editor's Note: Santorum withdrew his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on April 10, 2012.
Former senator Rick Santorum says the United States should be working with Israel to preemptively strike Iran's nuclear facilities, noting the success of Israeli strikes to disrupt facilities in Iraq and Syria. He has also suggested, like Romney, tougher sanctions against Iran and greater support for pro-democracy groups in the country.
In November 2011, at a campaign stop in Iowa, Santorum called Iran's nuclear scientists "enemy combatants" similar to the Taliban and al-Qaeda and, therefore, potential targets for assassination.
On Jan. 22, 2012, he signaled the aggressive stance he would take against Iran while speaking at a Florida rally. "I will make a clear declaration to the Iranian government that you either open your facilities, you begin to dismantle this nuclear program, or we will dismantle it for you," Santorum said.
In a February debate, Santorum touted his history of trying to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, noting that he had authored a bill that addressed sanctions on a nuclear program.
"A nuclear Iran with a nuclear shield to project terroraround the world is a nightmare for all freedom-loving people in the world," said Santorum on March 6 in remarks at the AIPAC policy conference. "If Iran doesn't get rid of nuclear facilities, we will tear down them ourselves."
In what was billed as a major foreign policy address (AP) March 29, Santorum criticized the Obama administration, saying it has been too slow to address Iran's nuclear threat.
In what was billed as a major foreign policy address (AP) Thursday, Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum criticized the Obama administration, saying it has been too slow to address Iran's nuclear threat,
Michele Bachmann (*withdrew)
Editor's Note: Rep. Bachmann withdrew her candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on January 4, 2012.
Representative Michele Bachmann (R-MN) has called for a naval blockade of Iranian ports, increased intelligence operations against Iran and "crushing economic sanctions." Although she has not committed herself to going to war against Iran over its nuclear program, she has said, "The Pentagon should prepare a war plan, as a last resort, should all else fail in preventing Iran from getting nuclear weapons." She has spoken against Iran's influence in the region and has often referred to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a "mad man."
In 2007, she told the St. Cloud Times that Iran had a plan to divide Iraq and control half of the country and set it up as a "a terrorist safe haven zone."
Jon Huntsman (*withdrew)
Editor's Note: Huntsman withdrew his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on January 16, 2012.
As former U.S. ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman pressed China to support strong U.S. sanctions against Iran, but as GOP candidate he has argued that sanctions will not prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. In an interview with CNN's Piers Morgan in November 2011, Huntsman said sanctions "aren't going to have much of an impact" and instead suggested that military action might be the only way to deter Iran.
In his October foreign policy speech (Politico) he expressed his willingness to use military force against Iran. "I cannot live with a nuclear-armed Iran. If you want an example of when I would use American force, it would be that," he said.
Rick Perry (*withdrew)
Editor's Note: Perry withdrew his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on January 19, 2012.
Texas Governor Rick Perry has called for Washington to sanction Iran's central bank to deter Tehran from pursuing nuclear capability.
On the question of a preemptive military strike, Perry told ABC's Christiane Amanpour in November 2011 that he would not take the military option off the table to thwart Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. He said the United States has only bad options when dealing with Iran.
Like Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich, Perry also urges regime change in Iran and argues that Obama missed an opportunity to oust the Iranian regime in 2009, when authorities confronted their greatest mass protests since the 1979 revolution. He says the United States should be "actively involved" in removing the regime from power and recommends "diplomatic, and economic, and overt, covert, or even civic opportunities" to do so.
Campaign 2012
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