Trump’s Deal with Iran: Will Obama Get the Last Laugh?

Former President Barack Obama told the hosts of ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday that he’s “doubtful” Donald Trump’s negotiating team can improve on his nuclear deal with Iran. It’s unlikely, Obama speculated, that this president will hammer out terms with Iran that represent “a significant improvement from the deal that we had in the first place and had worked for, for a long stretch of time before we, the United States, pulled out of it.”

Trump shouldn’t want to give his predecessor the satisfaction of being right. But to hear the president and his administration’s officials talk about the deliberations with Iran that will follow the implementation of an emerging cease-fire agreement, Obama may get the last laugh.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.

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Former President Barack Obama told the hosts of ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday that he’s “doubtful” Donald Trump’s negotiating team can improve on his nuclear deal with Iran. It’s unlikely, Obama speculated, that this president will hammer out terms with Iran that represent “a significant improvement from the deal that we had in the first place and had worked for, for a long stretch of time before we, the United States, pulled out of it.”

Trump shouldn’t want to give his predecessor the satisfaction of being right. But to hear the president and his administration’s officials talk about the deliberations with Iran that will follow the implementation of an emerging cease-fire agreement, Obama may get the last laugh.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.