Seeking to revive his struggling reelection campaign, President Joe Biden held a rare rally in Detroit on Friday (July 12), telling a cheering crowd he isn't leaving the race and warning that Republican Donald Trump poses a serious threat.

'I am running and we're going to win,' Biden says as his campaign struggles

Following a significant press conference that did not quell calls for his resignation, US President Joe Biden headed back out on the campaign trail on Friday to convince Democrats and voters about his suitability for the position.

Joe Biden back on campaign trail amid increasing pressure to quit, promises audience that he is "OK"

<p>US President Joe Biden's re-election campaign has blamed Republican rival Donald Trump for Arizona's revival of the 160-year-old near-complete&nbsp;abortion ban.</p>

<p>In a statement on Tuesday (Apr 9), Biden's running mate Vice President Kamala Harris said: "Arizona just rolled back the clock to a time before women could vote–and, by his own admission, there’s one person responsible: Donald Trump."</p>

<h2><strong>'Proudly' responsible&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>On Tuesday, Arizona's Supreme Court revived a law dating back to 1864 that bans abortion in virtually all instances. This damning ban came just a day after Trump in a video proclaimed that he was "proudly the person responsible" for the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that enshrined abortion rights in the US for nearly five decades.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/arizonas-top-court-revives-1864-law-which-criminalises-nearly-all-abortions-709576">Arizona’s top court revives 1864 law which bans nearly all abortions</a></strong></p>

<p>Also in the video, Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, said individual states should be able to choose their own abortion restrictions.</p>

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<p>Democrats have blamed Trump for the ban in Arizona that could shutter abortion clinics in the state.</p>

<p>In a statement, Biden said the "ruling is a result of the extreme agenda of Republican elected officials who are committed to ripping away women's freedom."</p>

<p>His campaign spokesperson Brooke Goren in a statement said,&nbsp;"It's alarming and will send shockwaves throughout this crucial swing state and the country."</p>

<h2><strong>Is Trump actually to blame for Arizona's abortion ban?</strong></h2>

<p>As per USA Today, the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that overturned Roe v. Wade— which Trump himself took credit for — was cited in the recent Arizona Supreme Court ruling 22 times.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/michigan-school-shooting-parents-of-teenage-gunman-sentenced-to-10-15-years-in-prison-709571">Michigan school shooting: Parents of teenage gunman sentenced to 10-15 years in prison</a></strong></p>

<p>The 1854 law hands two to five years in prison to anyone aiding an abortion, the only exception being when the life of the mother is at stake.</p>

<p>As per White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, 21 states have adopted abortion bans. These bans, she said, affect one-third of all American women of reproductive age.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


US President Joe Biden's re-election campaign has blamed Republican rival Donald Trump for Arizona's revival of the 160-year-old near-complete abortion ban. In a statement on Tuesday (Apr 9), Biden's running mate Vice President Kamala Harris said: "Arizona just rolled back the clock to a time before women could vote–and, by his own admission, there’s one person responsible: Donald Trump.

US President Joe Biden's re-election campaign has blamed Republican rival Donald Trump for Arizona's revival of the 160-year-old near-complete abortion ban. In a statement on Tuesday (Apr 9), Biden's running mate Vice President Kamala Harris said: "Arizona just rolled back the clock to a time before women could vote–and, by his own admission, there’s one person responsible: Donald Trump." 'Proudly' responsible On Tuesday, Arizona's Supreme Court revived a law dating back to 1864 that bans abortion in virtually all instances. This damning ban came just a day after Trump in a video proclaimed that he was "proudly the person responsible" for the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling that enshrined abortion rights in the US for nearly five decades. Also read | Arizona’s top court revives 1864 law which bans nearly all abortions Also in the video, Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, said individual states should be able to choose their own abortion restrictions. × Democrats have blamed Trump for the ban in Arizona that could shutter abortion clinics in the state. In a statement, Biden said the "ruling is a result of the extreme agenda of Republican elected officials who are committed to ripping away women's freedom." His campaign spokesperson Brooke Goren in a statement said, "It's alarming and will send shockwaves throughout this crucial swing state and the country." Is Trump actually to blame for Arizona's abortion ban? As per USA Today, the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that overturned Roe v. Wade— which Trump himself took credit for — was cited in the recent Arizona Supreme Court ruling 22 times. Also read | Michigan school shooting: Parents of teenage gunman sentenced to 10-15 years in prison The 1854 law hands two to five years in prison to anyone aiding an abortion, the only exception being when the life of the mother is at stake. As per White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, 21 states have adopted abortion bans. These bans, she said, affect one-third of all American women of reproductive age. (With inputs from agencies)

'It's alarming': Biden campaign blames Trump for Arizona's near-total ban on abortion

<p>Former US President Donald Trump's campaign said that it raised $50.5 million on Saturday (April 6) as he tries to catch up with President Joe Biden's fundraising successes. This is nearly double the $26 million that Biden's campaign said it raised recently at a gathering with former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama at Radio City Music Hall in New York.</p>

<p>Saturday's event, titled "Inaugural Leadership Dinner" was meant to signal a staggering resurgence of Donald Trump and the Republican Party's fundraising.</p>

<p><strong>Also watch |&nbsp;Three US Presidents, one stage: Biden, Obama &amp; Clinton unite at New York fundraiser to fight Trump</strong></p>

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<p>Trump reacted over the fundraising success few hours before he arrived at the event with his wife Melania Trump: “Biggest night in Fund Raising of ALL TIME!!!Will double up the Biden number of last week at Radio City. People are desperate for change. They want to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"</p>

<p>Donald Trump and his Grand Old Party announced earlier this week that they raised more than $65.6 million in March and closed out the month with $93.1 million.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Biden and the Democrats announced Saturday that they took in more than $90 million last month and had $192 million-plus on hand.</p>

<p><strong>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/major-billionaire-republican-donors-rally-to-aid-trump-in-paying-454-million-bond-704435">Major billionaire Republican donors rallied to aid Trump in paying $454 million bond</a></strong></p>

<p>"While Donald Trump has been busy awarding himself golf trophies at Mar-a-Lago and palling around with billionaires, Joe Biden has been crisscrossing the nation connecting with voters and outlining his vision to grow our economy from the bottom up and the middle out," Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said in a statement, referring to Trump's Florida residence, Associated Press reported.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Saturday's mega fundraising event hosted about 100 guests, including more than a few billionaires. Notably, the fundraising arrangement doesn't direct the funds to Trump's mounting legal bills.</p>

<p>Guests were asked to contribute $814,600 per person as a “chairman" contributor, which came with seating at Trump’s table, or $250,000 per person as a “host committee" contributor. Both options come with a photo opportunity and a personalised copy of Trump’s coffee table book featuring photographs from his presidential tenure: "Our Journey Together."</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


Former US President Donald Trump's campaign said that it raised $50.5 million on Saturday (April 6) as he tries to catch up with President Joe Biden's fundraising successes.

Former US President Donald Trump's campaign said that it raised $50.5 million on Saturday (April 6) as he tries to catch up with President Joe Biden's fundraising successes. This is nearly double the $26 million that Biden's campaign said it raised recently at a gathering with former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama at Radio City Music Hall in New York. Saturday's event, titled "Inaugural Leadership Dinner" was meant to signal a staggering resurgence of Donald Trump and the Republican Party's fundraising. Also watch | Three US Presidents, one stage: Biden, Obama & Clinton unite at New York fundraiser to fight Trump × Trump reacted over the fundraising success few hours before he arrived at the event with his wife Melania Trump: “Biggest night in Fund Raising of ALL TIME!!!Will double up the Biden number of last week at Radio City. People are desperate for change. They want to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" Donald Trump and his Grand Old Party announced earlier this week that they raised more than $65.6 million in March and closed out the month with $93.1 million. Biden and the Democrats announced Saturday that they took in more than $90 million last month and had $192 million-plus on hand. Also read | Major billionaire Republican donors rallied to aid Trump in paying $454 million bond "While Donald Trump has been busy awarding himself golf trophies at Mar-a-Lago and palling around with billionaires, Joe Biden has been crisscrossing the nation connecting with voters and outlining his vision to grow our economy from the bottom up and the middle out," Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said in a statement, referring to Trump's Florida residence, Associated Press reported. Saturday's mega fundraising event hosted about 100 guests, including more than a few billionaires. Notably, the fundraising arrangement doesn't direct the funds to Trump's mounting legal bills. Guests were asked to contribute $814,600 per person as a “chairman" contributor, which came with seating at Trump’s table, or $250,000 per person as a “host committee" contributor. Both options come with a photo opportunity and a personalised copy of Trump’s coffee table book featuring photographs from his presidential tenure: "Our Journey Together." (With inputs from agencies)

Trump's Florida fundraiser collects over $50mn; outshines tri-presidential event for Biden campaign

<p>US President Joe Biden might face legal challenges in appearing on the Ohio ballot over a scheduling conflict. According to Ohio’s secretary of state, the Democratic National Convention may take place too late for Biden to contest general elections in the state.</p>

<p>“The Democratic National Convention is scheduled to convene on August 19, 2024, which occurs more than a week after the August 7 deadline to certify a presidential candidate to the office,” Secretary of State Frank LaRose wrote in a letter to Ohio Democratic Party Chairwoman Liz Walters.</p>

<h2><strong>Legal trouble</strong></h2>

<p>According to Ohio’s legal provisions, a party needs to put forward the nomination by August 7. However, the DNC is expected to start on August 19 in Chicago, Illinois, which is 12 days late to the nomination deadline.</p>

<p>If left unsolved, the legal challenge could end up removing Biden from the state ballot altogether.</p>

<h2><strong>Remedies</strong></h2>

<p>Frank LaRose in his letter talked about two potential solutions.</p>

<p>Solution number 1: The Democratic Party can hold the nomination convention before August 7.</p>

<p>Solution number 2: The party can circumvent the August 7 deadline by getting the Ohio state legislature to “create an exemption to this statutory requirement” by May 9 in accordance with state law.</p>

<p><strong>Watch:&nbsp;President Biden urges Egypt, Qatar to press Hamas for peace talks</strong></p>

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<p>Paul DeSantis, the attorney with the office of the Ohio Secretary of State, said, “I am left to conclude that the Democratic National Committee must either move up its nominating convention or the Ohio General Assembly must act by May 9, 2024 (90 days prior to a new law’s effective date) to create an exception to this statutory requirement.”</p>

<h2><strong>Biden’s reaction</strong></h2>

<p>A spokesperson for the Biden campaign stressed that the president will appear on all 50 state ballots. The campaign is “monitoring the situation in Ohio and we’re confident that Joe Biden will be on the ballot in all 50 states,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying by NBC News.</p>

<p><strong>Also read:&nbsp;<a data-ved="2ahUKEwiupeLA06-FAxWcnFYBHeKQCwkQxfQBKAB6BAgJEAE" href="https://www.wionews.com/world/i-want-a-drug-test-trump-says-biden-was-higher-than-kite-at-state-of-the-union-address-708400" jsname="YKoRaf" ping="/url?sa=t&amp;source=web&amp;rct=j&amp;opi=89978449&amp;url=https://www.wionews.com/world/i-want-a-drug-test-trump-says-biden-was-higher-than-kite-at-state-of-the-union-address-708400&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiupeLA06-FAxWcnFYBHeKQCwkQxfQBKAB6BAgJEAE">'I want a drug test': Trump says Biden was 'higher than kite' at State of the Union address</a></strong></p>

<p>Being a major party, the Democratic Party appears on the ballot in all 50 states.</p>

<p>Ohio is a key state for Biden, where ex-president Donald Trump emerged victorious in the 2016 and 2020 elections.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>


US President Joe Biden might face legal challenges in appearing on the Ohio ballot over a scheduling conflict. According to Ohio’s secretary of state, the Democratic National Convention may take place too late for Biden to contest general elections in the state.

US President Joe Biden might face legal challenges in appearing on the Ohio ballot over a scheduling conflict. According to Ohio’s secretary of state, the Democratic National Convention may take place too late for Biden to contest general elections in the state. “The Democratic National Convention is scheduled to convene on August 19, 2024, which occurs more than a week after the August 7 deadline to certify a presidential candidate to the office,” Secretary of State Frank LaRose wrote in a letter to Ohio Democratic Party Chairwoman Liz Walters. Legal trouble According to Ohio’s legal provisions, a party needs to put forward the nomination by August 7. However, the DNC is expected to start on August 19 in Chicago, Illinois, which is 12 days late to the nomination deadline. If left unsolved, the legal challenge could end up removing Biden from the state ballot altogether. Remedies Frank LaRose in his letter talked about two potential solutions. Solution number 1: The Democratic Party can hold the nomination convention before August 7. Solution number 2: The party can circumvent the August 7 deadline by getting the Ohio state legislature to “create an exemption to this statutory requirement” by May 9 in accordance with state law. Watch: President Biden urges Egypt, Qatar to press Hamas for peace talks × Paul DeSantis, the attorney with the office of the Ohio Secretary of State, said, “I am left to conclude that the Democratic National Committee must either move up its nominating convention or the Ohio General Assembly must act by May 9, 2024 (90 days prior to a new law’s effective date) to create an exception to this statutory requirement.” Biden’s reaction A spokesperson for the Biden campaign stressed that the president will appear on all 50 state ballots. The campaign is “monitoring the situation in Ohio and we’re confident that Joe Biden will be on the ballot in all 50 states,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying by NBC News. Also read: 'I want a drug test': Trump says Biden was 'higher than kite' at State of the Union address Being a major party, the Democratic Party appears on the ballot in all 50 states. Ohio is a key state for Biden, where ex-president Donald Trump emerged victorious in the 2016 and 2020 elections. (With inputs from agencies)

Scheduling conflict may end up removing Biden from Ohio ballot

<p>President-elect Joe Biden has promised to move quickly to rejoin the nuclear deal with Iran so long as Iran also comes back into compliance. But that vow is easier said than done.</p>

<p>While Biden’s pledge pleased the deal’s other signatories, who were angry that President Donald Trump withdrew from it two years ago, returning to the way things were maybe impossible, complicated by both Iranian and U.S. politics.</p>

<p>Trump, even as a lame duck, is moving quickly to increase U.S. sanctions against Iran and sell advanced weapons to its regional enemies, policies that would be difficult for a new president to reverse.</p>

<p>Last week, he asked his advisers for options to launch a military strike against Iran but appears to have been talked out of it. His aides argued that an attack could quickly lead to a larger war.</p>

<p>Iran, where President Hassan Rouhani faces strong opposition from conservatives in elections set for June 2021, is expected to demand a high price to return to the deal, including the immediate lifting of the punishing sanctions imposed by the Trump administration and billions of dollars in compensation for them.</p>

<p>Those are demands that Biden is highly unlikely to meet — especially given strong congressional opposition.</p>

<p>Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has tried to pass on to Biden’s advisers through intermediaries Tehran’s insistence that the United States return to the Iran deal unconditionally before any talks resume, according to Iranian diplomats.</p>

<p>The diplomats say that Iran is not interested in a temporary freeze and will not stop enriching uranium or reduce its large stockpile in the meantime. They said that Iran would return to full compliance with the deal when the United States does.</p>

<p>Advisers to Biden do not confirm receiving any messages from Iran and say they will only deal with the issue after the inauguration.</p>

<p>Iran has some leverage. When Trump took office, Iran had roughly 102 kilograms, or about 225 pounds, of enriched uranium, whose production was limited by the 2015 agreement. After the United States withdrew, Iran declared it was no longer bound by the agreement and resumed enriching uranium at higher levels.</p>

<p>The International Atomic Energy Agency said last week that Iran now had more than 2,440 kilograms, which is more than eight times the limit set by the 2015 nuclear deal. The “breakout” time for Iran to possibly make a nuclear weapon — an ambition it denies — is now considerably shorter than a year.</p>

<p>During the campaign, Biden called Trump’s decision to abandon the deal “reckless” and said it ended up isolating the United States, not Iran.</p>

<p>“I will offer Tehran a credible path back to diplomacy,” Biden wrote in a September op-ed for CNN. “If Iran returns to strict compliance with the nuclear deal, the United States would rejoin the agreement as a starting point for follow-on negotiations.”</p>

<p>A week ago, after Biden’s victory, Rouhani welcomed the initiative, calling it “an opportunity” for the United States “to compensate for its previous mistakes and return to the path of adherence to international commitments.”</p>

<p>The choice of the word “compensate” was not accidental, said Robert Einhorn, a nuclear arms-control negotiator now at the Brookings Institution. Iran says it wants Washington to pay for the billions of dollars in economic losses it incurred when Trump pulled the United States out of the Iran deal in 2018 and reinstituted sanctions that it had lifted.</p>

<p>Since then, Trump has piled on more sanctions. This maximum pressure campaign, as the administration has called it, devastated Iran’s economy but failed to push Iran back to the negotiating table or to curtail its involvement in Iraq, Syria or Lebanon.</p>

<p>The administration is also trying to further limit Iran’s support for proxy militias in those countries. It is selling more sophisticated weapons to the Arab monarchies in the Persian Gulf — countries that see Iran as an enemy and have their own regional ambitions — and accelerating the transfer of F-35 fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates.</p>

<p>Some think Trump will take more kinetic measures, including further sabotage and cyberattacks on Iran’s nuclear or missile programs or even military action, which Israel, Egypt and the Gulf allies would most likely support.</p>

<p>“I don’t think the administration is finished on the Iran issue,” said Mark Dubowitz, chief executive of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a long-standing supporter of a tough policy on Iran. “I think people are going to run hard for the next three months against Iran, knowing that after January there could be a very different Iran policy in place.”</p>

<p>Iranian negotiators know that the United States would never provide financial compensation, Einhorn said. “But they may stake out a tough negotiating position, especially given the dynamics of their upcoming election.” He suggested that Iran would demand not just the removal of the nuclear-related sanctions but also those imposed for human rights violations, ballistic missile development and support for terrorist groups, which a Biden administration would find politically and technically difficult to do.</p>

<p>Short of a quick reentry into the nuclear deal, Einhorn said, the parties should work toward an interim agreement, in which Iran would roll back a meaningful part of its current nuclear buildup in exchange for partial sanctions relief — especially giving Iran access to some of its oil revenues now blocked in overseas bank accounts. Iran might welcome such an interim arrangement if it gave the economy a quick boost, especially before the mid-June elections.</p>

<p>But given the complications of the U.S. transition of power, with the requirements for security clearances and Senate confirmation already slowed by Trump’s refusal to concede defeat and cooperate with Biden, top officials might not be in place very soon. The practical window between inauguration Jan. 20 and June is likely to be only two or three months, which argues for a rapidly constructed “back channel” between Washington and Tehran after Biden takes office.</p>

<p>Despite Trump’s pressure campaign, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has kept the door open to a U.S. return, refusing to completely abandon the nuclear deal, said Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations.</p>

<p>Iranians opposed to the initial deal argue that the United States has proved it cannot be trusted, and Iran rejected any negotiations with Trump. But Khamenei provided Rouhani “the green light, the political space to make these messages to a Biden administration” about Iran’s desire for Washington to return to the deal, Geranmayeh said.</p>

<p>At the same time, she noted, Rouhani’s hard-line opponents will not want him “to get this win before the elections in June, and they will look to jam this effort as the Republicans will try to jam Biden’s,” she said. Biden could quickly lift a number of sanctions tied to Iran’s nuclear activities, including approving more waivers allowing Iran to sell oil. He could ease travel restrictions on Iranian citizens, increase humanitarian trade by easing banking impediments, and lift sanctions on some key officials, like Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the main nuclear negotiator.</p>

<p>But sanctions instituted under the category of counterterrorism and human rights, like those against the Revolutionary Guard, would be harder to void, especially because many Democrats also support them. But Geranmayeh said that Iran would insist that the United States lift the sanction against the Central Bank of Iran, accused of financing designated terrorist groups, so that it can once again use the global banking system.</p>

<p>If the Iran deal can be reconstituted, Iran has said it is open to talks on other issues, especially regional concerns around Iraq and Syria. But Iran has so far refused to put on the table its missile program, which is already under separate U.S. and U.N. sanctions.</p>

<p>The key, as with all major policies in Iran, is Khamenei, now 81. He regards the U.S. as a doomed country in “political, civil and moral decline.” He went along with the nuclear deal because it promised significant economic benefits from the lifting of sanctions and now apparently regards his skepticism about the United States as confirmed by Trump’s withdrawal from the pact.</p>

<p>But with the change in U.S. leadership, he again sees the possibility of easing the economic straitjacket that renewed U.S. sanctions have imposed.</p>

<p>“Despite Khamenei’s hubris, a Biden presidency presents both an opportunity and a challenge for Tehran,” Karim Sadjadpour of the Carnegie Endowment wrote. “The opportunity is a chance to improve the country’s moribund economy; the challenge is that Tehran will no longer be able to effectively use President Donald Trump as a pretext or distraction for its domestic repression, economic failures and regional aggression.”</p>


President-elect Joe Biden has promised to move quickly to rejoin the nuclear deal with Iran so long as Iran also comes back into compliance. But that vow is easier said than done.

President-elect Joe Biden has promised to move quickly to rejoin the nuclear deal with Iran so long as Iran also comes back into compliance. But that vow is easier said than done. While Biden’s pledge pleased the deal’s other signatories, who were angry that President Donald Trump withdrew from it two years ago, returning to the way things were maybe impossible, complicated by both Iranian and U.S. politics. Trump, even as a lame duck, is moving quickly to increase U.S. sanctions against Iran and sell advanced weapons to its regional enemies, policies that would be difficult for a new president to reverse. Last week, he asked his advisers for options to launch a military strike against Iran but appears to have been talked out of it. His aides argued that an attack could quickly lead to a larger war. Iran, where President Hassan Rouhani faces strong opposition from conservatives in elections set for June 2021, is expected to demand a high price to return to the deal, including the immediate lifting of the punishing sanctions imposed by the Trump administration and billions of dollars in compensation for them. Those are demands that Biden is highly unlikely to meet — especially given strong congressional opposition. Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has tried to pass on to Biden’s advisers through intermediaries Tehran’s insistence that the United States return to the Iran deal unconditionally before any talks resume, according to Iranian diplomats. The diplomats say that Iran is not interested in a temporary freeze and will not stop enriching uranium or reduce its large stockpile in the meantime. They said that Iran would return to full compliance with the deal when the United States does. Advisers to Biden do not confirm receiving any messages from Iran and say they will only deal with the issue after the inauguration. Iran has some leverage. When Trump took office, Iran had roughly 102 kilograms, or about 225 pounds, of enriched uranium, whose production was limited by the 2015 agreement. After the United States withdrew, Iran declared it was no longer bound by the agreement and resumed enriching uranium at higher levels. The International Atomic Energy Agency said last week that Iran now had more than 2,440 kilograms, which is more than eight times the limit set by the 2015 nuclear deal. The “breakout” time for Iran to possibly make a nuclear weapon — an ambition it denies — is now considerably shorter than a year. During the campaign, Biden called Trump’s decision to abandon the deal “reckless” and said it ended up isolating the United States, not Iran. “I will offer Tehran a credible path back to diplomacy,” Biden wrote in a September op-ed for CNN. “If Iran returns to strict compliance with the nuclear deal, the United States would rejoin the agreement as a starting point for follow-on negotiations.” A week ago, after Biden’s victory, Rouhani welcomed the initiative, calling it “an opportunity” for the United States “to compensate for its previous mistakes and return to the path of adherence to international commitments.” The choice of the word “compensate” was not accidental, said Robert Einhorn, a nuclear arms-control negotiator now at the Brookings Institution. Iran says it wants Washington to pay for the billions of dollars in economic losses it incurred when Trump pulled the United States out of the Iran deal in 2018 and reinstituted sanctions that it had lifted. Since then, Trump has piled on more sanctions. This maximum pressure campaign, as the administration has called it, devastated Iran’s economy but failed to push Iran back to the negotiating table or to curtail its involvement in Iraq, Syria or Lebanon. The administration is also trying to further limit Iran’s support for proxy militias in those countries. It is selling more sophisticated weapons to the Arab monarchies in the Persian Gulf — countries that see Iran as an enemy and have their own regional ambitions — and accelerating the transfer of F-35 fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates. Some think Trump will take more kinetic measures, including further sabotage and cyberattacks on Iran’s nuclear or missile programs or even military action, which Israel, Egypt and the Gulf allies would most likely support. “I don’t think the administration is finished on the Iran issue,” said Mark Dubowitz, chief executive of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a long-standing supporter of a tough policy on Iran. “I think people are going to run hard for the next three months against Iran, knowing that after January there could be a very different Iran policy in place.” Iranian negotiators know that the United States would never provide financial compensation, Einhorn said. “But they may stake out a tough negotiating position, especially given the dynamics of their upcoming election.” He suggested that Iran would demand not just the removal of the nuclear-related sanctions but also those imposed for human rights violations, ballistic missile development and support for terrorist groups, which a Biden administration would find politically and technically difficult to do. Short of a quick reentry into the nuclear deal, Einhorn said, the parties should work toward an interim agreement, in which Iran would roll back a meaningful part of its current nuclear buildup in exchange for partial sanctions relief — especially giving Iran access to some of its oil revenues now blocked in overseas bank accounts. Iran might welcome such an interim arrangement if it gave the economy a quick boost, especially before the mid-June elections. But given the complications of the U.S. transition of power, with the requirements for security clearances and Senate confirmation already slowed by Trump’s refusal to concede defeat and cooperate with Biden, top officials might not be in place very soon. The practical window between inauguration Jan. 20 and June is likely to be only two or three months, which argues for a rapidly constructed “back channel” between Washington and Tehran after Biden takes office. Despite Trump’s pressure campaign, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has kept the door open to a U.S. return, refusing to completely abandon the nuclear deal, said Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations. Iranians opposed to the initial deal argue that the United States has proved it cannot be trusted, and Iran rejected any negotiations with Trump. But Khamenei provided Rouhani “the green light, the political space to make these messages to a Biden administration” about Iran’s desire for Washington to return to the deal, Geranmayeh said. At the same time, she noted, Rouhani’s hard-line opponents will not want him “to get this win before the elections in June, and they will look to jam this effort as the Republicans will try to jam Biden’s,” she said. Biden could quickly lift a number of sanctions tied to Iran’s nuclear activities, including approving more waivers allowing Iran to sell oil. He could ease travel restrictions on Iranian citizens, increase humanitarian trade by easing banking impediments, and lift sanctions on some key officials, like Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the main nuclear negotiator. But sanctions instituted under the category of counterterrorism and human rights, like those against the Revolutionary Guard, would be harder to void, especially because many Democrats also support them. But Geranmayeh said that Iran would insist that the United States lift the sanction against the Central Bank of Iran, accused of financing designated terrorist groups, so that it can once again use the global banking system. If the Iran deal can be reconstituted, Iran has said it is open to talks on other issues, especially regional concerns around Iraq and Syria. But Iran has so far refused to put on the table its missile program, which is already under separate U.S. and U.N. sanctions. The key, as with all major policies in Iran, is Khamenei, now 81. He regards the U.S. as a doomed country in “political, civil and moral decline.” He went along with the nuclear deal because it promised significant economic benefits from the lifting of sanctions and now apparently regards his skepticism about the United States as confirmed by Trump’s withdrawal from the pact. But with the change in U.S. leadership, he again sees the possibility of easing the economic straitjacket that renewed U.S. sanctions have imposed. “Despite Khamenei’s hubris, a Biden presidency presents both an opportunity and a challenge for Tehran,” Karim Sadjadpour of the Carnegie Endowment wrote. “The opportunity is a chance to improve the country’s moribund economy; the challenge is that Tehran will no longer be able to effectively use President Donald Trump as a pretext or distraction for its domestic repression, economic failures and regional aggression.”

Biden wants to rejoin Iran nuclear deal, but it won’t be easy

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