Barack Obama: US may be 'worse off' after Iran war
Former President Barack Obama is claiming the United States may be "worse off" now than before the Iran war.
In multiple television interviews, Obama questioned the results of President Donald Trump's military campaign against Iran and expressed skepticism that the administration's newly announced agreement with Tehran will produce a better outcome than the nuclear deal negotiated during his presidency.
"We've now fought a war, spent billions and billions of dollars, put enormous strain on our military. A lot of people have died," Obama told NBC's "Today." "And it feels like we're back where we were before we started the war, except maybe a little bit worse off."
Trump launched military operations against Iran on Feb. 28, targeting the regime's nuclear, military, and infrastructure sites.
After months of fighting, the United States and Iran reached a memorandum of understanding that is expected to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and establish a framework for further negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program.
Obama said he welcomed the ceasefire but argued the conflict could have been avoided.
He pointed to the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement negotiated by his administration, contending that Tehran had agreed not to pursue nuclear weapons before Trump withdrew the U.S. from the accord in 2018.
"This administration, or a prior version of this administration, pulled out of it, which caused then Iran to develop more nuclear capacity," Obama said.
Speaking with ABC's "Good Morning America," Obama said he was "doubtful" any new agreement reached by the Trump administration would be "significantly different" or "a significant improvement" over the deal his administration secured.
Obama also urged policymakers to rely more heavily on diplomacy rather than military force.
"You'd think we would've learned that lesson by now," he said. "But it seems like every so often we have to relearn that lesson again."
The comments come as debate continues over the effectiveness of both the Obama-era nuclear agreement and Trump's military strategy.
Critics of the 2015 accord have long argued that Iran violated key provisions and continued pursuing missile development and nuclear-related activities despite the agreement.
Supporters maintain the deal successfully constrained Tehran's nuclear ambitions until the U.S. withdrawal.
Trump administration officials have defended the current agreement, arguing that U.S. military action severely damaged Iran's nuclear infrastructure and missile capabilities while strengthening Washington's negotiating position.
Administration officials also contend that reopening the Strait of Hormuz could help lower global energy prices and reduce inflationary pressures.
You'll have another chance to dominate in a few years, but until then, you'll just have to suck it up, Buttercup. (and it sounds like it sucks to be you)
Sources say that he timed it's opening to coincide with Juneteeth, even though...
Subcontractors say they’re owed millions, face financial ruin, after helping build Obama Presidential Center Adamson Plumbing owner Mike Owen says his company is owed nearly $4M on the Chicago project
CHICAGO — The Obama Presidential Center was billed as a lasting legacy to former President Barack Obama, and its construction was touted as an ambitious model built with aggressive goals for minority-owned and local businesses.
But now, some of the very subcontractors who helped build the 19.3-acre campus on Chicago’s South Side say they are facing financial ruin as they race to recover millions of dollars they claim remain unpaid ahead of the center's grand opening Friday. Overall construction costs were reported to be $830 million in 2021, and have likely climbed past the $1 billion mark.
A Fox News Digital investigation identified multiple construction firms claiming losses ranging from hundreds of thousands of dollars to tens of millions. The allegations cut against one of the Center's defining goals: helping minority-owned businesses and local contractors grow through one of Chicago's highest-profile construction projects. Several of the complaints reviewed by Fox News Digital come from firms that were supposed to benefit from that mission.
Among them is Adamson Plumbing, whose owner Mike Owen says is nearly $4 million in the red after years of work on the project.
"That is a hole that no subcontractor, small business can survive," Owen said.
WATCH: Black subcontractors at Obama Presidential Center still seeking payment as Juneteenth opening nears, advocate says
Subcontractor owners interviewed by Fox News Digital described what they characterized as a chaotic work environment marked by repeated design changes, rework, scheduling disruptions, extensive oversight and years-long compensation disputes that still remain unresolved.
Several also described what they viewed as a wall of silence surrounding the project, with some declining to speak publicly or requesting anonymity because of confidentiality agreements or fears of professional retaliation.
The allegations emerge days after a Fox News Digital investigation reported that the Obama Foundation’s reserve fund — originally promoted as a $470 million financial safeguard intended to help protect taxpayers if the project encountered financial trouble — remains funded at roughly $1 million.
Nearly $4 million in the red
Standing outside the center on a gloomy Friday afternoon, Owen flipped through spreadsheets and financial records that he said documented millions of dollars in losses tied to the project.
Owen said the project stretched on for years longer than anticipated, forcing his company to absorb millions of dollars in labor and overhead costs as work demands changed and expanded.
He said the losses have drained the company's reserves, created uncertainty for employees and could ultimately force layoffs. Owen also said the years-long effort to recover what he believes is money owed has taken a significant toll on his mental health.
"I haven't had eight hours or six hours sleep in over a year," Owen said. "I'm cooked emotionally. I feel like an aluminum can that's been thrown in front of a steamroller. We're crushed. And I have to fight for my company and for my people."
As the center prepares for a star-studded pre-opening celebration on Thursday featuring performers including Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder and John Legend, Owen said it has been difficult to watch the buildup and soft-opening events take shape over the past few weeks while his company struggles financially.
"It was kind of hard seeing some local and national celebrities high-fiving and back-slapping here about the work that's been done," Owen said. "The backdrop of a coming celebration is kind of hard to swallow for me and for some of my peers at the moment."
Owen, whose company is not minority-owned, said he decided to speak publicly only after months of failed efforts to recover losses he attributes to the project.
"As for me and my company, I’m at the end of my rope and I see no other choice than to have to tell my story," Owen said. "This is not to embarrass anybody, but this is just to make sure that the truth gets told out here of what has happened to the companies that poured their heart and soul into getting this job complete and operational."
He said unnecessary rework, delays and more than 100 change-order requests left his company absorbing millions of dollars in additional costs.
Concerns about the center’s financial state have raged for years, especially since construction delays and costs have ballooned from an original estimate of roughly $330 million to at least $830 million based on 2021 figures. An updated final projected cost has not been made public.
Endowment concerns
"One of their core promises was they were supposed to create an endowment as basically an insurance policy so the taxpayers wouldn’t get stuck with the bill," Illinois GOP Chair Robert Grogan told Fox News Digital outside the center last week as worker vehicles entered and exited the center.
"They promised hundreds of millions of dollars for it. It’s still sitting at the $1 million mark [where it stood] when they opened it up. So I don’t believe that they’ve kept that promise."
The contractor disputes have renewed concern of the endowment because critics argue the fund was intended to serve as a backstop if the project ever encountered financial distress. The Obama Foundation disputes suggestions that taxpayers face exposure and said the project is funded through private contributions.
Grogan said reports that contractors and subcontractors remain locked in payment disputes make the largely unfunded reserve even more problematic.
"The fact that they have created this probably unsustainable edifice to an ego and then, eventually, if it goes under, who’s going to be caught with the bill time and time again? It’s the taxpayers of the city, citizens of Chicago and the state of Illinois."
Richard Epstein, a New York University law professor who has spent years challenging the project in court, said the reserve fund was intended to protect against exactly this type of uncertainty.
"The whole point of an endowment is to fund future expenses," Epstein told Fox News Digital, adding that the endowment acts as a financial backup if future fundraising falls short.
"If the endowment hasn’t been filled, the building [could] fall into neglect, it then becomes a safety risk, and it turns out that nobody’s going to pay the bill," Epstein said. "The city therefore, is going to have to assume additional obligations to make sure that thing is kept in place."
Grogan said reports that contractors remain unpaid only reinforce the need for closer scrutiny and called for an investigation if allegations that subcontractors were left holding the bag prove accurate.
Subcontractor disputes raise new questions
A Fox News Digital investigation identified multiple construction firms claiming losses ranging from hundreds of thousands of dollars to tens of millions.
Outside the center last week, Adamson Plumbing President Mike Owen provided company spreadsheets to Fox News Digital, which he said showed that his firm is nearly $4 million in the red. He said that unnecessary rework, delays and more than 100 change-order requests left his company absorbing millions of dollars in additional costs.
In addition, Omar Shareef, the president of the African American Contractors Association, told Fox News Digital outside the center last Saturday that several Black-owned contractors are also in financial difficulty due to the project.
The claims raise fresh worries about the center’s long-term financial sustainability because an endowment is intended to provide a permanent source of income that can help fund future operations and cushion against financial stress. Endowments are typically invested, with a portion of the earnings used to support an institution over time.
The Obama Foundation told Fox News Digital that it is in compliance with its agreement with the city, noting that the pact required the creation of an endowment but did not specify a dollar target.
OBAMA PRESIDENTIAL CENTER DEPOSITS JUST $1M INTO $470M RESERVE FUND AIMED TO PROTECT TAXPAYERS
The foundation said the Obama Presidential Center is "fully funded" and that it plans to make "significant investments" in the endowment in the coming years.
"On the eve of our Grand Opening celebrations, we are pleased to reiterate that the Obama Presidential Center is fully funded with generous private contributions," the Obama Foundation said in a statement.
The $470 million figure emerged during public discussions surrounding the project and was later cited in the Obama Foundation's 2020 annual report, which featured a fundraising chart stating:
"$470M of our fundraising goal will go toward seeding an endowment that will sustain Obama Foundation activities and the operations of the OPC for generations to come."
The foundation previously estimated annual operating costs could reach approximately $40 million.
Nonprofit endowments are typically structured so that only a small percentage of the fund — often around 4% to 5% annually — is spent each year while the principal remains invested. The goal is to generate investment income that can help support operations over the long term without relying entirely on future fundraising. The Obama Presidential Center consists of a museum tower, digital library, athletic facilities, conference space and offices for the Obama Foundation on Chicago's South Side. The Obama Foundation is overseeing its construction and will run its day-to-day future operations.
Epstein disputed the foundation's interpretation, arguing that an endowment is intended to provide meaningful financial protection and that a promise to raise money in the future is not the same as having a funded endowment in place.
"On their view, putting a penny in an endowment fund covers all the risks," Epstein said.
"There has to be a pile of cash to fund any particular process and then ensure some kind of robustness against radical changes in the market."
OBAMA PRESIDENTIAL CENTER SLAMMED FOR PROMOTING ‘FAR-LEFT' AGENDA ON PUBLIC LAND
The Obama Foundation, Obama’s private nonprofit organization that oversees the construction, told Fox News Digital that it paid Lakeside Alliance as the project’s construction manager and that Lakeside was responsible for hiring, managing and paying subcontractors working on the center.
The Obama Foundation also said it has no outstanding disputed charges with Lakeside Alliance -- a joint venture involving multiple construction companies — and no contractural relationship with Lakeside's subcontractors.
Lakeside Alliance said projects of this scale are inherently complex and that outstanding project matters often continue long after construction ends. The alliance said approximately 475 contractors worked on the project, generating significant opportunities for local tradespeople and businesses, and that it remains committed to working through outstanding matters to successfully close out the project.
Neither Lakeside Alliance nor the Obama Foundation directly disputed allegations from some subcontractors that they incurred losses while working on the project.
Fears of speaking out
Advocates for Black subcontractor firms say those companies have been muzzled by a non-disclosure agreement and a reluctance to speak publicly because of the prestige surrounding the project in Obama’s adopted hometown, a Democratic stronghold, as well as concerns that speaking out could jeopardize payments.
"They are scared to death about talking about it," Omar Shareef, the president of the African American Contractors Association, told Fox News Digital outside the center on a recent Saturday. The group advocates for Black-owned construction businesses and was founded by Shareef in 1989.
"I've never seen this happen since I've been in business," Shareef said. "The building does look nice, but the fact doesn't matter that they're not paying our damn contractors."
Fox News Digital independently interviewed several contractors who described similar concerns.
VALERIE JARRETT EARNED $740K AS OBAMA INSIDERS FILLED TOP ROLES DURING $850M PRESIDENTIAL CENTER BUILD
