Sept. 26 Democratic debate transcript

Russert: OK, all right -- all right, we've had that discussion.

Senator Clinton, in 1981, the Israelis took out a nuclear reactor in Iraq.  On September 6th, to the best of our information, Israel attacked Syria because there was suspicion that perhaps North Korea had put some nuclear materials in Syria.  If Israel concluded that Iran's nuclear capability threatened Israel's security, would Israel be justified in launching an attack on Iran?

Clinton: Tim, I think that's one of those hypotheticals, that is...

Russert: It's not a hypothetical, Senator.

Clinton: ... better not addressed at this time.

Russert: It's real life.  It's real...

Clinton: What is real life is what apparently happened in Syria, so let's take that one step at a time.

Russert: But my question -- no, let me finish.

Clinton: I know what the question is.

Russert: My question is...

Clinton: But I think it's important to lay out what we know about Syria...

Russert: What Israel -- my question is...

Clinton: ... because we don't have as much information as I wish we did.  But what we think we know is that with North Korean help, both financial and technical and material, the Syrians apparently were putting together, and perhaps over some period of years, a nuclear facility, and the Israelis took it out.  I strongly support that.

We don't have any more information than what I have just described.  It is highly classified.  It is not being shared.  But I don't want to go a step further and talk about what might or might not happen down the road with Iran.

Russert: My question was...

Clinton: But I think it is fair to say what happened in Syria, so far as we know, I support.

Russert: My question is: Would the Israelis be justified if they felt their security was being threatened by the presence of a nuclear presence in Iran, and they decided to take military action? Would they be justified?

Clinton: Well, Tim, I'm not going to answer that, because what I understand is...

Kucinich: I'll answer it.

Gravel: I'll...

Clinton: ... that there was evidence...

(Laughter)

Clinton: Well, let me just finish and then Mike and Dennis can answer.

But there was evidence of a North Korea freighter coming in with supplies.  There was intelligence and other kinds of verification.

So I don't think it's a question of if they feel it.  That is a much higher standard of proof.  Apparently it was met with respect to Syria.

Russert: You will all be running against a Republican opponent, perhaps Rudy Giuliani.  This is what he said.

"Iran is not going to be allowed to build a nuclear power.  If they get to a point where they're going to become a nuclear power, we will prevent them, we will set them back eight to 10 years.  That is not said as a threat.  That should be said as a promise."

Would you make a promise as a potential commander in chief that you will not allow Iran to become a nuclear power and will use any means to stop it?

Clinton: Well, what I have said is that I will do everything I can to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power, including the use of diplomacy, the use of economic sanctions, opening up direct talks. We haven't even tried.  That's what is so discouraging about this.

So then you have the Republican candidates on the other side jumping to the kind of statements that you just read to us.

We need a concerted, comprehensive strategy to deal with Iran. We haven't had it; we need it -- and I will provide it.

Russert: Senator Obama, would Israel be justified in launching an attack on Iran if they felt their security was jeopardized?

Obama: I think it's important to back up for a second, Tim, and just understand.  Number one, Iran is in a stronger position now than it was before the Iraq war because the Congress authorized the president to go in.

And so, it indicates the degree to which we've got to make sure before we launch attacks or make judgments of this sort, that we actually understand the intelligence and we have done a good job in sorting it through.

Now, we don't know exactly what happened with respect to Syria. We've gotten general reports, but we don't know all the specifics.

We got general reports in the run-up to the Iraq war that proved erroneous, and a lot of people voted for that war as a consequence.

Now, we are a stalwart ally of Israel and I think it is important to understand that we will back them up in terms of their security. But it is critical to understand that -- until we have taken the diplomatic routes that are required to tighten economic sanctions -- I have a plan right now to make sure that private pension funds in this country can divest from their holdings in Iran.  Until we have gathered the international community to put the squeeze on Iran economically, then we shouldn't be having conversations about attacks on Iran.

I think what Mayor Giuliani said was irresponsible, because we have not yet come to that point.  We have not tried the other approach.

Russert: So you would not offer a promise to the American people, like Giuliani, that Iran will not be able to develop and become a nuclear power.

Obama: I make an absolute commitment that we will do everything we need to do to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

One of the things we have to try, though, is to talk directly to Iran; something that we have not been doing.

And one of the disagreements that we have on this stage is the degree to which the next president is going to have to engage in the sort of personal diplomacy that can bring about a new era in the region.  And that means talking to everybody.  We've got to talk to our enemies and not just our friends.

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