White House spokesman Josh Earnest angrily reacted to the suggestion that embattled Obama aide Ben Rhodes testify in a hearing on the Iran nuclear deal on Thursday.
"With all due respect to the chairman, if he has an interest in a hearing about false narratives as it relates to the Iran deal then I've got some suggestions for people they should swear in," Earnest said.
Earnest went on to name congressional members who either opposed the Iran deal or as the Earnest put it were "wrong or just lying." Earnest admitted he did not know the procedure for swearing in members of the Senate to participate in the hearing. He then went on to read what a few senators have said about the Iran deal.
"Sen. Tom Cotton, who I know has a special relationship with the supreme leader, so maybe he's got some interesting insight to the deal as well that he would like to share with the committee," Earnest said referring to the letter that was sent to Iranian leaders and was signed by 47 Republican senators.
Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R., Utah) invited Rhodes to a May 17 hearing on the Iran deal. The Hill reports that Rhodes has yet to respond to the invite. Rhodes invitation comes shortly after a New York Times Magazine profile where Rhodes is quoted as creating an "echo chamber" that were supportive of the deal, and the article also portrays Rhodes as scripting a false narrative to help seal the agreement.
Earnest said that he would welcome the opportunity for the Republican members to explain themselves.
"The truth is what the administration has said about the Iran deal, what Mr. Rhodes has said about the Iran deal, what the press has the President of the United States has said about the Iran deal has come true," Earnest said.
Days after Rhodes' profile he had published a rebuttal on Medium where Rhodes claimed the White House sold the agreement to the public that was based on "facts of the deal."