Obama: Ohio voters must reject Iran war's $2T price

Two trillion dollars. That is the cost former President Barack Obama assigned to the United States conflict with Iran during a campaign stop in Ohio on Saturday. He argued that the figure represents the financial burden of a war that did not need to happen.

Obama criticized President Donald Trump’s second term, describing the administration’s foreign policy as a series of poor choices. He told the crowd that the country is dealing with a conflict nobody requested. He urged voters to reject the current government’s record of chaos and incompetence. "You get a chance to say, 'Enough is enough,'" Obama said.

The rally focused on three key races in the state. Obama stood on stage with Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton and former Senator Sherrod Brown. Brown is seeking to unseat incumbent Republican Senator Jon Husted. Current polling indicates Democrats hold a slight advantage in both contests, though the margins remain narrow.

The former president also addressed a contentious advertisement in the governor’s race. Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy ran a spot featuring Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur. Arthur disputes her daughter’s story about a childhood marked by homelessness and sexual abuse. The ad urges voters to oppose Acton based on those claims.

Acton stated that she has not seen her mother since 1978. Her brother has publicly supported her account of the abuse. The stepfather involved died in 2004 after facing rape charges. Obama defended Acton’s decision to share her history. "She has spoken movingly about her painful childhood and all she’s experienced: abuse, neglect and homelessness," he said.