Tom Ridge: Iran's Influence Growing, US Influence Weakening

The Obama administration speaks "loudly and carries a toothpick," rather than following Teddy Roosevelt's advice to "speak softly and carry a big stick," former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Wednesday, and as a result, Iran's influence in the Middle East is continuing to grow, especially in Iraq.

"Years ago, they were identified as the central bank of terrorism," Ridge, a former Pennsylvania senator, told Fox News' "Happening Now" program, indicating that the deal that's been reached with Iran will cause the country's influence to grow.

"Ending sanctions will renew their energy industry," said Ridge. "They have more influence in Baghdad than we do."

It should be no surprise that Iran carries influence in Iraq, but the Obama administration chooses to ignore that, he said, and the United States' influence is also waning in other parts of the world, especially when it comes to China, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and in the Middle East.

"Not only the United States, but the rest of the world" is disappointed with the lack of leadership that has been going on in recent years, Ridge said.

Earlier this week, Ridge and former Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., presented a 100-page report to House members in which they warned that the country is "dangerously vulnerable" to an epidemic and to bioterrorism attacks, and on Thursday, Ridge reiterated the threat warning.

"We concluded there is no biodefense capability that is truly unified," he said. "We don't have centralized leadership, we don't have a unified budget, one group doesn't know what the other is doing, but we made a series of strong recommendations to the House and Senate."

But the threat exists, he said, with the countries of Iran, Syria, North Korea, China, and Russia having capabilities to launch such attacks. Further, he said, "al-Qaida did experiments on anthrax on animals and ISIL talked about the use of bioweapons."

Related Stories:

• Tom Ridge: Obama's 'Whack-a-Mole' Approach to ISIS Isn't Working
• Tom Ridge: Terror Threat Worse Now Than After 9/11