WASHINGTON — Republicans critical of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks contend President Barack Obama is so keen for a deal that he is ignoring Tehran’s moves to expand its influence across the Middle East.

GOP hawks maintain that Obama wants so much to burnish his legacy by negotiating an agreement to restrain Iran from becoming a nuclear-armed state that he is not pushing back against Iranian activities in Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Lebanon and Bahrain.

Secretary of State John Kerry has push back against lawmakers, including some who insist that the nuclear negotiations have hamstrung U.S. policy decisions in the region.

“Yes, Iran’s influence has spread at this moment and we are deeply concerned about it,” Kerry said at one congressional hearing. “But if you’re concerned about it now, think of what happens … if they had a nuclear weapon.”