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Old 06-11-2009, 01:36 PM   #23 (permalink)
Willravel
... a sort of licensed troubleshooter.
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Jazz View Post
The Malji has little power and the little that it does wield is completely beholden to the Supreme Leader and the Guardians. Again, all candidates are vetted by the Guardians before the election. And even after election, they don't have much to do. Most legislation runs through the executive - which is where Ahmadinejad has screwed up the most, by the way - and they have some minor influence over various cabinets posts (mostly via no confidence votes). It is not exactly a hotbed of change, and they cannot act without approval from the upper levels of power.
Again, this is less about Mousavi and more about what the election of Mousavi might represent.
Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Jazz View Post
If you're implying that the Majli shares power with or has the same influence as the Supreme Leader, the Guaridans or the President for that matter, then I think that you need to go back and do more research on Iranian politics.
Can you cut that out? Thanks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Jazz View Post
Would Mousavi signal a change? Absolutely. A change in the voice of anti-Americanism. A mildly more cooperative tone. The progressive reform that he represents is INTERNAL reform, not in foreign policy.
A "mildly more cooperative tone" internally could have repercussions in Iranian foreign policy. They're not necessarily mutually exclusive.
Quote:
Originally Posted by The_Jazz View Post
Even if Mousavi wanted to (and I'm 100% sure that he wouldn't) he could never recognize Israel or normalize relations with the US. He does not have the ability to set foreign policy. He is, however, the voice of that foreign policy, and his election might mean a voice with a less threatening tone, which I'm sure the West would be overjoyed with hearing.
Whoa, whoa, who said anything about recognizing Israel? You're exaggerating my position. All I've been saying is that this might be part of a larger pattern of stabilization in the Middle East.

It's going to be difficult for the anti-Iranians in the West to demonize the Iranian people when they vote for the most moderate voice on the ticket. What are the Cheneys of the world going to say when Ahmadinejad is ousted and replaced by a more moderate president? Because the talking heads work on a superficial level of world news and politics, they've fostered the idea that Ahmadinejad was in charge of Iran. If a more moderate president is elected, they'll be in a pickle when it comes to demonizing Iran because they'll lose their main target. Don't underestimate the effect that might have.
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