Iran's Election: Summary of Ahmadinejad's Final TV Message (10 June)

Related Post: Iran - A Preview of Tomorrow’s Presidential Election

From the United States Government Open Source Center via Juan Cole:

Tehran Vision of the Islamic Republic of Iran Network 1 in Persian at 1820 GMT on 10 June began to broadcast a recorded election message by Iranian President Ahmadinezhad.

Television allocated Ahmadinezhad time to record a message, in order to respond to remarks made against him by other election candidates in their live TV debates, in Ahmadinezhad's absence. The other candidates were also allocated airtime, but all three opponents decided not to submit messages. Television allocated Ahmadinezhad a maximum length film of 20 minutes.

In his recorded message, the Iranian president said that it was all against one in this race. Ahmadinezhad said the other candidates opted for false accusations, as they knew they could not compete. The president said that his administration achieved outstanding results, and said that he was attacked because the other candidates wanted a psychological war. He added: "They constantly accused me of deceit."

He said the fact that Iran made progress in its nuclear program, and in many other programs, are not lies. He said his administration built many hospitals, and Iran was successful is sports, contrary to what other candidates say.

Ahmadinezhad said that he is always polite. He added that if he attacked some individuals, this was only to defend people's rights. Ahmadinezhad once again defended his decision to raise the case of Musavi's wife on TV. He said that Musavi's wife obtained her degree unlawfully. He said he had always supported students, and added that he is the real representative of the students and university.

Ahmadinezhad said millions of CDs containing false information about him had been distributed. He said that his relatives do not work in government offices, and he never favored any of his relatives. Ahmadinezhad said that the graphics which other candidates showed are not true. He said other candidates use information provided by Israeli research companies. He stressed that his administration is honest, and had been chosen by the people.

The Iranian president said that Iran's economy is growing under his supervision. He promised that he will resolve the inflation issue, and explained that he is aware that there are still problems.

Ahmadinezhad asked his supporters to stay calm, as his victory is guaranteed. He added that he has information that his opponents trail in the polls.

This recorded speech ended at 1840 GMT.

Video: Iran-First or Palestine-First? A Turning Point Debate on CNN

Usually we don't feature panel discussions on political chat shows, especially when they have an "octo-wall" of speakers. Yesterday, however, there was a turn of debate on CNN's GPS which may be symbolic of the shift in US foreign policy.

This was a clash of "Iran-first" vs. "Palestine-first" in the US approach towards Israel. And Palestine-first won, 16 hands down.

The episode began when the Israeli historian and commentator Benny Morris put forth the case for focusing on a purported Iranian nuclear weapons programme. Then the twist: Morris' assertions were taken apart by Juan Cole, and with only one Israeli on the octo-wall of 7 different nationalities and perspectives, the notion that the issue of Palestine had to be set aside --- especially to threaten economic sanctions or even military action against Iran --- was roundly dismissed. Useful contributions from Hanan Ashrawi, Maziar Bahari, Saad Ibrahim, and Rami Khouri ensured that both the Palestine aspect and the wider aims of President Obama's Cairo speech replaced Tehran as the centre of attention: