Is the US involved in the fixing of the Iran Election?

[Araxen]

Why is there barely any coverage of this on TV?!?! Something smells pretty fishy over here.

We need to be helping these people claim their freedom!

[Oregone]

1. We need to be letting these people figure it out

For themselves.

[imdjh]

3. +++++

[scheming daemons]

2. The Obama administration would most definitely rather have Mousavi win... so no...

I don't believe they are complicit with the "fixing".

It would be a big political WIN for Obama if Ahmedinijad were removed from power.

[backscatter712]

14. Could the Rethugs have their own people pulling strings?

Kind of like how GOP agents promised the Iranian revolutionaries of '79 that they'd get weapons and better deals if they held on to the hostages until after the election.

Or how Nixon told the North Vietnamese they'd get a better deal if they didn't take a peace deal with LBJ.

[FreakinDJ]

21. Your making way too much sense

[madamesilverspurs]

27. Dunno.

And don't want to think so. That said, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Cheney and/or Rove were stirring that particular pot. Not to suggest that they haven't taught us to expect the worst from them...

[Just-plain-Kathy]

30. I wouldn't be surprised if PNAC was behind this.

I'm shocked to see how many people here want us to go to war with Iran to liberate them.

[backscatter712]

36. The neo-cons have pretty much stated they were rooting for Bushmedinajad.

They were willing to throw the Iranian people, and regional stability under the bus, just so they could make life more difficult for President Obama. That's how cravenly vile these fuckers are.

[JDPriestly]

28. There may have been a contingency plan for the possibility that Ahmadinijad

would win. We'll see what happens next.

[provis99]

4. if anything, I think the US foreign office was caught off guard

I don't think anyone here expected Mousavi to start calling for a general strike; things are escalating very fast, beyond anyone's control. I'll bet the foreign journalists are chomping at the bit to be in Iran right now, though; it's big world news.

[Oregone]

7. Is Jason Jones still there?

We can count on him to bring us the goods! :)

[ddiver]

5. Obama fixed the election toward someone who doesn't agree with him?

Not likely.

[DJ13]

6. The honest truth, probably.

I doubt Obama had anything to do with it, but I wouldnt put it past the remaining Cheney loyalists in the intelligence services to have a hand it.

Not only do the hawks love the current Iranian regime because its great for keeping Obama offtrack in the ME, but the Israeli's love them too for much the same reason.

[rockymountaindem]

8. Fix on whose behalf?

Stuff the ballot box for Ahmedinajad? Throw out false accusations of fraud to help Mosavi? What are you alleging?

[MADem]

9. Gee, my TV is covering it. Maybe you're watching the wrong channel. nt

[Uzybone]

10. of course we are

its Americas fault.

[DURHAM D]

11. I am still trying to figure out which side the CIA took.

I feel certain we are in there doing something - I am just not sure which side we picked.

I am not saying Obama is involved in this but we have not stayed out of Iran's internal affairs since 1952 so I don't think we would start now. Mousavi is not one that anyone would pick to build a democracy.

[The Stranger]

17. Was it 1952 that the U.S. overthrew (or assassinated) the one the Iranians elected in favor of Shah?

Then he suppressed the shit out of them, and, when they had had enough, they took the U.S. embassy and its personnel hostage?

[DURHAM D]

18. Yes. We helped the British.

As for the 1979 revolution - many think that was a CIA/US operation as well, designed to radicalize the region in an effort to destabilize the USSR. I guess it worked - but not in the way we thought it would. That whole taking of U.S. hostages thing wasn't supposed to happen.

[The Stranger]

22. I found this to be interesting:

http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB28/

[The Stranger]

23. Here's more (you were right, according to the New York Times):

http://www.nytimes.com/library/world/mideast/041600iran-cia-index.html

Secrets of History: The CIA in Iran

The Central Intelligence Agency's secret history of its covert operation to overthrow Iran's government in 1953 offers an inside look at how the agency stumbled into success, despite a series of mishaps that derailed its original plans.

Written in 1954 by one of the coup's chief planners, the history details how United States and British officials plotted the military coup that returned the shah of Iran to power and toppled Iran's elected prime minister, an ardent nationalist.

[The Stranger]

26. Timeline:

http://www.nytimes.com/library/world/mideast/041600iran-coup-timeline.html

[Lint Head]

12. Stranger things have happened.

:dem:

[napoleon_in_rags]

13. Or is the US spinning it the other way?

CNN was AWFUL today. They kept showing a shot of a crowd of Ahmadinejad supporters that was huge, with the implication it was protesters against him. Then the translator of Ahmadinejad clips was like an old Chinese woman, and it was very difficult to hear any points he made through her shrill voice. That in between commercials for Skunkworks and Scientology really made Fox look appealing today.

Anyway, my point is, what if the US media is stirring up what will amount to be a tempest in a teapot over there? I doubt that its true but CNN sure made it look that way.

[The Stranger]

15. I would bet that CIA is funding Mousavi.

How much you want to make a bet?

[DURHAM D]

16. To what end? nt

[The Stranger]

20. I suppose to the same or similar ends as the last times, 1952, 1979 . . .

2009?

[Posteritatis]

31. You mean as a strategic counterweight to the Soviet Union? Oh, wait. (nt)

[The Stranger]

39. You're cute.

[DURHAM D]

33. Mousavi is a bad character.

You may want to research his history and connections.

I am just not sure who/what is the lesser evil.

I also think it is important not to look at what is happening in Iran as just a binary dispute. What is going on may have a lot to do with the mullah's control. Is their constitution about to be junked? Who controls the Guard? I mean, who really controls the Guard? Does the west think it would be better if Iran had a true dictatorship? I don't know the answers but I know I have a whole lot of questions.

Just for the record - the protesters in the street are totally legitimate in their call for freedom and revolution. I just somehow doubt that what comes next will really be to their benefit.

[harun]

40. I'll bet with you not against you.

[Posteritatis]

19. Nobody outside of the US ever does anything on their own ever!

Spare me.

[rockymountaindem]

24. Seriously. If the US government was as powerful as some people evidently think

our country would never have any problems. On the other hand, I guess we might just allow other countries to win medals at the Olympics to maintain the appearance of normalcy :)

[comrade snarky]

25. Oh you poor fool

It was all orchestrated by the same CIA that found out the Soviet Union was collapsing by watching CNN.

:sarcasm:

The CIA wishes they were as good as some people think.

[Posteritatis]

29. Clearly their reputation of omnipotence and omniscience is itself a CIA plot! (nt)

[comrade snarky]

35. Funny thing is...

I'm sure they have tried to encourage it!

[bridgit]

32. If we had been...did we get the result we wanted?

[Araxen]

37. The conspiracy says yes...

because Israel will have an easier time justifying attacking Iran with the crazy kook in power instead of the guy that wants to work with the West.

[stopbush]

34. Tinfoil alert!!

I heard that Mosavi was going to blow the lid off the JFK assassination (the Shah of Iran was involved!!) and that he also had the goods on who really did 9/11, so the election was rigged to keep it all under wraps.

:sarcasm:

[Garbo 2004]

38. Iran regime capable of fixing its own elections: they just declare the victor. It's not a democracy.

It's a cleric ruled regime that decides who runs for president and now, it would appear, who wins.