Tuesday
Jun232009
Experts Support Obama’s Response to Contested Iranian Election
Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 3:38PM
By Mariko Lamb- Talk Radio News Service
Nick Burns, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, countered critics who have described Obama’s response to the allegedly fraudulent election in Iran as overly passive. Instead, Burns said that Obama was “sensible” and “handled it superbly.”
Mounting evidence has suggested that the results of the recent Presidential election in Iran, which resulted in the apparent re-election of former President Ahmadinejad, suffered from fraud. The newly surfaced evidence includes: millions of extra ballots that were printed but unaccounted for, a refusal to use mandated see-through ballot boxes, a refusal to monitor ballots, and voting stations running out of ballots early despite being given an overabundance of blank ballots.
“I don’t have any doubt that it was a stolen election,” said speaker Abbas Milani, Director of Iranian Studies at Stanford University, in a discussion on the United States’ response to the Iranian elections Tuesday.
Karim Sadjadpour, former Chief Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the elections were fixed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini because “a Mousavi Presidency and an Obama Presidency at the same time would make it very clear to everyone that Ayatollah Khomeini is the impediment that is standing in the way of U.S.-Iran relations.”
Burns said, “[Obama] has been very thoughtful, measured--you’ve seen that his statements have become progressively stronger in line with events.” He continued to praise Obama for not “playing politics with the issue at home” and maintaining his focus on hopes of diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran instead of succumbing to domestic criticism.
Nick Burns, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, countered critics who have described Obama’s response to the allegedly fraudulent election in Iran as overly passive. Instead, Burns said that Obama was “sensible” and “handled it superbly.”
Mounting evidence has suggested that the results of the recent Presidential election in Iran, which resulted in the apparent re-election of former President Ahmadinejad, suffered from fraud. The newly surfaced evidence includes: millions of extra ballots that were printed but unaccounted for, a refusal to use mandated see-through ballot boxes, a refusal to monitor ballots, and voting stations running out of ballots early despite being given an overabundance of blank ballots.
“I don’t have any doubt that it was a stolen election,” said speaker Abbas Milani, Director of Iranian Studies at Stanford University, in a discussion on the United States’ response to the Iranian elections Tuesday.
Karim Sadjadpour, former Chief Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the elections were fixed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini because “a Mousavi Presidency and an Obama Presidency at the same time would make it very clear to everyone that Ayatollah Khomeini is the impediment that is standing in the way of U.S.-Iran relations.”
Burns said, “[Obama] has been very thoughtful, measured--you’ve seen that his statements have become progressively stronger in line with events.” He continued to praise Obama for not “playing politics with the issue at home” and maintaining his focus on hopes of diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran instead of succumbing to domestic criticism.
Nick Jonas, Mary Tyler Moore And Sugar Ray Leonard Request Federal Funding For Diabetes Research
Celebrity witnesses Mary Tyler Moore, Nick Jonas, and Sugar Ray Leonard testified before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs today to stress the importance of diabetes research and urge Congress to renew funding for the Special Diabetes Program, a supplemental federal funding program for diabetes research.
Moore, actress and International Chairman of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, said, “today our goal is to persuade our Senators and Representatives to make a promise. We hope you will promise to remember us when you vote on the Special Diabetes Program and other important programs that affect all of us with diabetes.”
World champion boxer Sugar Ray Leonard, described the financial challenge he faced living with a father struggling with diabetes.
“I had to face the reality of my father’s illness and the incredible medical bills that resulted from his life with diabetes,” he said. “My decision to turn professional was based largely on the desire to help my family cover the costs of my father’s care.”
Jonas, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 2005, shared his stories of living with diabetes and urged Congress to fund research to find a cure. “While technology has made it much easier for me to manage my diabetes,” he said, “technology is not a cure. Insulin is not a cure. I know that the promise of a cure lies only in research.”
The Committee’s witnesses were accompanied by Children’s Congress 2009, a delegation of 150 children living with Type 1 diabetes. Children’s Congress was started in 1999, and the delegation has since met five times on Capitol Hill to testify about living with diabetes.