A Coup in Iran?
The Daily Beast / Reza Aslan
05-Aug-2009 (2 comments)

Today, the mess that is post-election Iran becomes Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s problem, and bets are already being placed in Iran on just how long his second term as president will last.

Ahmadinejad’s most immediate challenge will be to name 21 cabinet ministers, the three most important of which are the minister of defense, the minister of the interior (who also oversees the elections), and the minister of foreign affairs. He can also nominate up to 10 vice presidents, one of which, the first vice president, will be charged with taking over the presidency should some horrible fate befall Ahmadinejad (God forbid). According to Iran's constitution, the president has two weeks from the day of his inauguration to present his cabinet to the parliament for approval. This will not be an easy task.

Ahmadinejad has always had a turbulent relationship with Iran’s parliament, the Majlis. During his first tenure as president, the parliament rejected half a dozen of his cabinet appointments on the grounds that they were either unqualified or too ideological (read: former members of the Revolutionary Guard) for their positions. The row with the MPs lasted so long that Ahmadinejad was forced to convene his first cabinet meeting with four ministries still to be filled.

In the last year, Ahmadinejad’s relationship with the parliament has gotten worse. His interior minister, Ali Kordan, was impeached for lying about his credentials (Kordan falsely cl... >>>

Ali Lakani

He made his bed...

by Ali Lakani on Wed Aug 05, 2009 02:28 PM PDT

...now he needs to go lie in it.  He will pay for this illegitimate presidency in many ways over the coming months.  I doubt he would finish the 4-year term.


Balatarin
Share/Save/Bookmark

 
rosie is roxy is roshan

Thank you for the excellent article.

by rosie is roxy is roshan on Wed Aug 05, 2009 05:59 PM PDT

I read that Ejei was fired after submitting an intelligence report that the movement was not caused by foreign powers. I also read that Ahmadinejad did not technically withdraw Mashaei's appointment, that Mashaei resigned and that Ahmadinejad submitted the resignation without proper protocol or his endorsement. I also wonder about this part of this article:

Ahmadinejad’s foes in the parliament—of which he has many—will likely try to use their confirmation powers to frustrate his attempts to put his administration together in a timely fashion, in hopes that gridlock will force the supreme leader to institute a state of emergency and remove Ahmadinejad from office.

How likely could this be and what would happen then?


  •