to the extent that iranians are chauvinist, arabs can be very chauvinist as well and look down on iranians and persians and having lived in different parts of the arab world and sort of held in a great deal of suspicion and sometimes contempt for being a shia, an iranian shia this is a chauvinism that is mirrored on the other side so i think this is sadly a dynamic that's a parallel in the region. >> hi. we spoke a lot about iranians in iran and their opinions of the government, but given your unique position being in touch with the iranian community here in the united states, do you think you could juxtapose a little bit the differing opinions or the philosophies of the iranians in america and their opinion of the government and politics? >> i think that -- it seems to me and i will admit it's been almost a decade since i haven't lived in the u.s. but to the extent that i go back and forth and i'm familiar with what the diaspora in america thinks, i think attitudes really run the spectrum of opinion. there are certainly iranians in diaspora are diehard monarchists and cling to the idea th

speaker, the iranian people have already spoken. they have decided, and i believe that it is in our responsibility, if we hold true to the principles of our founding fathers, as i was coming over on the floor i was thinking what i could say, and the words of one of our great founders and patriots beams very deep and my heart as i think that i watched the news reports of what is happening in the streets of tehran. when that great patriot said give me liberty or give me death, that is why the united states of america cannot be silent. it is our foundation. i was reminded of the words of thomas jefferson when he wrote that all men are created equal and are denied -- it in doubt by their creator with certain inalienable rights. among those, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. that is what we stand for. so it is important that we put this resolution forward and it is important that the world understand that america is indeed that shining light of liberty and freedom that patrick henry and thomas jefferson spoke so eloquently abo

, we have claims against the iranians, for damages and otherwise, and the iranians have claims against us because of sanctions, and withholding of assets and so forth. so, there is bound to be a set of negotiations, going on, at the same time, and, perhaps, by movement of some of them, movement on other issues, more difficult issues, may be facilitated. i emphasize the word maybe. but, it is going to be a very difficult and complex process. on the issue of the nuclear program, itself, i think the negotiating point of departure might well be a desire to exploit more explicitly what the iranians have been affirming publicly for quite some time, namely their three invocations, we don't want nuclear weapons, we are not seeking nuclear weapons, and our religion forbids us to have nuclear weapons. note, incidentally, that this stands in sharp explicit contrast with the position of the north koreans. the north koreans have been saying the very opposite. we want nuclear weapons. we are seeking nuclear weapons. and, in your face, ha, ha, we have nuclear weapons. that makes it much tougher to ne

their economic issues between us and the iranians we have claims against the iranian, damages and otherwise, the iranians have claims against us because of sanctions and withholding assets and so forth. so there is bound to be a set of negotiations going on at the same time and perhaps by movement on some of them movement and other issues more difficult issues may be facilitated and i emphasize the word may be. but it is going to be wave theory difficult and complex process. on the issue of the nuclear program itself, i think the negotiating point of departure might well be the desire to exploit more explicitly what the iranians have been affirming publicly for quite some time namely the three in vocations. we don't want nuclear weapons, we are not seeking nuclear weapons, our religion forbids us to have nuclear weapons. notes incidentally this stands in sharp explicit contrast with the position of the north koreans. the north koreans have been saying the very opposite. we want nuclear weapons. we are seeking nuclear weapons, and in your face, taha, we have nuclear weapons. that makes it to

this is about a iranians and iranians having their rights to express themselves, be respected, their political will be respected. the president made a very strong statement, standing very firmly behind those who want to have their views respected and want to be able to peaceably assemble and want to have access to the media. right now, our focus is on this very dramatic situation unfolding. >> the situation is unfolding in a country with which the obama administration has been attempting to engage. i am simply asking whether the prospects for that succeeding seemed to be improving or slipping away. >> this is a very rapidly devolving situation. -- evolving situation. we are like all of you. we are following with great interest what is happening in iran. it is a rapidly evolving situation. >> let me put it one last way. then i will yield. a knowledgeable source told me that the obama administration is in the process of free calibrating its entire approach to the nuclear diplomacy issue with iran. is that true? >> what i will say is that this issue of iran and its refusal to meet its o

we support the iranian people. we condemn the violence. >> the time has expired. >> i am pleased to yield two minutes to my good friend from california, the ranking member on the subcommittee of international organizations, of human rights, and oversights. >> i rise in strong support of this resolution which ratchets up to a degree, america's willingness to express its heartfelt support to the iranian people. it has been said you cannot champion the oppressed unless you're willing to take on the oppressor. america should not intervene in every struggle taking place. but we should be on a pot -- unapologetically on the side of those who are in desperate battle for their own freedom. tempered rhetoric cannot be interpreted by tyrants as weakness. we need to send a strong message to those tyrants and a strong message to the people who are willing to risk their lives on the streets that we are on the side of the people and the side of democracy and freedom. and the other message would be of the trail of our fundamental

iranian relations. but that is a choice that the iranians are going to have to make. >> david jackson. >> mr. president, two of the key players in the insurance industry sent a letter to the senate this morning saying that government health insurance plan would quote this memo unquote private insurers. why are they wrong? and secondly is the public plan nonnegotiable? >> let's talk personal about health care before more broadly. i think in this debate there has been some notion that if we just stand pat, we are okay. and that's just not true. you know, there are pulls out a show that 70 or 80% of americans are satisfied with the health insurance that they currently have. the only problem is that premiums have been doubling every nine years. going up three times faster than wages. the u.s. government is not going to be able to afford medicare and medicaid on its current trajectory. businesses are having to make very tough decision about whether we dropped coverage or we further restrict coverage. so the

there are economic issues between us and iranians. we have claimed damages against the iranians. the iranians have claimed damages because of sanctions and withholding of assets and so forth. there is bound to be some negotiations going on at the same time. perhaps movement on some of them, movement on other issues more difficult may be facilitated. but it is going to be a very difficult and complex process. on the issue of the nuclear program, itself, i think the negotiating point of departure might well be a desire to exploit more explicitly what the iranians have been affirming publicly for quite some time, namely their 3 invocations. we don't want nuclear weapons, we are not seeking nuclear weapons, our religion forbids us to have nuclear-weapons. note that this stance in explicit contrast with the position of the north koreans. the north koreans have been saying the opposite. we want nuclear-weapons, we are seeking nuclear weapons, and now we have nuclear weapons. that makes it much tougher to negotiate about an arrangement which includes nuclear weapons. the iranians are ou

none the election i have been asked by the iranians recently to appears on iranian television, to discuss the relationship -- they wanted me to discuss it with one of the key advisors of the supreme leader, and i said i wouldn't do it on that basis, because i have no assurance that that will not become a rather hostile debate between the two of us, and i see no merit in rehashing the past, so i would rather appear on their television in which journalists ask me questions, and i lay out my point of view. and they agreed to that. and they taped -- sent people over here and taped 27 minutes and i said, nothing will be cut and they said nothing will be cut and actually broadcast it, on tehran television, and of course, throughout the interview i refused to get drawn into the business of, well, you overthrew... and you made the diplomats hostages and i said, let's forget the past and it is in our mutual interest or not to deal with the set of issues and i kept repeating that, basically and they -- the full text of the interview was reprinted in four newspapers in the tehran without any cuts, a

they are just not a majority of the iranian population. and i think we have to just sort of deal with it as we haven't. >> [inaudible] >> well, okay. [laughter] >> we are for regime change. >> thank you. my name is mike. among your recommendations there is one item, refuse to give up on efforts to persuade iran to abandon its nuclear capability. my question is how can you convince iranian government that it is in their own interest in view of the following two facts: a, three countries -- israel, india and pakistan -- continue to possess nuclear weapons, and, b, among the member countries of the axis of evil one country which did not possess nuclear weapons was invading the other country, north korea, is now a nuclear-armed country, and it is not invaded. >> jim? >> i think that's a good point, but i would distinguish iran from those countries, at least from israel and india, because iran did sign the nuclear proliferation treaty whereas i don't believe they did. but as you mentioned, i think the regime sees a nuclear weapon as a guarantee

we can make a difference for the iranian people. with that, i want to turn over to chairman mike pence who has been the primary sponsor of the resolution just pass. >> i want to thank all my colleagues, but most especially i want to thank eric cantor, who led the effort in so many ways of the last week on behalf of giving the american people an opportunity through their elected representatives to be heard on the question of freedom and iran. i also want to commend the ranking member of the foreign affairs committee for her leadership and hurt yeoman's work in bringing this work so expeditiously to the fore. let me also say how grateful i am a congressman for his bipartisan spirit and the good faith manner in which he negotiated this resolution and assisted in bringing it to the floor. today in the wake of so-called elections in iran, and on an overwhelming and near it unanimous bipartisan basis, the american people have spoken through this congress to condemn the violence and suppression of a free and independent press in iran, and

iranian centrifuges at plants hidden from weapons inspectors. and terrorist groups make voyages to iran to receive training at unspecified locations. this is the regime we are talking about. and this week the true colors of that regime are on broad display. we must rally the world around the cause of the iranian people, and i urge the administration, i urge president obama to follow the lead of this house to speak out on behalf of the iranian people and their quest for freedom and human rights. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: yes, mr. speaker. i want to yield myself 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 30 seconds. mr. berman: the gentleman, for whom i have great respect, the minority whip, spoke about america's moral commitment to speak out on behalf of the people yearning for freedom. we have an even higher moral commitment and that is to the things that help extend and expand the extent of human freedom around the world, and

asked to help the iranians in 1953? >> there were groups that were interested in having united states and u.k. help but it went beyond that. it was a broad-based appeal for help whichs was the thought, but that was wrong. the reason why mosadde fell out with the united kingdom and united states is because it might lead to add sapgs to the soviet union, but also to the fact that he had nationalized u.k. oil interests are in iran, so it was a bad episode in u.s. history, and politicians in both countries have recognized the fact

nonetheless, i have been asked by the iranians recently to appear on iranian television, to discuss the relationship. they wanted me to discuss it with one of the key advisers to the supreme leader. i said i would not do it on that basis, because i have no assurance that that will not become a rather hostile debate between the two of us. i see no merit in rehashing the past. so i would rather appear on a television in which journalists would ask me questions and i lay out my point of view. they agreed to that. they taped 27 minutes, i said nothing would be cut and they agreed and they broadcast it on their television. they had sent reporters over here. throughout the interview i refused to go into the business about of them making our diplomats into hostages. i just kept repeating that i wanted to stick to the current topic of today. they printed the interview in the newspaper. even a different newspaper came to me for an interview. they published it week or so ago. that, to me, is a hint of some desire to engage in dialogue. it certainly was not designed to stimulate more hostility. be

iranians need to iranians need to know who stand with them and who stand against them. as much as the people demand that, elements starting this regime know they can no longer -- they also have to make the position clear. it ties back to what i was telling you. the element of constant pressure on the system to bring this movement favoring the likelihood of more peeling away from the regime rather than the reverse. this is why it is so critical for the iranians to know that throughout this entire process, and as i say, there may be some at san flows, but the unconditionalebbs and flows -- ebbs and flows, but the unconditional elements of this needs to be known. we have seen some internal fragmentation. >> i am from a neighboring area. the streets of teheran, tehran -- of iran, tehran, because the official figures to not seem to reflect the real level. and how the events going to develop? >> it is very, very difficult to have an actual headcount, because some of the victims' bodies are dragged to places that even their own families cannot recover them. that is also, perha

this is an issue that should be decided within iran by the iranian people, we believe that the iranian people deserve to have their voices heard free from violence and intimidation. the new u.s. administration has reached out to tehran appeared as the president said, the question is not what around is against, but rather what future it wants to build? that future must not include a nuclear weapon or destabilizing activities in the region. in gauging diplomatically on this issues will test iranian intention and claims of good faith. even as the u.s. in cages in iran we will move to strengthen nonproliferation norms and work with allies and partners to see that their fundamental security interests are protected. if necessary, we will take action by conducting counterterrorism operation and sharing intelligence from the illegal shipments of weapons or materials. iran has opened a threatened the state of israel, and has complicated efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace. president obama is fully committed to supporting a two- state solution the, the palestinian state living in peace a

what is the iranian government to do? they have to have some method from deterring the united states from invading them. that could be a very popular point of view. so, you cannot really blame iran for attempting to have some kind of a power against the united states. host: if we go with your notion that this is a defensive posture, how do we go about assuring them that we are not going to attack them and that they do not necessarily need this defensive mechanism? caller: showed genuine intent to leave these countries. leaving them in a better state than we found them. that is the only thing that we can do. we need to leave iraq better than we left it. we have to leave afghanistan better than we left it. that is the only thing that we can do. host: if you want to send us comments on twitter, the address is twitter.com/c-spanwj. the address for the e-mail is a journal@c-span.org. democratic line, good morning. keith. caller: i do not think that the iranian administration has put the obama administration in any kind of prob

many iranians have tried. rewind the tape back to 15 or 20 years ago with the hope that reform may be at least attempted. remember the administration? they attempted it. it did not work for obvious reasons. so now, there's no question that iranians under clearly that the only way we are going to rid ourselves of all of our problems is a matter of this regime's ultimate collapse. that is what we demand. that is what we want to see happen, and this is our moment of truth. this is the other for iran after today. so anyone today in solidarity with the demand of a nation, and iranians will speak more and more, even in the span of one week, ladies and gentlemen, i am sure that as media, you have seen that the demand that started on saturday, june 13, one day after the 12th of june, and i contrast the statements coming from iran initially to today, you will notice that in the span of just a week, how quickly more and more people have been telling you. i have heard some of it through your own broadcasts. aside from de

we respect iranian sovereignty. then as the crisis escalated, the president optimistcally noted, you've seen in iran some initial reaction from the supreme leader he understands the iranian people have deep concerns about the election and my hope is that the iranian people will make the right steps in order for them to express their voices, express their aspirations. tragically, the supreme leader's deep concern drove him to step on the throats of pro-democracy protesters like neda. next, the president said the rights of free speech must be respected. it was the last thing i want to do is have the united states be a foil for forces inside iran who would love nothing better than to make this about the united states. with these contradictory statements of support and appeasement, the president returned to square one. the iranian people will judge the actions of their own government. if the iranian government seeks the respect of the world, it must govern its own people through consent, not coerce. the supreme leader,

iranians were dealing with this all the way along. and so young people also were attracted to his message. he promised to battle corruption. he promised to bring the country's oil wealth to people's dinner's table and this was certainly appealing to a young generation who was starting to think very seriously about whether or not they could afford and sustain decent married adult life back in iran. my move back to iran was occurred with a change in my life. given the title of my book, i met someone who would later become my husband, and when i moved back so that we could start our life together and go forward, i began to experience and sort of firsthand witness all of the things that iranian young people were dealing with when it came to marriage and moving on in life beyond simply being single and young. this all started for me in the course of planning our wedding and there's a chapter in mygcw k devoted to this and it's called "the persian bride's handbook." it looks at weddings in iran and, of course, i being the woman, the one who

iranian are not asking americans to intervene. it is just because their turn to get their intention -- the united nations is in the united states. -- they're trying to get their attention. they do not realizrecognize ahmadinejad's government as iranian government. when the time comes for him to come to speak to the american people we hope that americans do not give him a visa. he is the one who claims to have democracy and freedom of speech. i want americans to know that iranians are just looking at the united states and try to get their voice out

the iranian people need to work out this on their own. host: we have someone on the democrats' line. good morning to you. caller: hello, i got in on the wrong question. into this one. -- answer this one. i think obama should follow the plan he has set. he has the young people on his side. he had these townhouse meetings -- town hall meetings for the people. you could tell by the faces of the people, that they loved it. they were throwing questions to him. the air iranian people see that. they want their own type of town hall meeting. they want to have a say. they cannot. they will do this if everybody stand back and let them go at it and stop trying to make obama create a problem. he needs to not start another war. back to the other question the, the media are -- is in love with him. that -- there is a company that follows with the story is. as soon as something bad happens that they can go after obama, they will be after him like white on rice. guest: i think obama has done the right thing. the best thing obama can do to support freedom

-iranian relations. that is a choice that they will have to make. >> america's health insurance plans and blue cross blue shield sent a letter to senate this morning saying that government health insurance plan would dismantle private insurers. why are they wrong? >> but as talk about health care reform more broadly. in this debate, there has been some notion that if we stand [unintelligible] we are ok. that is not true. 80% of americans are satisfied with the health insurance they currently have. the only problem is premiums have been doubling every nine years. going up three times faster than wages. the u.s. government is not going to be able to afford medicare and medicaid on its current trajectory. businesses are having to make tough decisions about whether we drop coverage or restricted. the notion that we can keep doing what we are doing and that is okay, that is just not true. we have a longstanding critical problem in our health-care system that is pulling down our economy, burdening families, bu

this is an iranian matter. is up to iranians to pick their leaders.uld be prepared -- this is the get over it part of our title -- we should be prepared to pursue our strategic agenda with iran with the government that is in place. host: conn, independent line. larry. thank you for calling. guestcaller: i cannot believe wt i'm hearing. the united states -- you being a former cia agent -- do you know the united states goes into these places. it is a division. especially when they are about to hold elections. you can see with hezbollah and hamas. one woman got killed. it goes on and on and on. it seems to me -- i also wanted -- now that we're talking about -- even c-span. they got away with saying israel a few times. you cannot say israel and jew together in the same sentence or you get hung up on. they go out of the way to conduct these things. everything is intertwined. whoever has an agenda --. -- it goes up to the top office. it spills into the cia and everywhere. they go on these missions. we're build on a global capitalism system. it is going to k

what kind of feeling -- it puts them iranian leadership and a tough -- oppose the iranian leadership in a tough position. will you answer that in a general way? thank you. >> i see at least three questions. robin? crags of very important point. that is one of the many cracks. about 1/3 showed up for the victory party, telling. in terms of the deadline, i would caution you not to put a deadline when the process has not started. obama has talked about one year he wants to see something happened, until january. very fluid situation. in some ways, it is a day-by-day situation. you cannot look for too much now. we are 2.5 weeks after the election. there's going to be a lot of settling down. >> would you comment on that prospect that sanctions could have any further a fact? we have many more arrows in the quiver that we could use on the sanctions. >> a couple of things on the vulnerability. i do not think the split is just in the magistrate. it is all over the place. because of that, i do not think anything is going to happen until they sort out the mess on monks themselves. with regard to

and, -- 17 million armenians, 60 million armenians -- iranians, to upend the system.pplause] >> kyoto news. i have a question about the numbers coming out to the rally spurred we have heard mixed reports about how many are attending. if you have an idea from the sources of whether the numbers have changed greatly in the past week and half, and whether you see them growing in the next few days. >> the numbers have been quite high. i think it has been, perhaps, the biggest gatherings that i remember ever in the history of iranian politics. not just in tehran, but the overall numbers of people being out there, and not just because of a political campaign or election campaign. now the call on the streets is everybody saying "we want freedom." this is well beyond elections now. this is about the sanctity of the ballot box. the flagrant stealing of the vote -- not necessarily because of this or that candidate, people saying "we have had it. how long are we going to put up with this situation is clear that is the spirit of this movement, which has grown -- how long are we go

nonetheless i've been asked by the iranians recently to appear on iranian television to discuss the relationship they wanted me to discuss it with one of the key advisers of the supreme leader and i said i wouldn't do it on that basis because i have no insurance that will not become a rather hostile debate between the two of us and i see no merit in rehashing the past, so i would rather appear on the television in which journalists ask me questions and i and the out my point of view and they agreed to that and they take 27 minutes and i said nothing would be cut and they said nothing would be cut and they actually broadcast it on the television and of course throughout the interview i refused to get rahman to the business of you were -- he made the diplomats and hostages i repeatedly said let's forget the past and start where we are. is it in our mutual interest or not to deal with a set of issues and i just kept repeating that basically and the full text of that interview was printed in four newspapers in tehran without cuts and then the leading newspaper came to me in additional interview and

they have come to dominate the iranian economy. if you look at what happened two years ago, there was an iranian that cannot and said that the system is corrupt -- that came out and said that the system is corrupt. he basically accused the system of assassinating revolutionary guard members. that shows that there is a lot of attention not just between the right and left anbut with them the right and the right also. what i am not an economist. it is hard for me to avoid bidding you to speak about the political issues. i will try to get you to stick to numbers rather than political implications. first is the youth vote. i have heard others say that iran actually got a handle on the democratdemographic challen. this is obviously not attend to the challenge so we have today of creating jobs -- akin to the challenge we have today and of creating jobs. iran will look something like japan, where you have a very elderly population being supported by a relatively small young cohort. the second question is more political. looking at your pre

iranian issues even currently, is that correct? >> i'm sorry? >> the present is still willing to talk to ahmadinejad about the various u.s. issues and that has not been changed at all? >> the president is committed to direct engagement with the iranian government on issues of our national interests, including their pursuit of nuclear weapons and/or sponsorship or tear. >> this disputed election does not in any way change that. >> the disputed election is something for iranians. [inaudible] >> obviously the president spoke both yesterday and today about what he thinks of his universal values. and obviously -- >> i'm sorry to. >> i think having a robust free press that covers an important source in the world, something that the president believes strongly in. >> does the administration believe internet and texting access should be restored? >> absolutely. >> they designate a spot on their website that other organizations, in light of the fact that we don't have a diplomatic relationship is the white house monitoring to the effect of that informati

the iranian authorities do use confessions. they, for example, asked people to say on the television that yes, they were incited by voice or or of america or the bbc, but whether they would go that far to blacken mousavi in that way, it's not clear to me whether they would. host: back to the phones. orchard park, new york. carl on the line for democrats. caller: yes, mr. ambassador, you're very familiar with iran, obviously, and the squeography of iran and we've heard for the last few years, especially the 8 years of the bush administration, and the right wing elements in israel that perhaps we should bomb, carpet bomb, the nuclear facilities if they confine them in iran, and as a former ambassador there, is it not true that if the west gave israel the green light or actually participated in a bombing of the so-called nuclear facilities, wouldn't iran immediately, with their mobile missile systems, totally blockade the strait of hormuz, which would shut off about 50% of the world's oil, raise the price of oil up to $400 or $500

the iranian government also has other responsibilities. working with germany and other european partners to prevent them from developing a nuclear arms race in the middle east. we encourage iran to take a path that leads to greater security and prosperity for the iranian people. we also discussed the broader middle east and the need for all parties to redouble their efforts for lasting peace. during our recent -- a recent visit, the chancellor spoke eloquently about germany's everlasting responsibility to the security of israel. they must reject violence and recognize israel's right to exist. we agree that confronting violent extremism and preventing terrorist attacks demands our continued commitment and a comprehensive strategy. this includes dismantling and disrupting al qaeda and its allies. we honor those who serve, including american and german soldiers that pay their lives there this week. as i prepared him as it -- as a prepared to visit moscow, we will work with the russian government on issues where we agree, and honestly confront

in the last iranian presidential election in 2005 there were also yes questions of fraud raised after mr. ahmadinejad came out of nowhere to win an outright majority in the first round of that election. and after a previous announcement that there would be a run off. yet the final results of that investigation were never published back in 2005 and thereafter and mr. ahmadinejad's declared victory stood firm. because of that precedent i'm skeptical that the iranian regime will engage in an honest review of this election contest. this count, i should say. president obama and his senior national security team have refrained from extensive commentary on the election in recent days. that is as it should be. the u.s. government should not give the iranian regime any flimsy rationals for further crackdown on protesters and reformist leaders. however, the administration officials, led by vice president biden, have made clear that the strategy of diplomatic engagement with iran's leadership to bring a peaceful resolution of iran's nuclear program will continue regardless of who may comprise th

since then, i think that most iranians today, including the cab of mr. mousavi and others, are realizing that this is far beyond the question of the election result. it has become a question of not only the sanctity of the ballot box, but the very fact that it is of national sovereignty, national liberty, which, until this regime, with such a supreme leader, that in such a clear matter has pretty much drawn the line in the sand, will make it almost impossible for anyone to demand anything less than moving beyond the system. it is going in that direction. the momentum is there. there is no ave or recourse left for that nation for my compatriots to find any resolution for the problem. the latest decision made by the council of guardians reiterates once again that even if they are willing to admit that there was a discrepancy, they claim is not enough to warrant even a recount. pretty much the line has been drawn in the sand. i think that from now on the question is to offer every opportunity for anyone who is joining with the people today to get off this s

this is about iranians and the iranians having their right to express themselves, respect their political will. the president made a very strong statement i thought standing very firmly behind those who want to have their views respected and be able to peacefully assemble and want to have access to the media. so, right now our focus is on this dramatic situation unfolding inside iran. >> the situation is unfolding in a country with which the obama administration over months now has been attempting to engage and i am simply asking whether the prospects for bus and seeding or not seem to be improving or slipping away. >> well, again, this is a rapid the evil thing situation -- rapidly devolving situation. like all of you, we are following with great interest what is happening in iran and it is a rapidly evolving situation right now. >> let me put it one last way and then i will yield. a very knowledgeable source told me that field, administration is in the process of recalibrating its entire approach to the nuclear diplomacy issue with iran. is that true? >> what i will say is that this iss

it is not a judgment on who won the iranian elections. it is an acknowledgment that we cannot be re-main silent when cherished universal principles are under attack. mr. speaker, i want to just offer my appreciation to our ranking member and to the gentleman from indiana for working together on a resolution which puts the house of representatives on the side of the people of iran and with that, i ask my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: i want to thank the distinguished chairman of the foreign affairs committee, mr. berman, for working with us in a bipartisan manner, reaching out to our side to bring this timely resolution to the floor. i especially want to thank our republican conference chair and a great member of our foreign affairs committee, mr. pence, who authored this legislation and i rise i

opening within iranian society. we deplor the violence against innocent civilians anywhere that it takes place. the iranian people are trying to have a debate about their future. some in iran -- some in the iranian government in particular are trying to avoid that debate by accusing the united states and others in the west of instigating protests over the election. these accusations are patently false. they're an obvious attempt to distract people from what is truly taking place within iran's borders. this tired strategy of using old tensions to escape goat other countries won't work anymore in iran. this is not about the united states or the west, this is about the people of iran. and the future that they and only they will choose. the iranian people can speak for themselves. that's precisely what's happened in the last few days. in 2009 no iron fist is strong enough to shut off the world from bearing witness to peaceful protests of justice. despite the iranian government's efforts to expel journalists and isolate

if you trust the iranian people, and we shoin

i would love to see the iranian people get what they want.ost: "the denver post" has the situation on the front page. also from the arizona "republic," police in iran, clashing in the streets. caller: happy souls this. host: happy father's day. caller: this is an important day for the iranian people. we elected a ourselves a new president. if we could do something as remarkable as what we did, they have the courage to try themselves. i hope they can do something in an orderly fashion. i do not hear a particular set of demands. i do not think that they just want to tell things apart. talk to you later. thanks. host: "keep dick cheney away from this before he starts another war." that is another twitter message. "this is a stark contrast from ray and's starring challenge," by oliver north. "clearly articulated course of action that began in the opening days of his administration. despite near unanimous opposition from the so-called mainstream media, he was always clear about what he thought would be best for our country. after last sunday's fat

it should be an internal iranian matter the iranians resolve for themselves. host: go ahead.aller: thanks for taking my question. i was disappointed in what happened in iran over the past couple of days. i think mainly because in 2000 with the election, i sort of felt the same way. i was wondering, even though it is not our affair living outside of iran. is there anything we can do. people dieing in iraq for democracy. is there a peaceful means people can take in this country to show support for the reformist party in iran? guest: that is a good question. you probably heard many of the previous callers say very definely that the u.s. shouldn't play any role in this. i think one of the ways we can help is sit on the sidelines at the moment. not endorse the results of the elections but not necessarily contest them, either. and i think that we live in such a globalized world with twitter and facebook and all of these sites and participating on some of the debates and discussions and letting the iranians know we respect their position and support their quest for depocacy and more

thousands of years ago, an iranian supreme leader, an iranian president determined to annihilate the jewish people, two leaders. they had plans. they had money. they chose a date. it was all set. it was just a matter of time. the clock was ticking. but what the leaders of persia, the leaders of iran had not calculated into their scheme was the god of abraham, isaac and jacob. [applause] >> the god of the jewish people and the god of israel also had a plan. he had two leaders. queen esther and queen mordecai her guardian. they were horrified when they heard about this plan. but while esther rised in great agony and anguish, mordecai fasted and prayed, god gave him vision of what to do. god made it clear to him that he was this charge. that mordecai did not have to fear but he did have to act. now, as you enter queen esther and mordecai into the equation, both jews with the plan to annihilate the jewish people we see in esther chapter 4 how this plays out. chapter 4 verse 1, when mordecai had learned what had been done he tore his closes and went out to the city and whaled bitterly. he

these are iranian diplomats. we have made a strategic decision to engage on a number of fronts with iran. we tried many years of isolation, and we are pursuing a different path now. >> the president keeps saying that it is important for the u.s. to not be seen as trying to influence elections one way or the other. but the iranian government has begun blaming the u.s. and the british, who were meddling, making social networking tools available. just saying that they stand with the people. this morning, we heard the -- essentially asking president obama and the state department to say more. is this narrow path the u.s. is treading going to be the path and if so why? >> what you are seeing in iran what we saw on friday is what you have been seeing all along. they are using the u.s. as a foil, a way to justify the policies or gains, public support. we don't want to get into a polemic necessarily on this. what you saw over the weekend, you saw a very strong statement by the president, setting out these fundamental pri

the iranian political system is a breeding ground for fascism. this is because of the system of government. you have two parallel systems working side by side. you have a republican system of government were you have an executive, legislative and judicial branch. when the leader of the revolution cleared the islamic republic, he wanted a purely theocratic system, but he had to adhere to the democratic norms. he had to create a republican system along with the theocracy. with this system, the supreme leader is a most powerful person. he is not supremely powerful as he likes to believe. his powers are balanced and checked by other government institutions. for example, the president of iran is the second most powerful person. he commands the executive branch and he sets domestic policy. he chairs the national security council. this duality within the system creates a lot of decentralized decisionmaking and dysfunction. this leaves a vacuum for factionalism to thrive. iran has a history of very informal and opaque decision making. this goes back to t

he thinks they reflect a fundamental change in the attitude of the iranian people to the islamic regime, and has some ideas about what the west should do about it. after he speaks, he will take your questions. . . in the most troubling region of the world. on the other hand, their defeat will encourage extremism all the way to the energy jugular's of the world. at the very least will threaten global tranquillity and economic recovery through fears of terrorism, slowdown of globalization and steeply higher energy prices. at worst, fanatical tirntse -- tyrants 0 who know the future is against them may end things on their course, a nuclear holocaust. but which will it be? that is the question of the day. my message to you is do not underestimate the role you play in the outcome. international media are already the information artery connecting different parts of the freedom movement in iran. that is why the o'ree jeem has ominously warned media that only officially approved reports can be dispatched out of the country. having restricted the return path of media, they are also jamming elect

nico's question reflected the anxiety from iranians. the president said we do not have international observers there and do not know what happened. while he said that the international community in the u.s. is appalled, it still -- it is only walking up to a line rhetorically. the administration says we are not taking sides and do not know it will play out. it's as regardless there will be a government there we want to do with on its nuclear program and on its sponsorship of terrorism. host: how is the president taking criticism concerning his stance? guest: you saw him bristle at it yesterday, duquesne chip of cbs, that john mccain's rising calls for him to say more about this. they and graham had been invoking cold war rhetoric. there was a front-page piece about this yesterday. he says he is not influenced at all. i am sure there are some elements if not directly from the republicans or other sources and inside his own white house to say more, the images coming out, this video he mentioned yesterday about a young woman who was shot d

regarding the threat of iranian retaliation and think he may find this becomes a pretext for a dragnet ran up of internal dissidents. our interviews in the gulf service suggest there is a lingering fear of sleeper cells of a fifth column presents but in many cases this is overblown. an asset is still seen a conflict being used to top cover to suppress a lot of internal dissent. >> we will open up to the audience. robin wright and the front. >> i have a question for friend. a couple of questions actually -- can you take a look or compare for us the kind of activism ec and the melon by man today resisted early days of the revolution when they had dreams of exporting and were a visibly helping a lot of groups on the eastern some golf and region as well deeper in the arab world and also compared with what the saudis are doing with a use of your own funds in promoting mosques in the region. it to what degree those to are trying to counter each other or in this really their own domestic agenda. >> i think there is opposed revolutionary time in that in the appeal or i ran's ideology it is tim

iranians have never seen such debate. and i think that it will make a difference, although, you know, it was difficult last night to decide whether one of them had won the the date. but i think that it does introduce them to the candidates much, much better. you have to remember that the rifles to the president have only been given tv time for the couple of weeks before that the president essentials and had on television and all media. >> tell about the supreme leader and how he figures and to both the election and politics in general in iran. >> the supreme leader is the ultimate decision maker on iran on issues of foreign policy, the nuclear program of course. in this election officially he is -- he does not take sides and he keeps saying he doesn't take sides but from his public statements and indeed today for instance he made a public statement that again suggests that he favors mahmoud ahmadinejad. within the regime though there are other leading figures, such as the former president and mohammed khatami backing mir-

iranians very much want to be a part of the 21st century. some kind of challenge was inevitable, given iran's modern history. political trail blazers, their quest for empowerment has played out in four different phases. the very first of its kind in asia, a powerful coalition of intelligentsia and clergy forced the dynasty to accept the constitution. in 1953, the democratically elected national fund pushed constitutional democracy, forcing the final shah to rome. in 1979, another coalition of clergy and intellectuals mobilized a dynastic rule. energy unleashed in peaceful demonstrations and angry protests, from the caspian coast to southern shore rock, is the natural -- natural sequel in this stream of events. each of these left indelible imprints that opened up iranian politics, defining what followed. the student protest failed because it only involved one section of society. when you look at the variety of people that turned out on the street, the coalition is the most powerful since the revolution. it includes people of all ages and clas