Rouhani faces winter of Iran's discontent
Iran’s hard-liners have already secured a takeover of the parliament in elections this month; Trump says any negotiations are totally up to Iran.
Iran’s parliamentary elections on Feb. 21 are already a done deal. The 12-member Guardian Council, which vets candidates and legislation to assure revolutionary, constitutional and Islamic orthodoxy — and the prerogatives of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — have assured a victory for the hard-liners and a massive setback for Reformists.
The question is whether Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and the Reformist camp can win by losing: that is, by rallying popular discontent on the outside, as an opposition party, ahead of the presidential election next year. And whether Rouhani, with nothing to lose, would be willing to finally explore US President Donald Trump’s longstanding offer to talk about a deal.
Guardians take out the competition
While Khamenei has the final-word authority in Iran, the Islamic Consultative Assembly, or parliament, has in the past been known for some lively and fractious exchanges of views.
