Matt Yglesias flags this story in the LA Times:
With campaigns for the June 12 presidential election in full swing, none of the three challengers have shied away from publicly criticizing Ahmadinejad on topics long considered off-limits for debate in Iran, such as his stance on the country’s nuclear program and his vitriol for Israel. Reformist challenger Mir-Hossein Mousavi accused the president of so sullying the nation that Iranian passports are now on par with those of Somalia, the African state that has become a hub of poverty, piracy and terrorism.
…
Mehdi Karroubi, another liberal challenger, took on the president’s handling of the nuclear program, which Iran says is aimed at civilian energy production but the West believes is meant to eventually produce weapons. Karroubi said Tehran needed to be more transparent and rational in pursuing its goals abroad.
I think the odds of Ahmadinejad staying in office are better than even, but this is certainly encouraging news. This is the bit I like:
And even conservative contender Mohsen Rezai, a former commander of the Revolutionary Guard, accused Ahmadinejad of going overboard with his rhetoric on the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Is it possible that even the Iranian right thinks Mahmoud’s a kook?
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