September 24th, 2008 by Matt

…if it hadn’t been canceled shortly beforehand by rally organizers. It is for the most part a recitation of John McCain’s already well-known positions on Iran, but to the campaign’s credit it does contain more democracy-relevant rhetoric than we’ve seen lately from either campaign. The speech delves into the plight of Iranian citizens whose freedom to “live, work, and worship in peace” is often threatened by the regime. It decries the regime’s oppression of women, specifically highlighting the case of women’s rights activist Delaram Ali, who faced flogging and the possibility of imprisonment after being charged for “propaganda against the system”. Although Palin focuses prescriptive measures on stopping Ahmadinejad and the nuclear program (which apparently would by extension move toward curing the autocratic ills as well), it also provides some refreshing references to the dearth of democracy and human rights in Iran, of which to this point campaign rhetoric has been largely devoid.

Posted in Election 08, Iran, US foreign policy, US politics |