Bush says Iran’s election designed to keep rulers in power

Associated Press, WASHINGTON – June 16 – On the eve of Iran’s presidential election, President Bush said the voting has been designed to keep power in the hands of a few rulers “through an electoral process that ignores the basic requirements of democracy.” “Iran is ruled by men who suppress liberty at home and spread terror across the world,”
Bush said. “Power is in the hands of an unelected few who have retained power through an electoral process that ignores the basic requirements of democracy. The June 17th presidential elections are sadly consistent with this oppressive record.”
“Iran’s rulers denied more than a thousand people who put themselves forward as candidates, including popular reformers and women who have done so much for the cause of freedom and democracy in Iran,” Bush said in a statement released by the White House.