Reformer Mohammad Khatami will run for president of Iran, presuming the Guardian Council allows him into the race. Khatami was president from 1997 to 2005 and that era marked a liberalizing movement in Iran and more outreach to the West; if he is elected in June it would represent a step towards rapprochement after the current president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, stepped up anti-Western rhetoric and belligerence. But during his last term Khatami suffered from the reformer's curse of needing to shore up his support among hard-line members of parliament, making it more difficult for him to pull the old Nixon-goes-to-China, even as pro-democracy Iranians increased their demonstrations and demands for a more open government. On the other hand, his successful election -- by no means assured -- could be seen as the Iranian people rejecting Ahmadinejad's divisive approach. But it will likely reflect more on the current president's economic policies (sound familiar?) since things have not been going well in Iran in that department of late.
-- Tim Fernholz
