Iran 101

[Redress]

Was just looking around the internets, and found this article/faq on Iranian politics. Can anyone confirm this as being an accurate description?

Iran 101: Understanding the unrest - CNN.com

Certain aspects particular interest me:

Q. So, how much power does the president wield?

A. It depends on how nicely he plays with the Guardian Council.

The president is elected by direct vote to a four-year term, for a maximum of two terms.

He is responsible for economic policy and social programs, but most of the larger decisions are made by the supreme leader.

In theory, his powers are second to the supreme leader's. But in practice, he is often hamstrung by the Guardian Council.

The Guardian Council has worked with hard-liner Ahmadinejad, a 53-year-old former mayor of Tehran who was elected in 2005. But it thwarted reform attempts by his predecessor, Mohammad Khatami.

Furthermore, Moussavi is an unlikely man for the job.

Though the 67-year-old former prime minister is credited for successfully navigating the Iranian economy as prime minister during the Iran-Iraq war, he also was a hard-liner whom the Economist described as a "firm radical."

He, like most Iranians in power, does not believe in the existence of Israel. He defended the taking of the American hostages in 1979. He was part of a regime that regularly executed dissidents. And as late as April, he opposed suspending the country's nuclear-enrichment program but said it would not be diverted to weapons use.