• Iranian opposition seemed to die down under government threats. As AP writer William J. Kole reported: “Overwhelmed by police and left with limited alternatives, Iranian demonstrators resorted Tuesday to more subtle ways of challenging the outcome of the presidential election: holding up posters, shouting from rooftops and turning on car headlights.” The government also kicked out two British diplomats packing, and Britain retaliated by telling two Iranian envoys to head on home.

• Then at the news conference, President Obama reiterated that he wasn’t changing his tone or caving in to Republican criticism. Saying that he was “appalled and outraged” by the deaths and intimidation in Tehran’s streets, he still pointed out that he was the only president of the United States and therefore it was his decision only to decide the official national response. “We don’t know yet how this thing is going to play out. It is not too late for the Iranian government to recognize that there is a peaceful path that will lead to stability and legitimacy and prosperity for the Iranian people. We hope they take it.”

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

• North Korea amped up its threats against the U.S., as a U.S. destroyer continued to follow the North Korean ship thought to be shipping dangerous cargo to Myanmar. The Asian nation has already warned other countries that it would consider attempts to stop or board the vessel as an act of war, but on Wednesday, the official Korean Central News Agency issued a statement saying that should “the U.S. imperialists start another war, they army and people of Korea will… wipe out the aggressors on the globe once and for all.”

• Meanwhile, Zahra Rahnavard, the wife of Iranian opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi, made herself even more controversial. On top of causing ripples because she campaigned alongside her husband, she is now calling on the government to release those protestors who have been imprisoned. But Iran’s supreme leader reiterated his stance that the government was not about to give in to protests over the disputed election, which doesn’t bode well for anybody arrested over the last two weeks.

• To make matters worse, Iranian authorities once again barred journalist working for international news organizations from reporting on the streets, telling them that they had to stay in their offices instead. The reason for the order came to light shortly afterwards, as security forces used tear gas and clubs to quell a group of rock-throwing protestors near the national parliament building.

• Obama stated that he “absolutely” backs health care reform, and believes that some version of his latest passionate political pursuit will pass before the end of the year. Arguing that the U.S.