Rouhani: People Must Choose Between Judge and Lawyer; Ebrahim Raisi Warns

The President of Iran, during his trip to Sari, stated that we will not go back and the people of Iran must choose between a judge and a lawyer. Ebrahim Raisi, his main rival, also warned Hassan Rouhani in Isfahan, saying, "You know my heart is a treasure chest of secrets, and if I speak, no one can compete with me." Three days before the twelfth presidential election in Iran, the two main candidates have increased their travels to various provincial centers in Iran, and Hassan Rouhani traveled to Sari in addition to Tabriz on Monday, May 25. In Sari, the Iranian president said, "Do you want to wait every day to see if a new resolution against the Iranian nation has been passed? Or do we want to hear every day that a new opening has been created for the Iranian nation?" According to the media of Hassan Rouhani's campaign, he emphasized that the people of Iran "must choose between a judge and a lawyer," because, according to him, "the judge issues a ruling and communicates it. The lawyer defends the people." Rouhani's reference may be to Ebrahim Raisi as the judge of revolutionary courts and himself as a 'legal expert.' He pointed to the statements and programs of his conservative rival, stating, "We ask others, we say if you have a program other than the program of 90 and 91, please announce it. Why do you advertise that the religion of the people is in danger and this government does not care about the religion of the people? The guardian of religion is the people themselves, not the government! You are neither the guardian of the people's religion nor the guardian of their world." The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran had previously accused Ebrahim Raisi in election debates of seeking a return to the past by employing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's team in his campaign, which led to severe inflation in Iran through pumping money into society via increased subsidies. He also asked Raisi in the third debate not to use the eighth Imam of Shia for his electoral matters and to 'keep it for the people.' In another part of his speech on Monday, he told his supporters, "Some want to discourage people so they do not come to the polls. Everything you say about freedom is achievable; just come to the ballot box." Another report indicates that the Assembly of Combatant Clergy, a leftist Islamic organization, supported Hassan Rouhani in the elections on Monday evening. This organization is led by Mohammad Khatami, who had previously supported Rouhani's presidency in a video message. The rival organization, the Society of Combatant Clergy, has declared its support for Ebrahim Raisi. Concurrently with the campaign trips of the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, who became the main candidate of the conservatives after Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf's withdrawal, went to Isfahan and spoke in Naqsh-e Jahan Square. According to Fars News Agency, he stated, "Neither a return to the past nor tolerating the current situation; rather, our strategy is change for the benefit of the people." Raisi addressed Hassan Rouhani's government, saying, "You paid an advance for the JCPOA and poured concrete into the heart of the reactor, but the counterpart's commitment must be fulfilled. The JCPOA is an uncashed check, and a revolutionary government is needed to cash this check." This candidate's reference is to the nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers in July 2013, which, according to one of its clauses, the Arak heavy water reactor must be redesigned. The eleventh government has denied the claim that the heart of the Arak reactor has been filled with concrete. In another part of his speech, Ebrahim Raisi added, "You come to symbolically unveil a citizens' rights charter to answer the people? Is the problem of the people citizens' rights? Among the components of a Mahdavi government are piety and efficiency. Our problem is not the program. It is time for action, and the era of talk therapy is over." He further warned the Iranian president: "Mr. Rouhani! You know my heart is a treasure chest of secrets, and if I speak, no one can compete with me, but someone who wants to become president must have the capacity." This conservative candidate added, "I have more information about these respected candidates due to my previous jobs regarding both individuals and their organizations, but anyone who wants to take office must first have the capacity." It seems that Ebrahim Raisi's reference is to the sharp remarks and widespread criticisms of Hassan Rouhani regarding his judicial past in the past week, to the extent that last week in a speech in Hamedan, he said the people of Iran do not want those who have only known imprisonment and execution for the past 38 years. Reports and images published on social media and some news sites emphasize that the crowd present in Naqsh-e Jahan Square during Raisi's speech was brought to the site by bus, and their presence in the surrounding neighborhoods caused heavy traffic.