Ever since the President toughened his language a few days ago, two things have happened — maybe more than two, but at least two.  One is that the dissent has been all but crushed.  So is he powerless to affect the situation there?  And second, Ahmadinejad has attempted to use his words as exactly the kind of foil and political football that the President wanted to avoid.  So, number one, is the President powerless there; and number two, did he give them the kind of ammunition that he was trying to avoid giving?MR. GIBBS:  No.  Interesting 180 on your earlier question from earlier in the week.

Q    Times change.

MR. GIBBS:  Yes, apparently.  Look, I think the international community continues to condemn what is going on in Iran.  I think if you asked the Iranian regime where they are right now and where they sit and whether they think they’re in good stead and in control of that country, I think you’ll in a moment of honesty get a far different answer.  The President, again, has responded forcefully from the very moment of the elections, the first day that you all asked him questions in the Oval Office about violence that might happen and violence that at that point had already happened.

I think, again, what you’ve seen from Ahmadinejad is probably right out of the regime’s playbook.  They were going to — in many ways, they were going to try to do this regardless of what we said.  I think the President, in many ways, disposed of Mr. Ahmadinejad’s language from the past couple of days at the press avail earlier.  I think he has done what he needs to do to ensure that he doesn’t become a foil by the regime, and I think that’s been reported by many of your outlets from people believing that in Iran.

Q    Do you think that his more forceful presentation, his more forceful words, have had a direct effect on the situation in Iran for the better?

MR. GIBBS:  Well, I think the President — the President spoke out forcefully against violence from the very beginning.  I think those are universal principles that he and many throughout the world community uphold.  And he will continue, as they discussed it — as he discussed it with Chancellor Merkel, and as the G8 has done, continue to speak out on this.

Yes, ma’am.

Q    The President has always made an argument that unilateral engagement makes sense for our — within Iran — for our national security interests.  I’m sure that he takes issue with some of the ways Iran conducts itself, that regime conducts itself up to this point, yet he still felt that engagement was a good policy.  Today he seems to be saying engagement has to be on hold.  In any way does that undercut the argument that he’s made all along, that something has changed?

MR. GIBBS:  No, I think — again, I think what the President did today was largely reiterate what he’d said earlier in the week, that we’re going to — there obviously are a series of events that have yet to play out in Iran, and we’ll watch those events play out.  I think our long-term interest, as it relates to Iran and the danger in the region remain, quite honestly, no different than they remained the day before the election.  We’ve all witnessed the images since the days of that election, and that’s I think foremost on the minds of not only this President and this administration, but people throughout the world.

Q    But you still believe in engagement as a policy?

MR. GIBBS:  He does, understanding right now that the Iranians seem preoccupied.

Yes, sir.

 Chancellor Merkel today spoke directly to the election results in Iran when she said that there should be a re-vote, some kind of recount.  I haven’t heard President Obama say anything like that.  Does he agree with Chancellor Merkel on that?

MR. GIBBS:  That’s a decision that Iranians are going to have to make about their own leadership.

Q    So are you saying that Chancellor Merkel was going to go further than — went further than President Obama was prepared to?

MR. GIBBS:  I’m not going to — I’ve not been hired to characterize Chancellor Merkel’s statements.

Q    But he said they spoke with one voice.

MR. GIBBS:  In condemning the violence.  I think you all have heard everything that the President said on this. 

full transcript

[1] http://blog.obamatweets.net/2009/06/27/6-26-9-obama-news-white-house-press-conference-robert-gibbs/