Empty seats, silence speaks for protesters

Ahmadinejad waves after being sworn in as Iranian president for a second time.

Octavia Nasr | BIO
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Editor, Middle East Affairs

In his inauguration speech at the Iranian parliament, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had something to say for almost everyone - his supporters, his opponents and those he called "enemies" without naming names.

He hailed what he called an "epic election" but didn't go into the turmoil of the past two months that ensued.

No word on the reformist movement calling the vote rigged or demonstrators who chanted for weeks slogans such as, "Death to Ahmadinejad." No mention of those who demanded new election and posted messages on the Internet as they did repeatedly today on the social networking site Twitter saying, "This is the voice of Iran, Ahmadinejad is NOT our president."

Instead, Mr. Ahmadinejad stressed that, "The victor is all the people, the revolutionary values, and the Islamic establishment."

Keep reading...