Iran Ridicules July 4th: America is Not Independent

PRESS TV, totally funded by the Islamic Republic and a mouthpiece for the Islamic regime, told its readers, “America is no longer the land of the free. It is now ruled by oligarchs and corporatists. And it is no longer governed by the rule of law. The rich, the powerful and the politically connected abide by their own, very different, set of laws.” 

Choosing choice quotes from various websites, PRESS TV took a sentence from the Miami Herald that stated, “This year, as the nation celebrates Independence Day, the sputtering U.S. economy offers a stark reminder that today the U.S. is more dependent upon foreigners than ever before."  

"The United States needs them to finance its debt: China and Japan together hold more than $2 trillion of U.S. Treasury bonds. It needs them to supply much of the oil that's critical to U.S. economy.”

American-Israeli ties were cited by the Iranians as more evidence that the United States no longer is independent, and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) was noted for its “stranglehold on Congress.”

The left-wing anti-war.com site was sourced as writing that Israel "conducts the most aggressive espionage operations against the U.S. of any ally," with the quote attributed to the U.S. General Accounting Office.

“AIPAC lobbyists with their Christian Zionist allies guarantee billions of dollars in military aid for Israel each year,” PRESS TV added, this time quoting AlterNet.

Former Iowa Congressman Paul Findley, who often railed against Israel, also was given a prominent place in the government-funded website for his comment, “There is an open secret in Washington. I learned it well during my 22-year tenure as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. All members swear to serve the interests of the United States, but there is an unwritten and overwhelming exception: The interests of one small foreign country almost always trump U.S. interests. That nation of course is Israel.”

PRESS TV also charged that recent acts by Congress, such as the Patriot Act in 2001 and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Amendments Act in 2008, violate Americans' rights. It also asserted that the U.S. President Barack Obama violated the U.S. constitution by authorizing military attacks in Libya even though there is no “actual or imminent threat to the nation." 

The government-funded website also noted, “For the past few centuries, the Fourth of July has been celebrated with fireworks, parades, picnics, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, concerts, baseball games, political speeches and ceremonies.”