S8 Ep313: Guest: Gregory Copley. Reza Pahlavi proposes a constitutional monarchy where the crown serves as a symbolic figurehead, similar to the British system. Copley highlights Pahlavi's unique name recognition and legitimacy as the former crown prince. However,
The John Batchelor Show
John Batchelor
4.5 • 2.8K Ratings
🗓️ 14 January 2026
⏱️ 6 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
1970 TEHRAN
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | I'm John Batchel with Gregory Copley, Constitutional Monarchy. |
| 0:20.8 | That is the system of government that we left in 1776 to 1783 in the Peace of Paris, the Peace Treaty of Paris. |
| 0:31.8 | And the United States devoted itself to the congressional presidential, the three articles of the Constitution, not a |
| 0:39.8 | constitutional monarchy. We're told famously that Washington refused the crown, and that George |
| 0:45.4 | III admired him for that. That's the fairy tale. The constitutional monarchy right now, |
| 0:51.0 | in Britain, looks stable, although the country is very troubled. It has a king who works |
| 0:56.4 | hard to maintain a sense of Britishness. Constitutional monarchy is suggested by voices in the |
| 1:04.6 | protests in Tehran. It's suggested by people who are familiar with the Pahlavi's and Reza Pahlvi, who has lived in the United States most of his life, he's now 65 years old, is talking about a constitutional monarchy in which he would have no power other than that of symbolic language. |
| 1:24.2 | And there would be a Majlis, a parliament elected by the people. |
| 1:28.1 | Is it credible, Gregory? |
| 1:31.0 | Oh, it's very credible. |
| 1:32.2 | In fact, it worked very well under the Shah. |
| 1:35.5 | The Majlis had a huge degree of autonomy. |
| 1:39.2 | The Shah was highly conscious of his responsibilities to the public |
| 1:43.2 | and to, if you like, guiding the country |
| 1:46.3 | rather than dictating anything that would construe an autocratic government. |
| 1:55.9 | Whether Razapalibi is ready for it is the question. |
| 2:00.2 | The great advantage he has is that there is no viable alternative to him at this stage. |
| 2:07.4 | We know that the US Department of State if it gets involved will oppose anything that has monarchy in the name. |
| 2:14.3 | They've opposed monarchies routinely. |
| 2:17.0 | They were angry with Richard Nixon for his support |
| 2:21.8 | of the Shah in the 70s and the like. But the reality is that the only name recognition we're |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from John Batchelor, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of John Batchelor and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.

