Six days ago, I reported that American and British diplomats were meeting to discuss how to promote democratic regime change in Iran. Needless to say, most of the commenters were skeptical, generally pointing to the mere ten million dollars set aside for pro-democracy activities. That’s chump change. As Marko in the comments said, “$10 million to spend? Let????????s buy them all pro-democracy keychains!”

Thankfully I know better than others that internal regime change is a serious policy direction for the administration because it is the only way a nuclear Iran will be acceptable to the Western powers. News of diplomats talking isn’t just some statement of condemnation by Scott McClellan, but proof that there is an initiative underway to push this agenda forward. That’s why, despite the jokes, I wasn’t surprised to hear about Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice asking for an addition $75 million for promoting regime change in the country.

The US administration will ask Congress for another 75 million dollars to boost democracy in Iran amid growing concern over Tehran’s nuclear program, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said.

She told a Senate committee the money, which amounts to more than a doubling of the funding for pro-democracy activities in Iran, would go to stepped-up radio and television broadcasts and other programs.

“The United States has been at the forefront of nations seeking to take Iran to the UN Security Council on fears that it is seeking nuclear weapons,” Rice said in prepared testimony for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“The United States will actively confront the aggressive policies of the Iranian regime,” she said. “At the same time, we will work to support the aspirations of the Iranian people for freedom and democracy in their country.”

A State Department official said the 75 million dollars would be requested as supplemental funding for the 2006 fiscal year, on top of the 60 million dollars already appropriated.

The official, who asked not to be named, said 50 million dollars of the added money would go to expanded radio and television broadcasts into Iran to ensure around-the-clock coverage.

He said 10 million dollars would go to shoring up the work of civil society groups, reformers and political activists trying to promote democracy in the Islamic republic.

Rice said, “This money will enable us to increase our support for democracy and improve our radio broadcasting into Iran, to begin satellite television broadcasts, to increase the contacts between our peoples … and to bolster our public diplomacy.”

Now, $75 million isn’t chump change at all. For the task at hand, which is promoting information awareness and building civil society organizations, that’s a lot of money. Whose laughing now?

The importance of getting our message out to the Iranian people is so that they know that the world supports them in their esteem for a democratic government. Information is the tool that will arm them to bind together to make that a reality. Currently, the regime is able to block a lot of the signals broadcast to the country. What the additional funding will do is allow for high-powered government satellites to breach this information blockade so that Iranians will be able to be connected to the outside world. It will also expand existing satellite and radio programs to allow for more coverage more often. Think of it as doing for Iran what Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Voice of America did for the people of the Soviet Union.

Funding civil society organizations directly will have a huge impact on the Iranian peoples’ organizational capacity, but it will also be the hardest challenge to undertake. They are a very nationalistic people and many would see funding by America of certain organizations as treacherous, despite agreeing with the intents. I’m not in the position to say which would be the best to give funding to. However, I can say that funding the long-discredited mujahideen groups like the MKO who have resorted to terrorist tactics in their cause will result in utter failure. This is something that will have to be carried out very carefully.