Mousavi in the New York Times in November, 1986

"Mir Hussein Mousavi, 43, an engineer and Prime Minister since 1981, is a layman who began his revolutionary career as a clerk for the late Ayatollah Mohammed Beheshti, before rising to become editor of the Islamic Republican Party newspaper.A number of legislators have criticized his handling of the economy, and he alienated the bazaar merchants when he accused them of counterrevolution. He was appointed to a second term as Prime Minister only with the personal intervention of Ayatollah Khomeini. He has never voiced strong views on foreign policy, but is a firm believer in the need for more government control of the economy and a redistribution of wealth."