He explains how the Shia clergy, once independent of rulers and funded by the people, split after the revolution. Because Khamenei lacked standing among senior clerics, he turned the Islamic Republic into a military and security regime resting on the Revolutionary Guard. He estimates that 80 to 90 percent of clerics now want to stay out of politics, and that the politically active minority is itself divided between regime supporters and opponents such as the late Ayatollah Montazeri.