IF CONGRESS PROHIBITS A POLICY, DO IT ANYWAY, THEN LIE AND COVER IT UP
The core theme of my Substack “Removing the Cataracts” has been that the Government lies, and the Legacy Media acts as a propaganda mouthpiece for those lies. Previous essays dealt with subversion of the truth by Democratic Administrations, and this essay covers the subversion of the truth by two Republican Administrations. Those in control of the levers of power are strongly motivated to accomplish their political priorities, and they share a common predilection to bend the rules if necessary to accomplish those goals. Covering up and concealing abuses is viewed as just part of the process.
Watergate
In January of 1972, G. Gordon Liddy, a lawyer, and former FBI agent joins the Committee to Re-Elect the President (CREEP). On May 28, Liddy lead a team to break into the Democratic National Committee Headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington D.C. with the intent to bug staff telephones. On June 17, five men were arrested for that burglary. Large amounts of cash, film, and bugging devices were confiscated as evidence. While opinions differ on his involvement, there is no actual evidence that President Nixon either knew in advance or ordered the break-in. His lie was repeatedly denying White House involvement and participating in a cover-up. A Washington Post reporter, Bob Woodward, attended the arraignment of the burglars and, after teaming up with Carl Bernstein, began a Journalistic Investigation that would culminate in President Nixon’s resignation on August 8, 1974. This was a prime example of how a skeptical ‘Fourth Estate’ was supposed to function. A far cry from today, where instead of investigative journalism, the media fulfills the role of a propaganda mouthpiece for the federal government. Fast forward to the 1980’s
Preliminaries to Iran-Contra
In 1980, One of President Regan’s campaign issues was a promise to support anti-Communist insurgencies worldwide. That goal was articulated in a State of the Union Address, and came to be known as the “Reagan Doctrine”. He believed that America had a moral obligation to “nourish and defend freedom and democracy” and stated that “support of freedom fighters is self-defense.” This was the reasoning behind his administration’s support of the Afghan Rebels, the anti-Communist Angola Forces, and the Nicaragua Contras. During the first two years of his Presidency, the Republican Congress provided appropriations supporting the anti-communist Contras. However, when the Democrats regained control of Congress in the mid-term elections, and it became known that the CIA was mining harbors in Nicaragua, everything changed. Fearing a disastrous international incident should one of those mines damage a Soviet Ship, Congress attempted to constrain Reagan’s foreign policy by passing the Boland Amendment. What ensued was a conflict of wills over who would control U.S. foreign policy.
The first Boland Amendment was attached to a defense appropriations bill but was only valid for a year (1984-85). It prohibited the Department of Defense, CIA, and any other government intelligence related entity from using any funds or military exchanges with the intent to overthrow the Communist Government of Nicaragua. Regardless, Reagan issued instructions to his National Security Advisor, Robert McFarlane to find a way to maintain support for the Contras. Two loopholes existed in the Boland Amendment. The first allowed the CIA to assist the Contras as long as the allowed funds were for a purpose other than overthrowing the Nicaragua Government. The second adhered to the letter (but not the intent of the law) by having the National Security Council (NSC) replace the CIA as controlling agency. The money continued to flow.
The second Boland Amendment (1985-86) attempted to close those deficiencies with a complete ban on any government agency giving military or paramilitary support to the Contras. It also prohibited any solicitation of funds from third party countries or private donors. However, by the time the second Boland Amendment became effective, the Administration had already solicited $34 Million from supportive foreign governments and private donors. These funds were controlled by the NSC and used to support the Contras. Congress who had the constitutional authority for funding government operations was never notified. Blocked by the second Bolland Amendment, President Reagan who was still adamant in his support for the Contras, needed to find another source of funding.
Iran enters the Picture
In the 1980’s, a prolonged and bloody conflict between two major players in the Middle East, Iraq and Iran, was ongoing. Concurrently, an Iranian backed terrorist organization, Hezbollah, was holding American hostages in Lebanon. President Reagan wanted those hostages brought home. In 1985, National Security Advisor, Robert McFarlane proposed a scheme to secure the release of the hostages. Although there was a trade embargo with Iran (dating back to the Iranian Hostage Crisis), he proposed secretly selling arms to Iran, who would in return, help obtain the release of the hostages. As a bonus the proceeds could be used to fund the Contras. Secretary of State George Schultz and Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger opposed the plan but McFarlane and CIA Director William Casey convinced Reagan to proceed with the scheme. In October of 1986, a supply plane previously owned by the CIA was shot down in Nicaragua. In November the Iranians leaked the story to a Lebanese newspaper. The cat was out of the bag, but by then the U.S. had sold 1500 TOW anti-tank missiles to Iran, and secured the release of three hostages (Hezbollah later kidnapped three other Americans). At first President Reagan denied (lied about) any dealings with Iran or a terrorist group, but a week later he admitted the truth. His Administration on the other hand, continued to lie, obfuscate, and cover up.
Expansion of the Scandal
There were four separate investigations of the Iran-Contra Affair. President Reagan appointed a Commission, Congress independently established their own Congressional Select Committees, the Department of Justice initiated an investigation, and eventually a special prosecutor, former Federal Judge Lawrence Walsh, was appointed to bring indictments and pursue convictions.
Iran had transferred more than $47.6 million into “Swiss Enterprise Accounts” to pay for the weapons. Investigators discovered that about $18 million of that amount was missing. At this point Marine Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North announced that he had diverted those funds to purchase weapons for the Contras. North claimed he had done so with the knowledge of National Security Advisor Admiral John Poindexter. He also stated that he assumed that the President was aware of his actions. The story dominated the coverage of the Legacy Media for almost a year. The Media had plenty of material to report on from the various ongoing formal investigations, but there was also the sense that here was a story of “Watergate” dimensions that could bring down another Republican President. Investigative journalists joined the frenzy and uncovered additional information on the secret administration policies that had financially supported the Contras without Congressional authorization. You might think that the legacy media was fulfilling its traditional role of government watchdog, but that would be only partially correct. The dominate focus of the Mainstream Media revolved around the illicit sale of weapons to Iran and the diversion of funds to support the Contras. There was another largely ignored aspect to this story. It involved cocaine, weapons, and money exchanges; facilitated by the CIA in a southern state with a Democratic Governor. (Covered in the Addendum)
Aftermath and Accountability
Initially it appeared that the Iran-Contra affair would conclude with indictments, and if not convictions then certainly with resignations and admission of accountability for the laws broken. That never happened. The unraveling of the cover up evolved slowly, and just as slowly public opinion underwent a transformation from outrage to in some quarters grudging admiration for the key players who unabashedly defended their actions as patriotic and well-intentioned.
The Tower Commission
First up was the Special Review Board appointed on November 26 by President Reagan. Composed of former Senators John Tower and Edmund Muskie, plus Brent Scowcroft an experienced adviser on National Security, they were tasked to complete their investigation and issue their report within 60 days. Hampered by a lack of subpoena power (key players refused to testify), the commission merely confirmed the existence of the National Security Council’s arms-for-hostage subterfuge, and in the final report only rebuked the President for his hand’s off management style (whitewash).
Joint Congressional Committees
In January of 1987, both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives formed Select Committees to investigate the clandestine weapon sales to Iran and the covert arms assistance to the Contras This was the center ring of the media circus that garnered the most attention. President Reagan waived executive privilege and instructed all relevant parties to cooperate by providing documents and witnesses. Congress also had the power of subpoena, and during the course of the investigation over 500 relevant witnesses were interviewed with one exception. CIA Director William Casey (perhaps the pivotal figure in the Affair) was diagnosed with a brain tumor in January and died in May. The other primary participants, including Poindexter and North, who had received partial immunity, all testified in the televised hearings conducted throughout that summer. The Iran-Contra Committee’s’ Majority Report (signed by every Democrat & 3 Republicans) found that actions of the NSC relating to arms sales and Contra support were undertaken without presidential authorization. Furthermore, these actions circumvented the Constitutional requirement for Congressional funding and oversight. They highlighted deliberate misrepresentations and outright lies incorporated into the NSC agenda. The Minority Report (signed by the remaining Republicans) concluded that the Iran-Contra affair was nothing more than mistakes in judgement. There was no conspiracy or cover-up and no systematic disrespect for the law (whitewash).
While closer to the truth, the Majority report still missed the mark. Congress knew that the NSC had shredded documents relevant to understanding the scope and depth of the deceptions. What was not learned until years later, was that almost all the major players, even those who opposed the scheme, withheld personal papers, diaries, and pertinent notes from prosecutors. The claimed justifications were to protect congressional funding for ongoing Administration priorities. It was obvious in retrospect, that protecting President Reagan (and consequentially also themselves) was a major concern.
The Independent Council and Special Prosecutor
During late November 1986, Attorney General Edwin Meese tasked the FBI to investigate the Iran-Contra Affair. On December 16, Lawrence Walsh was appointed as an Independent Council, and the control of the FBI investigation was transferred to him. An independent council is engaged to investigate and potentially prosecute in situations where the Justice Department may have or be perceived as having a conflict of interest. That was certainly the case with Attorney General Meese whose questionable actions earlier in the affair compromised the various investigations. Specifically, his failure to protect NSC documents which were destroyed by Colonel North and more importantly, he failed to take notes during a November 24 meeting with all the major players: President Reagan, Vice President George Bush, White House Chief of Staff Donald Regan, National Security Adviser John Poindexter, Secretary of State George Shultz, Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, and CIA Director William Casey. This meeting was later seen as an attempt to coordinate the administration’s response to the scandal and could therefore be perceived as part of a cover up. However, the lack of a record of who said what at this meeting later hampered Walsh’s investigation as various participants later avowed sketchy memories of the meeting. The Attorney General’s behavior before transferring control to the Special Council was consistent with someone intent on limiting damage to the Presidency rather than in determining the truth.
The Special Counsel’s investigation lasted for almost seven years, during which time Walsh (a Republican) was accused of everything from going easy on a Republican Administration to being on an anti-Republican witch hunt. In the end he was characterized as a straight shooter who went where the evidence lead him. Despite attempts at a cover-up, grants of immunity, refusal to declassify documents and lack of cooperation, he was successful in exposing the breadth of the deception and the inherent illegalities involved in the Iran-Contra Affair.
The Results
The Special Council uncovered the Truth and won criminal convictions on 11 people, but was thwarted in the final accounting. Of the major players, Admiral Poindexter was convicted on 5 counts, and Colonel North on three, but an appeals court vacated their convictions on the grounds that immunized testimony tainted the trials. One CIA Official’s case was dismissed on National Security concerns, and in December 1992, approaching the end of his term as President, George Bush pardoned six people involved with the scandal, including Secretary of Defense Weinberger just prior to his trial. During his 1988 Presidential campaign, George Bush vociferously denied any knowledge or participation in the events surrounding Iran-Contra, asserting that he was out of the loop. However, he wrote in his diary that he was “one of the few people that knew fully the details,” but steadfastly refused to discuss it. On August 4, 1993, Lawrence Walsh submitted his final report to President Bill Clinton.
During Iran-Contra, I was transitioning from a career as a Naval Aviator to one as a commercial airline pilot. The overall length of the Investigations (1985-1993) presented some difficulty in following developments, and in the later stages the attention of the media was focused on the first Gulf War. Nevertheless, it was a huge disappointment to me that government officials that I respected, could so easily bend the law and lie to cover it up. The Cataracts were starting to come off.
Addendum: The Connection the Press Ignored
There was a small airport tucked away in Mena Arkansas that should have figured prominently in the national press coverage but never gained traction beyond local media and a few investigative journalists.
This facet of the story begins in the early 1980’s with Barry Seals, a drug smuggler and pilot who had moved his base of operations from Baton Rouge to Rich Mountain Aviation at the Mena Inter-Mountain Airport in Arkansas. Seals eventually admitted smuggling large quantities of cocaine from Columbia into the Mena airport. He later secretly cooperated with the DEA, and even testified before a Senate Investigative Committee. His reward for his efforts, after that connection was leaked, was being assassinated in 1986, allegedly as retribution for crossing his suppliers in the Medellin Drug Cartel.
The C-123 twin engine cargo plane that was shot down delivering military supplies to the Contra’s was owned by Seal and based in Mena. The surviving crew member and captured documents confirmed unequivocally that the CIA was involved with military supplies being flow to Nicaragua, but the allegations that they were involved with the drugs coming back to Arkansas has never been proved. That was not for lack of trying. There are uncontested facts that the CIA and DEA were heavily involved with operations in the Mena area, and that a lot of Cocaine entered through the Mena gateway. However, every investigation attempting to unravel the mysteries of Mena have come up short. The investigations by local law enforcement, the Arkansas State Police, and even the IRS stalled from lack of funding, with several careers foundering as a result. When questioned by Congressman Leach in 1996 about the CIA’s involvement in Mena, the CIA inspector general responded that “no evidence has been found that the CIA was associated with money laundering, narcotics trafficking, arms smuggling or other illegal activities at or around Mena.” A patently false statement considering the amount of incriminating evidence recovered from the C-123 cargo plane wreckage.
The Clinton Connection
Then Governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton, certainly knew what was going on in his State. It would strain credulity to believe otherwise considering the number of times he visited the airport and the number of his friends who ran afoul of the law. Dan Lasater was a Clinton supporter who was under investigation for drug smuggling when Seals was operating out of Mena airport. Lasater later served time for his cocaine connections as did his friend Roger Clinton, Bill Clinton’s brother. Interest in Mena surfaced again when Bill Clinton, was elected President. When asked at a White Press Conference about Mena, he replied that it was “primarily a matter of federal jurisdiction” and that they, “didn’t tell me anything about it.” A typically evasive Clinton answer. A Judicial Watch Freedom of Information request to the CIA was rewarded with a highly redacted copy of the full Mena Report. The CIA states that an unnamed official personally briefed numerous Arkansas State officials including law enforcement about CIA joint training exercises at the airport. A book written by Mara Leveritt, an Arkansas journalist who had personally covered the story in the 1980’s, was cancelled just prior to publication for no apparent reason. The Legacy Media may have ignored this story, because at the time, Clinton was small potatoes by comparison to the major figures in the crosshairs with Iran-Contra. I also suspect that there may have been some behind the scenes pressure exerted by the CIA on major News Organizations: these are not the droids you’re looking for. However, there are no Kudos awarded for pursuing the low hanging fruit of Bill Clinton and his relationship with the Truth.