iran contra affair scandal
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Iran Contra Affair Scandal. Ruthann Wigfield Period: 4 May 24, 2013. One of the biggest scandals since Watergate. Boland Amendment. Boland Amendment: 1984 - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Iran Contra Affair ScandalRuthann Wigfield
Period: 4May 24, 2013
One of the biggest scandals since
Watergate
Boland Amendment Boland Amendment: 1984
• The Defense Department, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), or any other government agency, could not provide military aid to the contras, specifically in Nicaragua.
How it began.. Iran and Iraq were at war in 1985 and
Iran secretly made a request to buy weapons from the US• National Security Adviser Robert McFarlane
approved of this request
How it all began..November 1986
News reports said that the US had roles in both Iran and secret support for the Contras in Nicaragua
“Al Shiraa,” the Lebanese newspaper, told all about the activities going on in November about the arms to Iran and the aid to Nicaragua.
President Reagan Ronald Reagan confirmed that the US
had sold arms to Iran• To improve relations with Iran• Wasn’t really looking for Iran to release the
hostages being held by terrorists in the Middle East Later he said it was an arms-for-hostage swap
Later in November… Attorney General, Edwin Meese,
found that it was a diversion and the aid from the arms given to Iran was being sent to Nicaraguan “Contras”• This was a prohibited act
Federal Judge Lawrence E. Walsh was ordered to examine this behavior and the people involved
March 4th, 1987 President Ronald Reagan accepted
the judgment without disagreement• “A few months ago I told the American
people I did not trade arms for hostages. My heart and my best intentions still tell me that’s true, but the facts and the evidence tell me it is not.”
National Security Council The Reagan administration used the
National Security Council because it technically wasn’t covered by the Boland Amendment• They used the NSC to give military aid to
the contras in Nicaragua. NSC staffer Marine Lt. Col. Oliver
North directed the operation• Also one of the central figures to secretly
ship arms to Iran.
Congressional HearingsMay – August 1987
The Congressional committees held televised hearings and heard from some different NSC staff members to find out the facts of the affair
They found out that the NSC staff set the Iran and Nicaragua policies and carried them out by lying to Congress
Oliver North and his secretary Fawn Hall became known nationally after their televised testimonies
Oliver North North was the one person who was
diverting the funds from the arms sales to the Contras
Oliver North said that National Security Adviser Admiral John Poindexter and President Ronald Reagan knew about the events and the cover up.
The Verdict Oliver was found guilty on 3 counts at
his trial• Overturned because his protected
congressional testimony was influenced by his trial and was thought to be used against him
October 24, 1992 President George H. W. Bush
pardoned all of the principals that were charged.
In 1994, Reagan and Bush were criticized for their roles but were never charged
President Reagan Reagan’s image suffered because of
the Iran Contra Affair• Rebounded and he had the highest approval
rating since Franklin Roosevelt
Works Cited http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexper
ience/features/general-article/reagan-iran/
http://coldwar.org/articles/80s/IranContraAffair.asp
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB210/
http://www.authentichistory.com/1974-1992/3-reagan/5-irancontra/
http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/history/iran-contra-affair.html