The year 1986 marked the beginning of a six-year period of revelations,
prosecutions, publicized hearings, and special investigations that became
known as the Iran-Contra scandal. Involved in the scandal were officials
from the administrations of both Ronald Reagan (1911–2004; served
1981–89) and George H. W. Bush (1924–; served 1989–93).
The events leading to the scandal were put in place on October 5,
1986, when Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) cargo specialist Eugene
Hasenfus (1941–) was shot down over Nicaragua and captured by
Nicaraguan government forces. His aircraft was full of weapons intended
for Nicaraguan rebels, known as Contras. The Contras were in a rebellion against the Nicaraguan government. Congress had passed laws in
1982 and 1984 expressly forbidding U.S. attempts to aid or arm the
Contras. Hasenfus’s capture was evidence that the Reagan administration
had broken those laws.
Reagan initially denied having any connection to Hasenfus’s flight,
but his claims were later proven false. Within five weeks, a Lebanese
newspaper revealed that Robert McFarlane (1937–), Reagan’s special assistant for national security, had engaged in secret arms-for-hostages
deals with the Iranian government. These hostages had been captured by
Iran in 1983, and the official U.S. policy was never to make trades with
terrorist governments. It would be revealed during the scandal that such
trades had actually been ongoing for years. It also came to light that money obtained in secret arms movements to Iran was directly supporting the Contras, another violation of the law.
Conflicting stories
Reagan denied the validity of the arms sales reports in November but one
week later admitted he lied. He still contended that the sales were not in
exchange for hostages. Within one more week, the president said those
sales were legal. According to the National Security Act, the president has
the right to override a law legally if he issues a finding in which national
security issues are claimed. Reagan claimed to have such a finding, but it
was proven that the finding was signed to override the Arms Export
Control Act only after the fact. In addition, Reagan never informed
Congress of the finding until after the scandal was publicized.
Lietenant Colonel Oliver North (1943–) was a key figure in the
covert operations involving the Contras. As the scandal was revealed,
Reagan fired North, who was then summoned to testify in July 1987.
During his testimony, North admitted he altered official National
Security Act papers to cover for the president. He also admitted to shredding thousands of documents that would have incriminated himself and
many others, including President Reagan. North testified that he believed Reagan was aware of and approved his actions. North’s supervisor,
Admiral John Poindexter (1936–), denied this. Several other Reagan administration officials testified and denied having any knowledge of
hostage deals or transfers of arms and cash.
Investigations
The scandal prompted a number of investigations. The first was the
Tower Commission, named after its chair, former U.S. senator John
Tower (1925–1991) of Texas. Reagan appointed the commission to perform a comprehensive review of the National Security Council’s role in
the affair. The commission’s report in 1987 blamed the council’s staff
and concluded the scandal was a result of the president’s poor management skills. The public did not accept this excuse and demanded further
investigation. Each house of Congress established its own investigative
committee and held televised hearings throughout the summer of 1987.
Their final conclusion lay the blame at the president’s feet, not at North’s
or Poindexter’s. The committees chose not to investigate numerous areas
of concern that emerged from testimony, including allegations that North was directly involved in narcotics operations with connections in
the Central American governments.
Special Prosecutor Lawrence E. Walsh (1912–) carried out his own
investigation and found that the Iran-Contra policies that led to the illegal activity were developed at the highest levels of the Reagan administration with the knowledge of every senior cabinet member involved in
foreign policy. Walsh concluded that these officials deliberately misled
Congress and the public.
Fourteen individuals were tried for criminal violations. North and
Poindexter were found guilty, but their testimony granted them immunity against criminal prosecution. McFarlane received a short sentence,
and many others escaped prosecution because the evidence was found
too late to legally prosecute under the statutory limitations. President
George H. W. Bush pardoned (formally forgave) two others in 1992.
Impact
After six years of scrutiny and investigation, very little was done to hold
accountable those responsible for the scandal. This, on top of the fact
that taxpayers spent tens of millions of dollars on the scandal, left much
of the American public cynical about the government and its officials. In
an ironic twist, North, whose involvement in the Iran-Contra scandal
was proven and admitted at least to a certain degree, became something
of a hero among conservatives. He wrote several best-selling books and
is largely considered by that population to be a scapegoat (someone who
takes the blame for others’ actions) for the Reagan administration. North
was permanently banned from Costa Rica for his alleged participation in drug trafficking to help fund the Contras.