Putting the Squeeze on Congress

In a foreign-aid budget of about $15 billion, the sum is minuscule, a mere $14 million. But the Administration's efforts to persuade Congress to support the contras in Nicaragua is turning into a major foreign policy test. The Administration stepped up its pressure on Congress last week. An unidentified Administration official hinted that if the funds were not provided directly, aid to the anti-Sandinista rebels might be supplied by unnamed Asian countries. He did not explain whether those countries would simply pass along U.S. money or use their own funds to help the contras. Congress might forbid any rerouting of support...