Taking a Different Tack

Reagan ties peace talks to "humanitarian" aid for the CONTRAS

The Administration's plan was cloaked in secrecy, then unwrapped with theatrical effect. On Wednesday, House Republican Leader Robert Michel informed Ronald Reagan that resumption of U.S. military funding for the contras fighting Nicaragua's government was "dead in the water" unless there was a "change in the formulation of policy." The President offered no hint of any new flexibility. But the next morning he dispatched National Security Adviser Robert McFarlane to brief some 20 congressional leaders of both parties in the House Intelligence Committee's bug-proof room high in the Capitol. That afternoon Reagan held a press conference to announce his "proposal for...

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