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In his only try for elective office, Casey sought the Republican nomination for the House from New York's Third Congressional District in 1966 but failed to unseat a more conservative G.O.P. Congressman in the primary. He helped Richard Nixon win the presidency in 1968, then headed a committee that promoted Nixon's antiballistic-missile program. Casey came in for heavy criticism when he produced advertisements for the program that were signed by an embarrassingly large number of defense contractors. Offered membership on the Securities and Exchange Commission by Nixon in 1971, Casey took the job and a relatively insignificant $40,000 salary after explaining earlier, "I've made all the money in business that my family could ever spend . . . I want to do something more meaningful."
As chairman of the SEC, Casey was credited with tightening enforcement procedures. He came under fire in two major matters but denied wrongdoing in both instances: he was accused of withholding documents from congressional investigators probing alleged payments from International Telephone & Telegraph Corp. to the G.O.P. to influence a Justice Department antitrust action, and of helping impede an SEC investigation of fugitive Financier Robert L. Vesco. Casey weathered such tempests to gain Senate confirmation as Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs in 1973 and president of the Export-Import Bank in 1974.
Reagan, who had not known Casey well, plucked him out of private law practice in 1980 to replace Campaign Director John Sears after a dismal performance in the Iowa primary. When other staffers seemed unsure about which of Reagan's cronies was really in charge of the campaign, Casey said bluntly, "I'm the boss." He helped Reagan gain the White House, and the two became good friends.
As head of the CIA from 1981 until his illness forced him to resign in January, Casey increased the agency's budget and manning levels and sharply improved its analytical capabilities. The Company's strengthened morale began to slip again, however, after 1984 disclosures that the agency had mined Nicaraguan harbors and authored a handbook for contras that encouraged assassination and kidnaping. Although there were suggestions that Casey's facile mind might have been hampered by his medical problems in the last months of his service, tests immediately after his surgery suggested that he had not been impaired before he was hospitalized.
In an interview with TIME in December, Casey ticked off a list of accurate crisis predictions in regions ranging from Central America to the Philippines and said, with a professional's pride, "The intelligence performance of this country has improved tremendously over the last six years." Hawaii Democrat Daniel Inouye, who co-chairs the Iran-contra panel, reminded his audience last week that no matter how many times Casey's name comes up during the hearings, "it should not obscure ((his)) distinguished record of commitment to this country." An expression of his commitment goes on. Instead of flowers, Casey's family asked that contributions in his name be given to the Nicaraguan contras.