1
Remley C. Fraley
HIUS-445-D1
May 10
th
, 2019
Iran-Contra
Affair
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When the name Ronald Wilson Reagan is mentioned today most will either think with
nostalgia to an honored President, the actor, the great communicator, Reagan brings to mind a lot
of things.
Sadly, some people under the age of Forty will most likely not even know who Ronald
Reagan was.
For those over forty many will always remember the Iran-Contra scandal that
almost engulfed a well-loved President and did topple a few members of his cabinet and
personnel from the administration. Almost Thirty-Five years after the events and President
Reagans subsequent death Americans find themselves wondering what was this scandal?
What
was the Presidents Role in it?
President Reagans management style might be called into
question as well as the questions about how observant a person must be to see what is going on
around them, but Iran Contra goes a lot further than a little monetary diversion, or a slip of the
tongue.
This was a scandal that proceeded to indictments and later pardons.
By breaking down
the entire scandal from beginning to end maybe a new light can be shed on it.
Background/Introduction
The United states had previously been the largest seller of arms under the Monarchy of
Mohammad Reza Shah, the Shah or Emperor of Iran.
After the revolution that overthrew the
Shah, it was the Theocratic government in Iran that ended up with the American made weapons.
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It was in the maintenance and continual use of these American made weapons that Iran continued
to need spare parts to maintain their weapons that they needed the U.S. help.
After the Iranians
stormed the US Embassy in 1979 and took 52 Americans hostage, President Carter imposed an
embargo on Iran.
President Reagan confirmed on January 20
th
, 1981 he would continue this
embargo because Iran supported terrorism.
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The controversy later known as Iran-Contra Scandal erupted during the second term of
President Reagan’s administration.
Several of the administrations officials secretly facilitated the
sale of arms to Iran, who was also under an arms embargo at the time.
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The intention of the
administration was to use the proceeds of the arms sales to then fund the Nicaraguan right-wing
rebel group called the Contras.
The crux of this problem was that The Congress had passed three
separate amendments between 1982-1984 with all of them limiting US government assistance to
the said Contras.
All 3 legislative acts are known as the Boland Amendment.
This legislative act
allowed further assistance by the United States for the purpose of overthrowing the Nicaraguan
government, while allowing assistance for other purposes.
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The Reagan administration used an “official justification” with the pretext that the arms
shipments were part of an operation to free seven American hostages that were being held by
Hezbollah (a paramilitary group) in Lebanon.
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The Arms Sales
The Arms sales began in the year 1985.
There was a National Security Decision
Directive written on June 17
th
