Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North. Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan) statement.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative Lee Hamilton (D - Indiana). Mr. Broomfield is recognized. Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Thank you Mr. Chairman. First of all, I want to say at the onset that the comments made by Senator Orin Hatch followed my thinking very closely. But actually Colonel North I am particularly pleased to finally see you before this committee. For many months, I ve been urging to do everything we possibly can to give you this opportunity to get your story across. You certainly have done it and I want to congratulate you on your very impressive handling of the questions that have been directed to you. And I also want to pay tribute to Mr. Sullivan for his excellent handling of some of the difficult questions that you ve had to answer.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). First of all, I ve been around quite a few years and I can share the frustrations that you must have had, at least the last five years, in dealing with a lot of subjects, but particularly the one in Central America with the Contras. I think we here in Congress are just as much on trial as the administration. I really believe that. Because for some reason foreign policy seems to have fallen apart. There is a lack of trust both on the part of the administration and on Congress. We ve got members that think they should be entitled to all information of what s going on. I think there s areas though - when you re getting into these high risk areas, I think we ve got to have trust among the leadership of Congress and the administration. I can t help but recall when I first came here and that was back in the Eisenhower times, and I remember Sam Rayburn talking about how they went about getting approval for the atom bomb. And this was back in 1942. And what they did then, they called in the leadership of both parties and they agreed that they would put certain amount of money in the defense budget and this would be used in research and development for the atom bomb. And no one gave away that information and by 1945 the bomb was developed; and obviously was used during President Truman s time during the bombing of Hiroshima. I recall just recently in the last few years, even the Regan administration, you were there, it was on the question of the bombing of Libya. What did the administration do? Well they called the senior members of Congress to come to the White House before that bombing attack took place. The President was there, the Vice President, all the top cabinet people, Bill Casey was there. And they went over the plans. It was about three o clock in the afternoon. And we knew at seven o clock the bombing would take place. And of course we were watching our watches as the debate was going on knowing the time was getting closer. Of course one good thing about it, the administration, the President, the rest of them kept us there. In other words they didn t let us get out in the street and let the information out. But nevertheless, the point that I m getting at, it was that consultation that I think was extremely important. And I think that s where the administration has made the most serious and grievous error in this whole thing, is the fact that we don t have the consultation between Congress and the Administration.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Now I have to say that I agree with some of the members who say they wouldn t support an arms sale to Iran just for the sake of the release of the hostages. I think it was a dangerous mission. But I have to say this - that I think that had the administration been more forthright, I think things would probably have worked out better. What I m getting at, that I think in these areas of very high risk, I certainly agree with Senator Hatch that we shouldn t be carrying on covert activities in the NSC. I think that s another mistake that was made. I think that if we don t stick to the normal channels, either through the CIA or State Department, we run into the problem of accountability. But what I would really like to see, I d like to see us get back that when we have these areas that we might call super sensitive covert activities at least the very senior members of Congress of both the House and Senate would be consulted before such action would take place. So you bring Congress in as a full partner in these decisions. That s the area that probably troubles me the most about this entire investigation and what has transpired. Of course I think there has been mistakes made and I think it s regrettable. And I agree with Senator Hatch, I don t want to see you go to jail because I think you are a great patriotic American and I m proud of what you tried to do. This has been a very difficult time.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). I would like to ask you however a few questions with respect to the Sandinista problem. What are the diplomatic efforts if any that the United States could pursue to get the Sandinistas to honor the promise they made clear back in 1979 to the Organization of American States to bring democracy and freedom to Nicaragua? Colonel Oliver North. Well you re asking me to take over the role of the Secretary of State, Congressman Broomfield. And I don t want to be accused of exceeding my mandate again. My sense is that the administration has indeed taken a number of steps to offer a diplomatic opening. The Sandinistas have consistently said that what they want is a bilateral treaty or arrangement with the United States and then they could go about doing what they wanted with their neighbors. We have consistently taken the position that there should be no such bilateral relationship or arrangement. In fact Nicaragua s argument is with its own people and with its neighbors and that we re going to support the people and its neighbors of Nicaragua in achieving the democratic outcome that we believe we have to have in that part of the world. And their neighbors have to know that they have it too.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). We ve heard a great deal about it and I think many of us would agree that this off again on again policy toward the situation in aide to the Contras have caused great problems. But as you know this last year of course we got a hundred million dollars, 70 million for lethal and 30 million for humanitarian aide. But I m fearful that we got another program coming up very shortly in a few months and I think the feeling generally right now is that we might go back to what we did before and that is a cut off. And this is what disturbs you probably the most isn t it? Colonel Oliver North. It is. And I think that that outcome would be disastrous for this country. I have no doubt with what Senator Mitchell said that is an issue open to political debate and that good and loyal Americans do disagree. Certainly it does not impugn their patriotism to have an opinion different than mine. But the fact is that the American people have not been given all of the information on what s going on. It is a very difficult thing to get out the straight story on the Nicaraguan resistance and the true perversion of the revolution undertaken by the Sandinistas. Their propaganda machine is very very effective. And in fact it is difficult to get the straight story on either the repression of the Sandinistas, the threat that they pose to their neighbors or the realities about the Nicaraguan resistance. And I must tell you that from a personal perspective I feel a great deal of empathy for the Nicaraguan resistance solider, the men and women who are the resistance. I came back from a war that we fought in Vietnam to a public that did not understand, in my humble opinion, they had been lied to. The American people did not know what we suffered, what we endured, or what we tried to achieve. And I think the same thing prevails for the Nicaraguan resistance today. They have been maligned. There have been great mistruths told about them and the Sandinistas have been glorified as land reformers and labor leaders in the like. It isn t true. And those facts ought to come out. I can have a great deal of empathy for the soldiers of the Nicaraguan resistance who may find themselves cast as misfits and mercenaries and in fact what they are is Nicaraguans, who want nothing more than the same kind of liberties that we hold dear in this country. And are fighting for them with an on again off again policy of support from the United States. And I would tell you Sir that if we cut them off again it would have disastrous effect not only for them but for our foreign policy across the board because our ambivalence and lack of will, will be evident not only to our adversaries but to our friends.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). On the basis that Congress does continue to provide some aid to the Contras, will the Contras only be able to keep the Sandinistas regime in Nicaragua from spreading communism into neighboring countries or will they actually have a chance at bringing about a democratic government in Nicaragua? I think that s a key question a lot of people are asking. Colonel Oliver North. I think there is no doubt that the combination of diplomatic, political, economic, and military pressure can bring about the kind of democratic outcome, this President has advocated since he came into office. And those kinds of things are necessary and they are necessary in combination. It is not one or two but all of those measures which will achieve that outcome. Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Mr. Broomfield. I wonder if you could tell us the genesis of this whole question of the diversion. How that came up? How did we ever get involved in it? What was the very beginning in your estimation? Colonel Oliver North. Well I don t call it a diversion. I call it the use of the residuals or the results of the transactions with the Iranians. The very first mention of use of residuals came from an Israeli official who was meeting with me in early January. The original express purpose was to pay for the replacement of TOW missiles that the Israelis had sent in August September of 1985 and for the purpose of supporting other operations. The actual proposal to have funds generated by the sale of munitions to Iran and used funds from that sale to support the Nicaraguan resistance came in a meeting with Manucher Ghorbanifar in Europe at the end of January 1986. Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Why was it necessary though to get into other areas of covert activity outside of the normal channels of where the President has to submit the finding and so forth? Why was that necessary and you indicated I think this morning that it was only a short term operation? Why was it even a short term? What brought that about? Colonel Oliver North. There was no other source of money s for those activities. Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Was it the fact that Congress continued to refuse to supply adequate funding for CIA operations? Colonel Oliver North. Exactly. I mean the Congress had cut off all use of US monies, it in fact before the rigid proscriptions Boland in October of 1984, the CIA had long before run out of money to support the resistance.
Iran-Contra Hearings - Testimony of Colonel Oliver North.
Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Colonel based on your experience at the National Security Council, what is your evaluation of the Department of State in formulating and implementing US foreign policy? Colonel Oliver North. There are good and decent men who work hard every single day to look after the national security of the United States at the State Department, Congressman Broomfield. And you and I know that and I think that given my current status as a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Marine Corps, it would be fair for me to go beyond that. Representative William Broomfield (R - Michigan). Well I just want to conclude by saying that I m very pleased and honored to have you before this committee. I think you ve done so much for our country. I think the American people probably have a better understanding of the problems that this administration has had to face with in the last five and a half years to have any kind of a consistent foreign policy. And I think it s been extremely regrettable that we ve not had what I call a bi-partisan foreign policy. I really frankly don t know how we are going to get back on track but I think it s extremely important to try and work toward those goals and I would think there are several things that probably this panel will be recommending and one of them I hope that we can make sure that in the future we don t have any covert activities, at least some members particularly the leadership of Congress is not informed on. I think it s very important not to work outside our government agencies. I want to thank you Chairman very much.