Preview

Iran Contra Affair

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1701 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Iran Contra Affair
The Iran-Contra scandal had a big effect on the United States but it had a huge effect on Nicaragua. Through out 1985-86, the Reagan administration was selling weapons to Iran illegally in order to encourage Iran to free hostages in the Middle East. Meanwhile, the Reagan administration wanted to support the Contras in Nicaragua, a rebel group fighting to overthrow the Sandinista government. The administration decided to use the money made from selling arms to Iran, and had it sent to the Contras without passing through the United States. (Walsh, p2.) In this paper, I am going to provide the background of the situation. I will explain how the money from the missile sales was used to support the Contras. I will also tell how everything became public, the end of United States support for the Contras and about then investigations and public hearings in the United States. But finally this paper is about the significance, or impact, of the Iran-Contra affair. The Sandinista National Liberation Front was founded in 1963. Named after Augusto Céser Sandino, it was an extreme leftist organization “of Castroite and Maoist direction.” There were only about 150 members as of 1975, but sympathy was growing. (Times, 1/3/75) By August 1975, the SNLF had “begun to gain strength as discontent with the Somoza regime [had] spread through the middle classes.” (Times, 8/6/75) By August 1977 according to The New York Times, Amnesty International said that “there had been widespread abduction, torture and killing of peasants by the National Guard” during the previous year. (8/16/77) The strength of the SNLF continued to grow. In October 1977, the SNLF, for the first time, was “joined by non-Marxist opponents of the regime” including some conservatives. (Times, 10/20/77) By May 1978 opposition groups, including the SNLF, were proposing a coalition government that would exclude Somoza. (Times, 5/1/78) By November 1978, the Carter Administration was trying to push Somoza “into a


Cited: Britinaca.com. http://www.britinica.com/EBchecked/topic/413855/Nicaragua . “Iran-Contra and Arms-for-Hostages Scandals: Eugene Hasenfus” http://www.historycommons.org/jsp?irancontraaffair_key_figures . Kornbluh, Peter, and Malcom Byrne. The Iran-Contra Scandal: The Declassified History. New York: The New Press, 1993. The New York Times, January 3, 1975-September 17, 1979. Walsh, Lawrence E. Independent Counsel Report. “Executive Summary,” p. 2. http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/walsh/execsum.htm .
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Review of "Bitter Fruit" by Stephen Schlesinger and Stephen Kinzer
    • 3196 Words
    • 13 Pages

    Review of "Bitter Fruit" by Stephen Schlesinger and Stephen Kinzer

    The year is 1954. Government agencies resurrect secret plans previously discarded until a more forceful administration comes to power. Behind the scenes, the CIA and State Department are fervently working in over time trying to engineer a government overthrow against a populist nationalist in their own backyard who has the dare audacity to threaten both US economic and geopolitical interest. Accusations of communism and Soviet penetration permeate the discourse and heat up the rhetoric; swift action must be taken to stabilize the hemisphere. Intervention by any means necessary. Exiled opposition leaders are paid off, trained, equipped, and installed. Propaganda transmits through jammed radio towers and warns the peasant population of invasion and liberation. Psychological warfare in conjunction with paramilitary covert operation is launched. The target—Guatemala, a third world poverty stricken country in which the fruits of revolution and conflict are as ripe as the bananas that dot the landscape. Such a riveting story could easily fill the pages of Tom Clancy’s next best-selling and fictional political thriller but instead, it is the true story unearthed through extensive investigation by Stephen Schlesinger and Stephen Kinzer, who with Bitter Fruit, meticulously detail a thought provoking and well-documented historical account of the Guatemalan coup d’état. The sowing of the seeds, subsequent cultivation, and ultimately the dangerous harvest of these bitter fruits is the basis for this compelling chronicle of one of the most controversial and…

    • 3196 Words
    • 13 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Summary: The Iran Contra Affair
    • 360 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Summary: The Iran Contra Affair

    The Iran Contra Affair was an action not actually approved by the U.S. Congress. Ronald Reagan put in his best efforts to keep communism to a minimum. So, he’s done everything in his power to keep helping Nicaragua, even though it’s going against American laws. He decides to support the Contras who are rebelling against the Cuban backed Sandinistas, which resulted in one of the most talked about scandals in the late 1900’s. In a report from the Public Broadcast Service, they mention that Reagan says the Contras were, “the moral equivalent to our Founding Fathers”. Unfortunately for a very engaged Reagan, a Boland Amendment was made to make funding for Nicaragua difficult. Then, a few years later a second Boland Amendment was made even stronger…

    • 360 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    How Did Ronald Reagan Punish The Soviet Union
    • 231 Words
    • 1 Page

    How Did Ronald Reagan Punish The Soviet Union

    During Ronald Reagan’s, the 40th president of the United States, presidential term, the tensions between the United States and Soviet Union intensified in the midst of the Cold War. When Reagan first entered office, he had already loathed the Soviet Union, even describing them as “an evil empire”. His stand against the Soviet Union was strong, and did whatever it took to weaken them. The Soviet Union had attempted to take over Grenada, a small Caribbean country on an island, and established communistic rule. Cuban troops had arrived in Grenada, along with money from the Soviets, and began building an airfield, capable of landing large military aircrafts.…

    • 231 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Iran Contra Affair
    • 610 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Iran Contra Affair

    Intro – I think the biggest part of the scandal was that Reagan directly lied about the conflict, but there is significant evidence that he knew we were giving Iran weapons & the funds were supporting the Contras.…

    • 610 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Eric Roorda’s the Dictator Next Door
    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Eric Roorda’s the Dictator Next Door

    Roorda uses abundant detail and careful research in describing the United States’ paradoxical relationship with Trujillo, relying heavily on government documents, personal papers, the contemporary press, and a large number of secondary sources. While The Dictator net Door assertions are not groundbreaking (recent diplomatic history is harshly critical of U.S support for brutal dictators), it is well-written, with concise prose and well-constructed arguments. On the whole it is an excellent diplomatic history. For scholars seeking an explanation of U.S. relations with Latin America, and who do not mind its sharp criticisms of U.S. foreign policy’s ethical lapses and oversights, The Dictator Next Door is well worth one’s time.…

    • 1250 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Overview of the Iran and Iraq War of 1985
    • 654 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Overview of the Iran and Iraq War of 1985

    In 1985, The Iran and Iraq war is feuding overseas and America had an embargo against selling arms to Iran. Our President was Ronald Reagan and the National Security Adviser was Robert McFarlane. “Iran made a secret request to buy weapons from the United States, McFarlane sought Reagan 's approval” McFarlane told Reagan “that the sale of arms would not only improve U.S. relations with Iran, but might in turn lead to improved relations with Lebanon, increasing U.S. influence in the troubled Middle East.” Reagan was having trouble with Lebanon the Iranian terrorist had Seven American hostages being held in Lebanon. Reagan was frustrated that he couldn’t bring these American hostages back home he believed that it was his duty. The U.S. an Iran were going to have to make a deal missiles for the hostages the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State were against making the deal but Reagan, McFarlane and the CIA director were all for the deal. Since Reagan backed the deal 1,500 missiles were shipped to Iran. The Iranian terrorist released three hostages but later captured three more.…

    • 654 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Summary Of Nixon's War On Drugs
    • 1367 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Summary Of Nixon's War On Drugs

    Although Richard Nixon first declared a “war on drugs” in 1971, the war escalated during the Reagan presidency and shifted its focus from treatment toward incarceration and law enforcement. As George Moss and Evan Thomas explain, Reagan came to Washington “committed to waging a war on drugs and bringing the international drug trade under control” in 1981. Thanks to the rise of the Medellin Cartel in Colombia and other cartels in Latin America during the 1980s, illegal drug trade networks flourished, and America became “the world’s major consumer of illicit drugs.” This increased usage of drugs led to many social crises, including heightened urban crime and health problems, which encouraged both the Reagan administration and private groups…

    • 1367 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Sandinistas: Guerilla Warfare In Nicaragua
    • 303 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Sandinistas: Guerilla Warfare In Nicaragua

    When the Sandinistas’ first started to rise to power, those opposing begun to engage in violent actions. The United States is backing this opposing group by supplying them with weapons and other necessities for this fight. Currently in Nicaragua, these same anti-communist groups have begun to flee in efforts to escape the rule of the Sadanista’s. It is rumored that the groups are forming what are known as guerilla units. Guerilla warfare is fought in “fast-moving, small-scale actions.” The rebels and their supporters are trudging into southern Honduras. They have made camps there to accommodate the massive evacuation. Less than 2,000 fighters are still in Nicaragua today.…

    • 303 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Iran Hostage Crisis Research Paper
    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Iran Hostage Crisis Research Paper

    US Foreign Policy and the Iran Hostage Crisis, edited by David Patrick Houghton, Cambridge University Press, 2001. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/lib/apus/detail.action?docID=201802.…

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Ronald Reagan Influence
    • 832 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Ronald Reagan Influence

    Anti-Communist forces grew a lot stronger during the end of the Cold War. Reagan increased Military spending from 36 million to 197 million in the year 1984. America helped Anti communist forces in South and Central America. The Contras, As the anti Communist rebel group was called, fought to overthrow the Sandinistas, the communist regime that ruled over South America, and their numbers grew into the thousands with U.S. support. Ronald Reagan referred to the South American Contras as “freedom fighters” this caused a gain in public and congressional…

    • 832 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Jaguar Smile
    • 1600 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The Jaguar Smile

    ter a period of political and economic turmoil under dictator Anastasio Somoza Debayle, the leftist Sandinista National Liberation Front (commonly known by the initial FSLN or as the Sandinistas) came to power in Nicaragua in 1979 supported by much of the populace and elements of the Catholic Church. The government was initially backed by the US under Jimmy Carter, but the support evaporated under the presidency of Ronald Reagan in light of evidence that the Sandinistas were providing help to the FMLN rebels in El Salvador. The US imposed economic sanctions and a trade embargo instead which contributed to the collapse of the Nicaraguan economy in the early to mid-1980s. While the Soviet Union and Cuba funded the Nicaraguan army, the US financed the contras in neighboring Honduras with a view towards establishing a friendly government in Nicaragua. Nicaragua won a historic case against the U.S. at the International Court of Justice in 1986 (see Nicaragua v. United States), and the U.S. was ordered to pay Nicaragua some $12 billion in reparations for undermining the nation's sovereignty.…

    • 1600 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Ronald Reagan Downfall
    • 691 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Ronald Reagan Downfall

    During the year 1981, March 30th, Reagan has been shot six times by a .22 revolver, one puncturing a lung, another one an inch from his heart, and one has entered his chest. Reagan is to be believed in thinking the military is weak during his first year as President, he has called for a massive increase in the defense budget to expand and modernize the military and has urged a more aggressive approach to combating communism. Reagan has denounced the Soviet Union as “an evil empire” and “the focus of evil in the modern world.” (Reagan, Ronald W. 7) The year is 1982; during June, Reagan dispatches 800 Marines to join an international force to oversee the evacuation of Palestinian guerillas from West Beirut. In early November 1985, at the suggestion of the head of the National Security Council, Reagan has authorized a secret initiative to sell antitank and antiaircraft missiles to Iran in exchange for the country’s help in securing the release of Americans held hostage by terrorist groups in Lebanon.…

    • 691 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    What Makes Ronald Reagan A Good Leader
    • 1002 Words
    • 5 Pages

    What Makes Ronald Reagan A Good Leader

    Apparently, Reagan was aware and approved of the original arms for hostages deal. However, as his National Security Advisor John Poindexter testified, Reagan was not told about the illegal diversion of funds to the Contra rebels. The public was stunned by the news of the scandal Ronald was suppossively involved in and started to question the president’s “good” intentions. For a long time, the public was angry with the president even though there was more evidence supporting the innocence of him rather than the guilty. Reagan was so disappointed, even his wife Nancy said that “…he went into a state of depression because he felt that his reputation had been ruined.”…

    • 1002 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Patriotism In Nicaragua
    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Patriotism In Nicaragua

    Named after the name of a national hero "Sandinista National Liberation Front" has always insisted on the armed struggle, and continue to grow and develop. In 1979, the Sandinista National Liberation Front forces launched a line of attack to the capital of Managua. Somoza debayle - see It is all up with was forced to resign. Since then, ruled Nicaragua for 43 years the Somoza Dynasty completely…

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Benghazi Scandal
    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Benghazi Scandal

    As our priorities lie with pulling forces and weakening American influence in the Middle East, our precedence should still be with investigating the attacks in Benghazi on September 11th, 2012. This current administration has swept this issue under the rug, claiming that the reason for the government’s lack of involvement was simply that they did not know. These policies of foreign involvement are becoming more transparent to the eyes of the American citizens, and creating a doubt in the minds of the people the U.S. government is suppose to protect. From Barack Obama’s cover-up for disregarding the phone calls for help, to Hillary Clinton’s role; before, during, and after the Benghazi attack, and to the CNN International survey polls, republicans have botched the administration’s intentionally misleading statements to the American people.…

    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics