Podbit · Stuff You Should Know
President George H.W. Bush issued 6 pardons on Christmas Eve as he was leaving office, freeing all key Iran-Contra figures including Caspar Weinberger and Dewey Claridge, who hadn't yet stood trial. North's conviction had already been overturned on a technicality. The men who ran the operation got 2 years probation each.
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At 45:18 · chapter starts 44:00
The criminal phase of Iran-Contra produced 14 indictments but vanishingly little punishment. Oliver North was found guilty on 3 counts — one being acceptance of a $16,000 home security system from Secord, paid with Iran-Contra profits — but his convictions were overturned on a technicality. Albert Hakim received 2 years probation and a $5,000 fine. Richard Secord, who had actually set up the shell companies and run the money, received 2 years probation. Then, on Christmas Eve 1992 as George H.W. Bush was leaving office, he issued 6 pardons, including preemptive pardons for Caspar Weinberger and Dewey Claridge before they had even stood trial. [1] — Chuck Bryant "President George H.W. Bush issued 6 pardons on Christmas Eve as he was leaving office, freeing all key Iran-Contra figures including Caspar…" 45:18 This final act drew particular fury because Bush himself had withheld subpoenaed diary entries showing he had full knowledge of the scandal throughout — entries he claimed not to realize had been requested. Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh declared the Iran-Contra cover-up complete and publicly accused Bush of 'arrogant disregard for the rule of law.'
14 people were charged in the Iran-Contra criminal investigation, but North's conviction was overturned and Bush issued Christmas Eve pardons freeing everyone else.
One of Oliver North's three guilty verdicts was for accepting a $16,000 home security system paid for by Richard Secord using Iran-Contra funds.
George H.W. Bush withheld subpoenaed diary entries that indicated he had full knowledge of Iran-Contra throughout, only surrendering them in 1992 after a second request.
George H.W. Bush withheld subpoenaed diary entries showing he had full knowledge of Iran-Contra throughout. When finally pressed in 1992, he claimed he didn't realize they'd been asked for. Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh declared the cover-up complete and accused Bush of 'arrogant disregard for the rule of law.'
Reagan's approval rating dropped from 63% to as low as 43% in the span of a couple of months after Iran-Contra was exposed.
In his 1990 Iran-Contra deposition, Ronald Reagan said 'I don't remember' or 'I don't recall' 88 times. Despite the scandal, his approval rating recovered from 43% back to the low 60s — making him the most popular president since FDR upon leaving office.
Lebanese terrorists backed by Iran were holding American hostages throughout the Reagan presidency. Reagan had loudly campaigned against negotiating with terrorists — putting him in an impossible position that his team quietly decided to ignore.
During the Iran-Iraq War, the US openly supplied Iraq with weapons, training, and intelligence. At the same time, Oliver North was secretly funneling missiles to Iran. The US was playing both sides of a shooting war.
Oliver North traveled to Iran under the alias 'William P. Goode' with a fake passport. CIA Director William Casey allegedly gave him cyanide pills so he could kill himself rather than be tortured if captured. He returned safely and the deal moved forward.
The Pentagon sold missiles to the CIA for $3,700 each. The CIA sold them to Richard Secord at cost. Secord sold them to Iranian middleman Ghorbanifar for $10,000 each. Ghorbanifar charged Iran even more. The profit — including $3 million in interest in one Swiss account — was diverted directly to fund the Nicaraguan Contras.
America secretly transferred 2,000 missiles and missile parts to Iran in 8 shipments over more than a year. Only 3 of 7 hostages were released. Three more were taken. The net result was zero freed hostages and a full-blown constitutional scandal.
On October 5, 1986, a CIA Contra supply plane flew a weapons drop at 2,500 feet in broad daylight. A Sandinista soldier shot it down. The only survivor, Eugene Hasenfuss, had borrowed a parachute from his skydiving brother. He was captured, paraded in front of cameras, and told the Sandinistas everything he knew.
The CIA supply operation used a front company called Southern Air Transport, widely known to be a CIA cover. Crew members of the downed plane carried their Southern Air Transport employee IDs in their wallets. One also had a business card directly linking him to Oliver North's office in Washington.
When the scandal broke, Oliver North and his secretary Fawn Hall conducted what became known as a 'shredding party,' destroying a day's worth of documents. The full truth of Iran-Contra may never be known because of what was fed through that shredder.
The official narrative: John Poindexter wanted to help the Contras, tapped Oliver North, and North went rogue — creating the entire network, brokering the Iran deal, all without Reagan or Bush knowing anything. The American public was not impressed.
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