To What Extent was President Reagan’s Personal Role in the...

A. Plan of Investigation The investigation assesses the extent of significance of President Reagan’s role in the Iran-Contra affair in the 1980’s. Reagan’s role will be looked at while aiding the Nicaraguan Contras, releasing American hostages, both which led to the Iran-Contra affair, and during the cover up, in America and partly in Iran. An investigation account and American history are mostly used to evaluate Reagan’s role. Two of the sources used in this essay, Firewall: The Iran-Contra conspiracy and cover-up written by Lawrence E. Walsh and The Age of Reagan by Sean Wilentz will then be evaluated for their origins, purposes, values, and limitations. B. Summary of Evidence Prior to the Iran-Contra affair, Reagan was in the last†¦show more content†¦Also, Oliver North was ordered to teach the Contras military tactics and raised money for them. As Reagan and his private officials went about on doing this secretly, publicity had a way to find what was going on. Congress was lied to as a cover up by Reagan so they would not intervene. After his reelection, Reagan supported another covert program: an attempt to release hostages in Lebanon. This would soon turn into the Iran-Contra Affair. In 1984 a Shiite Islamic group that was loyal to Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini had captured and held seven Americans hostage in Lebanon. The President was very much concerned for the Americans’ well being. An Israeli foreign minister, David Kimche, insisted that since Iran and Iraq were at war with each other, Iran would need more weapons, and because Israel would also gain monetary benefits, they could help with persuasion to release the officials. All the U.S. needed to do was to approve a small shipment of armaments to Iran. Reagan then agreed to this deal, to sell arms to Iran through Israel, which would induce the kidnappers in releasing the hostages. Even though Reagan stated before that â€Å"America will never make concessions to terrorists,† the transferring of arms violated that statement and the Arms Export Control Act since congress was not informed and didn’t give consent. The secret request, hidden from congress would not only help free the hostages, but alsoShow MoreRelatedThe Civil War Of Iran Essay2108 Words   |  9 PagesHistorical Background Throughout the 1980’s, Lebanon was engulfed in a brutal civil war that was waged between the government and different rebel factions. Hezbollah, a fundamentalist Shia militant group allied with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), was one of the major forces fighting against the Lebanese government. With Ronald Reagan as acting president of the United States, he made an effort toward stabilizing the Area by sending peacekeeping forces to Beirut. In retaliation to thisRead MoreEssay about The Reagen and Bush Presidencies3038 Words   |  13 Pages INTRODUCTION It is widely accepted that George Bush Snr. was forced to play out his presidency in the mighty shadow of Ronald Reagan. Reagans charm and personality was one of his greatest strengths and, even now, is widely revered for his time as President. Bush was reportedly always conscious of peoples expectations of him in view of his predecessor and this burden seemed to weigh heavily. Reagans achievements in Washington were considerable, if not in number then in impact. His politicalRead MoreNational Security Outline Essay40741 Words   |  163 Pagesï » ¿TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR NSL READING CHAPTER 1: National Security Law and the Role of Tipson 1 CHAPTER 2: Theoretical approaches to national security world order 4 CHAPTER 3: Development of the International Law of Conflict Management 5 CHAPTER 4: The Use of Force in International Relations: Norms Concerning the Initiation of Coercion (JNM) 7 CHAPTER 5: Institutional Modes of Conflict Management 17 The United Nations System 17 Proposals for Strengthening Management Institutional ModesRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pagesthe Contributors †¢ 343 _ IN TR OD UC TIO N Michael Adas B y any of the customary measures we deploy to demarcate historical epochs, the twentieth century does not appear to be a very coherent unit. The beginnings and ends of what we choose to call centuries are almost invariably years of little significance. But there is little agreement over when the twentieth century c.e. arrived, and there were several points both before the year 2000 (the collapse of the Soviet Union