The Iran Contra Affair

In November 1986, a lebanese magazing reported that the Reagan Administration was selling arms to Iran as part of a secret deal to secure the release of Americans - particularly CIA Statin Chief Buckly - being held hostage by Islamic Militants

• This Violaded a Reagan policy that it would not help Iran - Iran was in a war with Iraq and we were still angry at Iran for the embassy take over in 1979, and
• A second Policy saying that we would not negociate for hostages

The Reagan administration eventually confirmed the arms sales to iran and that the "profits" had been passed to the contras.

• Marine LTC Oliver North, who was assigned to the National Security Council, was the point man for an operation that violated stated white house poicy and the "intent" of the Boland Amendment.

President Reagan successfully maintained that he knew no details of either the hostage release or funding for the contras.

• Eventually North and his boss at the NSC, John Poindexter were convicted of lying to congress but their convictions were overturned because they had been granted immunity from prosecution by congress when they testified at congressional hearings investigating Iran-Contra

Reform in the Soviet Union

In the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev became leader in 1985

• He realized that he had severe economic weakness and enormous environmental pollution.
• He pulled Soviet troops from Afghanistan, cut back support to Cuba and Nicaragua and introduced 2 dramatic policies.
• Glasnost, openness, that let people sneak out from interest groups and criticize, and
• Perestroika restructuring which was an economic liberalization permitting some small businesses and a shift in economic decision making to give factory managers greater control

Gorbachev and Reagan began arms control talks

• In October 1986 at a meeting in Iceland, Reagaon shocked both Gorbachev and the US by proposing a total ban on nuclear weapons.
• Gorbachev insisted that star wars be included in this ban and the talks stumbled.
• But in December 1987, Reagan and Gorbachev signed a treaty reducing each nations supply of intermediate range missiles, INF treaty

By 1988, Gorbachev scrappped the Soviet Union policy that forbade any nation under Soviet influence from renouncing Communism

• this opened the way to the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union

The First Bush Presidency

Vice President Bush gained the Republican nomination in 1988 with ease even though the Reagan Administration had been losing popularity

Bush won in an election featuring the lowest voter run out in 6 years. His early moves angered conservatives.

• he agreed to an increase in the minimum wage
• he failed to veto the civil rights act of 1991, which provided for preferencial hiring of women and african americans in business and gov't
• Most important, he broke out a "no new taxes" campaign promiese when he needed to deal with a rising federalist

In addition, economic growth began to slow as the budget deficit continued to increase

Soviet Communism collapsed, Communist states fell like dominos

• In 1989, in poliand, the anti communist labor party, solidarity, ousted the pro soviet regime
• The pro soviet government of east germany fell in November 1989
• Ease and west germany tore down the berlin wall
• Communist governments were forced out in Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria
• Yugoslavid disinegrated as ethnic hatreds feared and groups tried to recreate slovenia, servia, bosnia, and croana
• Most dramatic, Russian President Boris Yeltsin led Russia out of what was left of the S.U., leaving 12 independent countries and no SU

Elsewhere, Bush promoted the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that would bring Mexico, The U.S, and Canada into a large free trade zone.

The sandinistas were voted out of office in Nicaragua

Bush turned his attention to war on drugs

• Panamas president Manual Noriega was deeply involved in the drug trade
• The Reagan Administration had secured an indictment against Noriega for drug traffiking and had used economic sanctions to try to drive him from office
• Noriega was an embarrassment as he had been a CIA Assett when Bush was director of the CIA
• Bush dicided to oust Noriega
• US marines landed in Panama in December 1989 in operation Just Cause
• Noriega was surrounded and surrendered
• It was then extracted to the US to stand trial
• In April 1992, he was convicted of Cocaine traffiking and imprisoned in the US
• he is still in prison.

The middle east was the next test when in august 1990, iraqs president Saddam Hussein sent his troops into kingdom of Kuwait.

Fearing the Saudi Arabia would be next, Bush formed an international response

• Saudi Arabia agreed to the presence of US troops and operation Desert Shield moved 230,000 troops into the country
• Taking the case to the UN, Bush won un authorization to lead an invasion force if Iraq had not withdrawn by Jan 19, 1991
• Bush amassed a huge force of almost 500,000 americans and 200,000 others and he got congress to approve a resolution backing the use of force
• when the deadline passed, the US launched an Air War.
• On Feb 24, US ground troops went on the offensive and in 4 days had shattered the Iraqi armies

Bush then decided not to pursue Saddam Husseins ouster from power, a move that the UN had not agreed to and which US military advisors thought would be costly to achieve

Instead the US:

• maintained economic sanctions of Iraq
• Worked to dismantle Iraqis nuclear and biological capabilities
• Enforced a "No-Fly" zone over northern Iraw to protect the Kurdish population.