When Shultz returned to the State Department, he dictated a note to his aide, Charles Hill, who wrote down that Reagan's men were "rearranging the record." They were trying to protect the President through a "carefully thought out strategy" that would "blame it on Bud" McFarlane, who had been Poindexter's predecessor as national security adviser.
Investigative Shutdown
By early 1987, what was already becoming evident to me was that it wasn't only the White House that was determined to shut down the Iran-Contra investigation, but the Washington/New York Establishment, including the major news media and much of Congress, didn't want complete disclosure either.
The thinking was that the United States couldn't stand another failed president and that the ouster of a second Republican -- after Richard Nixon over the Watergate scandal -- would deeply antagonize the millions of conservative Americans who loved Reagan.
Inside Newsweek, a sister publication of The Washington Post which had pioneered the Watergate scandal, the new saying was, "we don't want another Watergate." That might seem counter-intuitive to some since the Post had ridden its Watergate fame to preeminence in American journalism. But the organization's view of Iran-Contra was different.
Though many outsiders might see Watergate as the Post's shining moment, there wasn't much stomach inside the company to go through it again -- and the Post couldn't claim ownership to the Iran-Contra story. Indeed, many key Post journalists, including Watergate hero Bob Woodward, had pooh-poohed the early stories about Oliver North's network.
The Post's drift toward neoconservatism and its general support for Reagan's tough-guy foreign policies were another factor. Similar attitudes prevailed at The New York Times and other leading American publications whose top editors shared a fondness for a more muscular U.S. approach toward the world. So, Reagan's Iran-Contra cover-up had the wind of many powerful Washington/New York blowhards at its back.
How quickly the investigative space was closing down hit home to me on March 10, 1987, when I was asked to attend an Iran-Contra-related dinner at Evan Thomas' residence in an exclusive neighborhood in northwest Washington. It was one of a regular series of social affairs in which Newsweek would host a newsmaker for dinner who would chat informally with Newsweek's editors and some selected correspondents.
There were two guests that night, retired Gen. Brent Scowcroft, who was one of three members of the Tower Commission which had been set up by Reagan to conduct an internal investigation of Iran-Contra, and Rep. Dick Cheney, R-Wyoming, who was the ranking House Republican on the newly formed congressional Iran-Contra committee.
At the table also were some of Newsweek's top executives and a few of us correspondents. As the catered dinner progressed and a tuxedoed waiter kept the wine glasses full, the guests were politely questioned. It was all quite clubby.
Scowcroft, a studious-looking man who was sitting to my right, fidgeted as if he wanted to get something off his chest. "Maybe I shouldn't say this but," he began with a slight hesitation. He then continued, "If I were advising Admiral Poindexter and he had told the president about the diversion, I would advise him to say that he hadn't."
I was surprised by Scowcroft's candor but troubled that a person who had been assigned to uncover the truth about Iran-Contra seemed more interested in protecting the President. Not sure of the etiquette of these dinners, I put down my fork and politely asked, "General, you're not suggesting that the Admiral should commit perjury are you?"
There was an uncomfortable silence around the table and -- before Scowcroft could respond -- Newsweek's executive editor Maynard Parker jumped in. Sitting to my left, Parker boomed, "Bob, sometimes you have to do what's good for the country." His comment brought forth some manly guffaws from those at the table, reflecting a jaded worldview that passed for sophistication.
Though the congressional Iran-Contra investigation would grind on for several months -- with North stealing the show with a bravura performance in his Marine Corps uniform -- the outcome could have been predicted from that night at Evan Thomas's house. With Cheney listening attentively, it was clear that key parts of the media elite were quite comfortable with a cover-up.
Lying with Zest
So, Reagan's team continued to lie with zest. Virtually all of Reagan's top advisers, including the highly respected Shultz who prefaced his lies with the phrase "trust is the coin of the realm," gave false and misleading testimony to Congress or to prosecutors.
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