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Boland Amendment Redux
Ron Paul bill to prevent war on Syria.
by Stephen Lendman
In 1982, the House passed the Boland Amendment. It was attached as a rider to the 1983 Defense Appropriations Act.
It cut off CIA and other covert Contra funding. Washington backed them against Daniel Ortega's Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN). He led a popular uprising against the hated US-backed Somoza dictatorship.
Bipartisan support backed Boland. Party leaders were outraged about waging covert war without notifying congressional oversight committees as required.
Nonetheless, Reagan ordered the National Security Council to "keep the Contras together, body and soul." Oliver North got operational responsibility. He established a secret network to keep arms flowing.
Dozens of former CIA operatives and retired military personnel were recruited. Evading congressional oversight was planned. CIA head William Casey organized an "off the shelf" scheme. Congress got wind of it. The Iran/Contra scandal followed.
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