Rummy replacement Gates 1984 advice to bomb Nicaragua would have broken law--1982 Boland Amendment

[yurbud]

In 1984, Robert Gates, Bush's current nominee to replace Rumsfeld as Secretary of Defense, advocated bombing Nicaragua in a memo to his then boss, CIA director William Casey.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-gates25nov25,0,5508834.story?coll=la-home-nation

Whatever the military and political merits of that action or of overthrowing the Sandinista in general, if Gates' advice had been followed, the Reagan administration would have been breaking the law (further). This was hardly an obscure law either. It was all over the news at the time.


The 1982 Boland Amendment forbid giving any military assistance to the overthrow of the Nicaraguan government, financial or direct.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boland_Amendment

It should be noted that the Sandinistas came to power as part of a coalition that included the woman the administration approved of to take Ortega's place. The Sandinistas won an internationally monitored election before that.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Nicaragua#Sandinista_period_.281979_-_1990.29

when they lost the next one, they peacefully handed over power.

It is worth noting that the US backed replacement privatized industries the Sandinistas had nationalized. How many Nicaraguans do you suppose that benefited?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Nicaragua#Post-Sandinista_period

I don't have any particular love for the Sandinistas (or animosity either), but if we claim to support democracy we should do so even when the results of elections get some corporation's knickers in a knot. Also, given the last couple of years, if the Bush faction demonizes someone, I would at least pause and take a good hard look at them before kicking them too.

Gates is probably more in the mold of Papa Bush's men, quiet, competent, and bland. But the policies he will pursue will be no less destructive than those of the more brazen, blundering Baby Bush crowd.

I doubt that the Democrats will oppose him. There are bigger fish to fry. But they should at least get his feet in the frying pan and make him feel the hot grease.

[madrchsod]

1. laws? they don`t need no stink`n laws.....

if he`s the best they have it certainly does`t speak well for the next two years does it?

[yurbud]

2. follows the Ashcroft to Gonzales pattern: replace the obviously creepy with someone with only a

creepy resume.

Ashcroft was even scary LOOKING. Gonzales looks like a teddy bear in comparison (even though most teddy bears don't come with waterboards).

Likewise, anyone not in a coma could tell Rummy was a smarmy, condescending fuck. Gates will probably be dull by comparison, and might even ruffle fewer feathers in the Pentagon. But he will pursue essentially the same policies.

Kind of like Negroponte. We hardly ever hear about him, either because he doesn't speak out much or knows how to behave himself, but he certainly seemed like the guy to fulfill Rummy's public wish of pursuing the "Salvador option" in Iraq.