Word: caseys
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...Director Casey defends his agency's controversial primer...
...that instructed rebels in Nicaragua on terrorist tactics surfaced last month, the White House promised that any official involved in its development or approval would be dismissed. But in a letter to members of the House and Senate Intelligence committees that was made public last week, CIA Director William Casey insisted that the thrust of the manual had been misinterpreted, and he attempted to justify its overall purpose. "The emphasis is on education," Casey wrote, "not on turning a town into a battlefield...
...manual violated the spirit of U.S. policy by advocating that the contras should "neutralize" local officials of the leftist Sandinista regime in Nicaragua. Casey, however, explained that the passage, along with one that advocated "shooting" informers, should be considered in context. "It is important to note," his letter read, "that these passages are in the context of occupying a community and dealing with a situation in which actual or potential resistance remains...
...disclaimers, the manual again raised questions about whether Washington's support for the contras was designed merely to put pressure on the Nicaraguan government to stop its support of the Salvadoran rebels, as the Administration claims, or to overthrow the Nicaraguan government, as critics charge. According to Casey, the CIA-supplied documents state that the aim of the contras "is the development of a democratic and pluralistic government in Nicaragua." Countered Republican Senator Charles Mathias Jr. of Maryland: "The policy implied is the overthrow of an established government...
Reaction to the CIA manual, the existence of which was first revealed by the Associated Press last Monday, was fast and furious. Walter Mondale demanded the resignation of CIA Director William Casey, and questioned Reagan's role. "Did he know this was going on?" asked Mondale. "I don't know which is worse-knowing this was going on or having a Government where no one is in charge." Congressman Edward Boland, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, fumed that the document was "repugnant to a nation that condemns such acts by others. It embraces the Communist revolutionary...