Scandals of the Ronald Reagan administration
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Personal life 33rd Governor of California
40th President of the United States Legacy |
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The presidency of Ronald Reagan was marked by numerous scandals, resulting in the investigation, indictment or conviction of over 138 administration officials, the largest number for any president of the United States.[1]
Iran–Contra affair
The most well-known and politically damaging of the scandals came to light since
- Caspar Weinberger, United States Secretary of Defense, was pardoned before trial by George H. W. Bush
- Elliott Abrams agreed to cooperate with investigators and in return was allowed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges instead of facing possible felony indictments. He was sentenced to two years' probation and one hundred hours of community service. He was also pardoned by Bush on December 24, 1992 along with five other former Reagan Administration officials who had been implicated in connection with Iran–Contra.[3]
- National Security Adviser Robert C. McFarlane, pleaded guilty to four misdemeanors and was sentenced to two years' probation and 200 hours of community service and was ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.[3]He was also pardoned by Bush.
- Richard R. Miller – Partner with Oliver North in IBC, an Office of Public Diplomacy front group, convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States.[3][5]
- Clair George was Chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's Division of Covert Operations under President Reagan. George was convicted of lying to two congressional committees in 1986. He was pardoned by Bush.[3][4][6]
- Richard Secord was indicted on nine felony counts of lying to Congress and pleaded guilty to a felony charge of lying to Congress.[3][7]
- Thomas G. Clines was convicted of four counts of tax-related offenses for failing to report income from the Iran/Contra operations.[3][8]
- Carl R. Channel – Office of Public Diplomacy, partner in International Business- first person convicted in the Iran/Contra scandal, pleaded guilty of one count of defrauding the United States[3][5]
- John Poindexter, Reagan's national security advisor, was found guilty of five criminal counts including lying to Congress, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. His conviction was later overturned on grounds that he did not receive a fair trial (the prosecution may have been influenced by his immunized testimony in front of Congress.)[3][9]
- Oliver North was indicted on sixteen charges in the Iran–Contra affair and found guilty of three—aiding and abetting obstruction of Congress, shredding or altering official documents and accepting a gratuity. His convictions were later overturned on the grounds that his immunized testimony had tainted his trial.[3][10]
- Duane R. Clarridgealso pardoned before trial by Bush
- Albert Hakim pleaded guilty to supplementing the salary of North
- Richard L. Thornburghrefused to declassify information needed for his defense
Department of Housing and Urban Development grant rigging
The
- James Watt, Reagan's Secretary of the Interior was indicted on 24 felony counts and pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor. He was sentenced to five years' probation, and ordered to pay a $5000 fine.[13]
- Phillip D. Winn – Assistant HUD Secretary. Pleaded guilty to one count of scheming to give illegal gratuities;[14] pardoned by President Bill Clinton, November, 2000[15]
- Thomas Demery – Assistant HUD Secretary – pleaded guilty to steering HUD subsidies to politically connected donors. Found guilty of bribery and obstruction of justice[14]
- Deborah Gore Dean – executive assistant to Secretary Pierce – indicted on thirteen counts, three counts of conspiracy, one count of accepting an illegal gratuity, four counts of perjury, and five counts of concealing articles. She was convicted on twelve. She appealed and prevailed on several counts but the convictions for conspiracy remained.[14]
- Joseph A. Strauss, Special Assistant to the Secretary of HUD, convicted for accepting payments to favor Puerto Rican land developers in receiving HUD funding.[16]
- Silvio D. DeBartolomeis convicted of perjury and bribery.[14]
- Catalina Vasquez Villalpando, the Treasurer of the United States from 1989 to 1993[17]
Secretary Pierce, the "central person" in the scandal, was not charged because he made "full and public written acceptance of responsibility".[17]
Retired Federal Judge
Lobbying scandals
When an administration staff member leaves office, federal law governs how quickly one can begin a lobbying career.
- Michael Deaver, Reagan's Chief of Staff, was convicted of lying to both a congressional committee and to a federal grand jury about his lobbying activities after he left the government. He received three years' probation and was fined $100,000 after being convicted for lying to a congressional subcommittee.[18]
- Lyn Nofziger Reagan's Press Secretary was convicted on charges of illegal lobbying after leaving government service in Wedtech scandal. His conviction was later overturned.[19]
EPA scandals
A number of scandals occurred at the Environmental Protection Agency under the Reagan administration. Over twenty high-level EPA employees were removed from office during Reagan's first three years as president.[20] Additionally, several Agency officials resigned amidst a variety of charges, ranging from being unduly influenced by industry groups to rewarding or punishing employees based on their political beliefs.[21]
- Rita Lavelle, an administrator at the EPA, misused Superfund monies and was convicted of perjury. She served three months in prison, was fined $10,000 and given five years' probation.[22]
- Anne Gorsuch Burford, the controversial head of the EPA. Burford, citing "Executive Privilege," refused to turn over Superfund records to Congress.[23]She was found in Contempt, whereupon she resigned.
Savings and loan crisis
As an indication of this scandal's size,
Economist John Kenneth Galbraith called it "the largest and costliest venture in public misfeasance, malfeasance and larceny of all time".[26]
Operation Ill Wind
Operation Ill Wind was a three-year investigation launched in 1986 by the FBI into corruption by U.S. government and military officials, and private defense contractors.
- Melvyn Paisley, appointed Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1981 by Republican President Ronald Reagan,[27] was found to have accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes. He pleaded guilty to bribery and served four years in prison.[28]
- James E. Gaines, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy, took over when Paisley resigned his office.[29] Gaines was convicted of accepting an illegal gratuity and theft and conversion of government property. He was sentenced to six months in prison.[30]
- Victor D. Cohen, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, was the 50th conviction obtained under the Ill Wind probe when he pleaded guilty to accepting bribes and conspiring to defraud the government.[31]
Wedtech scandal
Wedtech scandal: Wedtech Corporation convicted of bribery for Defense Department contracts
- Edwin Meese Attorney General, resigned but never convicted.[32]
- Lyn Nofziger White House Press Secretary, whose conviction of lobbying was overturned.[33]
- Mario Biaggi sentenced to 2+1⁄2 years.[34]
- Robert García sentenced to 2+1⁄2 years.[35]
Debategate
In the final days of the
See also
- List of federal political scandals in the United States#Ronald Reagan administration (1981–1989)
- 1980 October Surprise theory
Notes
- ISBN 0-393-32434-6
- ^ Brinkley, A. (2009). American History: A Survey Vol. II., p. 887, New York: McGraw-Hill
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Summary of Prosecutions
- ^ a b Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 15 William J. Casey
- ^ a b Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 13 Private Fundraising: The Guilty Pleas of Channell and Miller
- ^ Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 17 United States v. Clair E. George
- ^ Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 9 United States v. Richard V. Secord
- ^ Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 11 United States v. Thomas G. Clines, a.k.a. "C. Tea"
- ^ Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 3 United States v. John M. Poindexter
- ^ Walsh Iran / Contra Report – Chapter 1 United States v. Robert C. McFarlane
- ISBN 0-393-32434-6
- ^ Greenberg, Gerald S. 2000. Larry D. Thompson. In Historical Encyclopedia of U.S. Independent Counsel Investigations, ed. Gerald S. Greenberg, 337–38. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
- ^ RollingStone.com, November 18, 2003, "Crimes Against Nature" by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
- ^ a b c d e "Ex-Official Convicted in HUD Scandal of 80's" by Stephan Labaton, The New York Times, October 27, 1993. Retrieved 2010-08-15.
- ^ "Whom Might Clinton Pardon?", by Michael Brus, Slate, Dec. 23, 2000. Retrieved 2010-08-15.
- ^ Washington Post, October 15, 1999, "Strauss Convicted" by Toni Locy
- ^ a b c "Long Inquiry on Abuse in the Housing Department Is Completed", by Michael Janofsky, The New York Times, October 29, 1998. Retrieved 2020-10-21.
- ^ The American Experience | Reagan | Timeline (1986 – 1988) Archived 2010-04-21 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Reagan adviser Nofziger dies". 27 March 2006.
- ISBN 0-393-32434-6
- ^ ibid.
- ^ AROUND THE NATION; Conviction of Ex-Official Of E.P.A. Is Upheld – New York Times
- ^ Sullivan, P.: "Anne Gorsuch Burford, 62, Dies; Reagan EPA Director", Washington Post, July 22, 2004.
- ^ Timothy Curry and Lynn Shibut, "The Cost of the Savings and Loan Crisis: Truth and Consequences", FDIC, December 2000.
- ^ The Greatest-Ever Bank Robbery: The Collapse of the Savings and Loan Industry by Martin Mayer (Scribner's)
- ^ John Kenneth Galbraith, The Culture of Contentment. (Houghton Mifflin, 1992).
- ^ http://www.people.com, August 08, 1988, Dealmaker Melvyn Paisley's True Colors Are Questioned in a Defense Corruption Probe by Montgomery Brower, [1]
- ^ "This Day in GovCon History, June 14, 1988: "Operation Ill Wind" Raids". Archived from the original on 2013-11-09. Retrieved 2016-01-04.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-01-06. Retrieved 2015-08-01.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ nytimes.com, June 1, 1992, Ex-Official Sentenced
- ^ https://latimes.com, August 23, 1991, Ex-Official Enters 'Ill Wind' Guilty Plea : Defense: It marks the 50th conviction obtained under the probe of Pentagon procurement fraud. He faces 20 years in jail at sentencing Dec. 6 by ROBERT L. JACKSON, [2]
- ^ nytimes, July 8, 1988, "Prosecutor Shines New Light on Meese" by Jeff Gerth
- ^ The Washington Post, December 12, 1989, "Court Refuses to Review Nofziger Case" by Ruth Marcus
- ^ The Washington Post, August 5, 1988, "Rep. Biaggi, 4 Others Guilty in Wedtech Case" by George Lardner Jr.
- ^ The Washington Post, October 21, 1989, "Rep. Garcia, Wife Indicted" by Howard Kurtz and Laurie Goodstein
- Washington Post, September 11, 1984.