CASEY/NICARAGUA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-01070R000201180009-9
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 10, 2008
• Sequence Number: 9
• Publication Date: April 28, 1984
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Approved For Release 2008/12/10: CIA-RDP88-01070R000201180009-9
RADIO TV REPORTS, INC.
4701 WILLARD AVENUE, CHEVY CHASE, MARYLAND 20815 [phone]
FOR PUBLIC AFFAIRS STAFF
PROGRAM Agronsky & Company STATION WDVM-TV
Syndicated
DATE April 28, 1984 7:00 P.M. CITY Washington, D.C.
SUBJECT Casey/Nicaragua
MARTIN AGRONSKY: Elizabeth, the CIA Director, Mr.
Casey, had now, said that he feels he was wrong in not having
revealed more clearly and explicitly to the Senate committee in
charge of oversight of CIA operations what they were doing in
Central America, and specifically the mining by the CIA of the
harbors off the coast of Nicaragua. Now, Senator Moynihan, who
said he was going to resign as deputy chairman, apparently has
been sufficiently mollified, so he's going to remain as deputy
chairman, though he says he'll forgive but not forget.
Now, where are we now with the CIA, with the secrets and
keeping those secrets secret from the Congress?
ELIZABETH DREW: I think it's pretty clear what hap-
pened, Martin, is that it was -- Mr. Casey was made to understand
that he was about to lose it all if he didn't mollify the
senators, and that this was probably more a tactical move. I
don't know that he lost a lot of sleep at night over --contrition
over not having been, perhaps, more fully informative of the
Senate committee. But people in the Senate and elsewhere said to
him, "Look, you're about to lose a very important constituency up
there. You'd better mend your fences." Particularly, some
Republican senators said that. And so he went up and he said,
"I'm sorry," which for him was a very big thing to do.
There's another sub-thing that was going on here having
to do with some people not wanting Mr. Moynihan to give up that
slot, fearing it would go to someone who might be more critical
of the CIA.
So, there was a lot of dancing around. I'm not sure
that anything terribly substantive took place.
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Approved For Release 2008/12/10: CIA-RDP88-01070R000201180009-9
 Approved For Release 2008/12/10: CIA-RDP88-0107OR000201180009-9
HUGH SIDEY: But let's also look at the other side of
this. We've looked at it from Mr. Casey's standpoint.
Let me say flat-out that the mining of the harbors, as
it was done, was wrong, obviously a bad decision. It had
political fallouts.
[Confusion of voices]
SIDEY: But isn't it curious that the people who wanted
to be informed were informed? Eddie Boland and the people in the
House, they found out; that Senator Biden wanted to find out, and
he got well briefed on it; and that the people that really made
an effort, they picked up the subtle hints.
AGRONSKY: Why should there be subtle hints about
something so important in terms of national policy?
SIDEY: Well, I'm not justifying Casey. I'm saying that
he was wrong in this. But what I am saying is, what is the
responsibility of the Congress in this? Those people...
AGRONSKY: What are you saying, if you don't do your
homework, you can't complain?
SIDEY: I think it's always going to be the case that if
they are not diligent and they do not ask and do not probe, that
these things are going to happen. And there's a case where they
could have found out had they worked at it. And they did not.
CARL ROWAN: Well, I agree with Hughin this respect. I
think Moynihan is doing a dance around the lily pads. This is
what worries me about oversight. If you've got people there who
aren't conscientious enough when they see hints like this to say,
"What are you talking about? What are you doing?" they don't
have any right to come up with any big dramatic resignations
later, and then, after Casey apologizes, say, "I'll go back into
this post."
So, you're right. There's a lot of blame here.
MARIANNE MEANS: The senators are ambivalent in their
attitude toward it. I think they understand that they have a
responsibility. But this is -- the CIA is engaged in distasteful
business. And the politicians feel the same way toward it, I
think, as the public does. And yet they realize it has to be
done. So they just as soon not know too much.
Approved For Release 2008/12/10: CIA-RDP88-0107OR000201180009-9