CBS FACE THE NATION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000403850037-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 25, 2010
• Sequence Number: 37
• Publication Date: September 23, 1984
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/08/25: CIA-RDP90-00552R000403850037-3
EXCERPTED
LESLIE STAHL COMMENTATOR
CBS FACE THE NATION
23 September 1984
STAHL: We invited several officials from the Reagan administration to come on
this broadcast and discuss this issue, but none of them would. With us now,
Senators Patrick\Leahy of Vermont and Richard\Lugar of Indiana, both members of
the Senate Intelligence Committee. Sen. Leahy, as a member of that committee,
do you have any indication or any hint that the administration is planning a
retaliatory strike? SEN.\PATRICK\LEAHY (D-Vt., Senate Intelligence Committee):
Well, I think if there is a planning of one, the last thing that should be done
is to discuss it publicly and what's gonna be'done. I think one of the big
mistakes after the bombing of our embassy, we talked about retaliation. After
the massacre of the Marines, the administration talked again about retaliation.
You can't cry wolf in this. You cry wolf, I think it could be argued that you
encourage more terrorist things. You don't discourage 'em. If there is gonna
be retaliation, then they oughtta' find out to who to retaliate against, and
then do it swiftly, surely and talk about it afterward.
STAHL: Sen. Lugar, do you think there should be a strike in this case?
SEN\RICHARD\LUGAR (R-Ind., Senate Intelligence Committee): If the violators can
be found and if we are certain who did it, and that, of course,'is the problem
in terms of trying to get into the cells and into the chain of responsibility.
And finally, diplomatically to determine if it's. a nation-state affair,-whether
we're prepared to take on a nation in addition to specific persons.
STAHL: Well, you're both on the intelligence committee, you're all, both
suggesting that we don't know who did it. What's wrong with our intelligence?
LEAHY: Well, I think when you're, when you're dealing with terrorist groups,
especially if it's a small terrorist group,.it's very, very difficult. The
expert you had from Georgetown earlier made it clear, 'How do you infiltrate?'
We did it at one time with the PLO rather effectively. Doing it now is far more
difficult.
STAHL: This is the third bombing done in the same fashion. All of us who read
about this have been reading the same names over and over--*Fhad lala,
*Masawe--these names. Why can't the CIA tell us whether they are involved or
not? LUGAR: I think intelligence leads have been followed, but I would just
point out, Leslie, that there have been several hundred attacks on diplomats and
embassies in the past 10 years. It's not a phenomena of this year, and it's no
more a part of this year than any other year. It is important, however, for us
to begin tightening further all of our procedures, and that, both
administrations, the Carter and the Reagan, have been doing progressively.
We've become a good bit more tense and rightly so.
STAHL: You know, there have been little bits of information fed out to the
media that the administration has been able to prevent some terrorist attacks in
Lebanon this year. Have we had some successes, have we penetrated more than
they're telling us? LEAHY: There have been, there were preventions in the 10
years I've been here--in the Ford administration, the Carter administration, the
Reagan administration. Fortunately., most of those you don't talk about. I
.think the issue, though, here, was there adequate security? And there was not
adequate security. There an absolute lack of security in the Marines when they
were massacred last year. I mean, the sentries weren't even allowed to have
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/08/25: CIA-RDP90-00552R000403850037-3 ..a