SHULTZ PROMISES NOT TO DIVERT CIA FUNDS TO CONTRAS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000504130040-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 27, 2012
• Sequence Number: 40
• Publication Date: March 19, 1986
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

3 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504130040-8
t x'1! t ~!'l'hl[!fli~ _~~
!PA
WASHINGTON tar of
fate George P. 'Sh promised
ongress on Tuesday that the Rea-
gan- will not use
Special CIA funds to expand its
ro posed 100 million in aid for
icara uan rebels but a rats
Wd they still fear that the program
willow.
Shultz, responding to Democrats'
uestions on the eve of a debate on
t1Le issue on the House floor, sent a
letter to Intelligence Committee
Chairman Lee H. Hamilton (D-
Ind.) formall renouncing any use
of the CIA's secret "contingency
reserve" o e p e contra, des
said.
The chamber is scheduled to
vote on the issue Thursday, and
both Republicans and Democrats
are predicting a close result.
"The Administration wishes to
make clear that it will not augment
the President's re guest through t e
use of or other funds that have
not been approved by Congress for
Shultz Promises Not to Divert CIA Funds to Con ras
By NORMAN 6PEK.and DOYLE McMANUS, Times Staff Writers
LOS ANGELES TIMES
19 March 1986
spokesman Charles Redman said.
Lack of Restrictions
Hamilton and other members of
the me i ence Committee had
demanded such a promise after
Administration officials said MaT
their proposal would remove
restrictions on CIA activities in t e
area.
The Administration now believes
that the CIA is prohibited rom
spending secret funds once con-
tras for the rest of the current fiscal
year which ends Sept. 30, officials
said. After that, no legal pr_o_M51UW
will apply, they said, adding how-
ever that Shultz has promised a
no additional money will be spent
without con_greluon approval-"-
The Administration proposal
would also lift existing restrictions
on CIA participation in administer-
ing the aid and advising the con-
tras, although officials said they
would seek the approval of Con-
gress inteel igence committees for
any such role.
Several Democrats still said,
however, that they fear the pro-
gram will end up costing more than
the original request.
"The $100 million is only a base
line," said an aide to Rep. Michael
D. Barnes (D-Md.), chairman of
the House Foreign Affairs subcom-
mittee on Latin America. "There
area lot of ways to spend money."
Assistant Secretary of State Elli-
ott Abrams told another congres-
sional panel that the Administra-
tion plans to send "three or four
dozen" military trainers to Central
America to instruct the contras, if
aid is approved.
In another development, a Gal-
lup poll released Tuesday showed
that 52% of the U.S. public believes
that Congress should reject the
$100-million aid plan, with 35% in
favor of approval.
Administration spokesmen had
said Monday that a U.S.-commis-
sioned poll showed that Central
Americans support the contras, but
they refused again Tuesday to
release the full results.
One official said that the key
question in the Central American
poll was asked only of persons with
at least a seventh-grade education
who had previously heard that the
rebels were receiving outside sup-
port.
He said the question was: "What
is your opinion about assistance
given to contra forces in Nicara-
gua? Do you approve strongly?
Approve somewhat? Disapprove
somewhat? Disapprove strongly?
Or don't know enough to have an
opinion?"
The official said, however, that
the question was preceded by an
open-ended one asking how much
the respondent had heard about aid
to the contras. If the respondent
said he or she had heard nothing
about the program, the pollster
skipped the approve-disapprove
question.
The White House and,e
Department continued to refuse to
divulge the poll's wording. Never-
theless, an official of the * .
Information Agency, which com-
missioned the poll, readily -
swered a reporter's questions.
He confirmed the approve'dis
approve results issued Monday: In
Costa Rica 69% approve, 24%
disapprove; in Honduras 55% ap-
prove and 25% disapprove; in Giua-
temala 54% approve and 22.%
disapprove, and in El Salvador 52%
approve and 19% disapprove. .
The official said that the itiost
recent poll was taken only in Costa
Rica and Honduras. It showed.an
increase in support for aid to'the
contras in those two countries:lti%
approve and 22% disapprov ''tt1
Costa Rica, and 73% approve and
17%. disapprove in Honduras. "'
There was no explanation of "y
the White House chose not to
publicize the February poll, which
appeared to buttress the Admffiis-
tration's position.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504130040-8