EX-CIA HEAD COLBY BACKS FRANCHOT, HITS 'STAR WARS'

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP99-00418R000100150029-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 15, 2012
• Sequence Number: 29
• Publication Date: September 13, 1988
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/15: CIA-RDP99-00418R000100150029-5
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STAT
Ex-CIA head Colby backs
Franchot, hits `star wars'
By Arlo Wagner
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Democratic challenger Peter
Franchot used former CIA Director
William Colby yesterday to attack
Maryland Republican Rep. Constan-
ceMorella for voting in favor of the
multibillion-dollar Strategic De-
fense Initiative.
Mr. Colby, who served as Central
Intelligence Agency chief for three
years, said the so-called "star wars"
program is very expensive, will not
work, and compels the Soviets to de-
vise new weapons to overcome it. Mr.
Colby said he is backing Mr. Fran-
chot's candidacy because he is
against "star wars."
"I will do anything I can to help
people get elected who are for arms
control," explained Mr. Colby. But,
he said, he is not registered as a
Democrat or Republican and does
not live in the 8th District; thus he
will not be able to vote for Mr. Fran-
chot.
Mr. Colby's comments came dur-
ing a news conference in the Mont-
gomery County Council press room
in Rockville.
Contacted for response, Mrs.
Morelia accused Mr lrotchot of
"posturing" and distorting her con-
gressional voting record. She said
her Democratic opponent might as
well be attacking other Maryland
members of Congress, most of them
Democrats, who voted the same as
she on two "star wars" bills.
"He plays with glittering general-
Peter Franchot
ities and he doesn't do his home-
work," the first-term congress-
woman said.
Mrs. Morelia said she voted only
for minimum research on the de-
fense initiative, not deployment. SDI
research frequently develops data
valuable to other scientific and hu-
man programs, especially at the Na-
tional Institutes of Health, she said.
Moreover, SDI research serves as a
bargaining chip in negotiations with
the Soviets, she said.
Mr. Franchot said Mrs. Morella's
votes on the "star wars" bills and
amendments are examples of waf-
fling on and straddling issues. Mrs.
Morelia voted against amendments
to increase SDI funding so she could
say she is against "star wars;' but
voted for bills of $3.1 billion and $3.5
billion, respectively, for research so
she could say she favors it, Mr. Fran-
chot asserted.
"She wants it both ways. Well, she
can't have it that way. It's not fair."
Mr. Franchot also said Mrs.
Morelia voted for military aid to the
Contras in Nicaragua when she
voted last December for a continu-
ing resolution that authorized fed-
eral government funding until Con-
gress enacts formal budgets.
Mrs. Morelia said the resolution
included a provision to pay 65,000
federal employees. Members of Con-
gress had to vote for or against "the
whole package" even if there were
provisions they did not like, she said.
"Any reasonable person knows
that. I would be uneasy about elec-
ting anybody to Congress who
doesn't know that," Mrs. Morelia
said.
Both Mrs. Morelia and Mr. Fran-
chot said they favor the Arias Peace
Plan, for Central America instead of
supporting the Contras.
Mrs. Morelia voted for humani-
tarian aid for the Contras. Mr. Fran-
chot said he would have opposed it.
In 1973, Mr. Colby was appointed
director of the Central Intelligence
Agency by President Richard M.
Nixon and served 18 months under
President Gerald Ford before
George Bush succeeded him as di-
rector.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/15: CIA-RDP99-00418R000100150029-5