How George H.W. Bush's Pardons for Iran-Contra Conspirators Set the Stage for Trump's Impunity
by mail@democracynow.org (Democracy Now!) from Democracy Now! on (#449G7)
As the media lauds George H.W. Bush's legacy, we look at his role in the Iran-Contra scandal. Bush Sr. was vice president when the Reagan administration conspired to deceive and defy Congress with its illegal arms sale to Iran in exchange for securing the release of American hostages in Lebanon. The proceeds from the sale were used to illegally fund the Nicaraguan Contras. In 1992, when Bush Sr. was president, he pardoned several Iran-Contra defendants, including Caspar Weinberger, Robert McFarlane and Elliott Abrams. We speak with Greg Grandin, prize-winning author and professor of Latin American history at New York University.