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William Casey (far left) touring Afghanistan in the company of mujahadeen fighters. A devotee of covert operations, Casey's CIA undertook initiatives from Afghanistan to Central America. |
April 15
William Casey and the Revitalization of Covert Operations
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William Casey (far left) touring Afghanistan in the company of mujahadeen fighters. A devotee of covert operations, Casey's CIA undertook initiatives from Afghanistan to Central America. |
| Today's class centers on the legacy of William Casey. We'll be returning in a few weeks to his activities in Afghanistan; for tonight, we'll be focusing on Central America. A hard-line anticommunist, Casey entered the CIA committed to ousting the Sandinistas from power in Nicaragua. And--allied with an equally secrecy-minded National Security Council staff--he helped trigger the most serious political scandal of the 1980s. |
READING:
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Robert Gates, From the Shadows, pp. 198-225, 242-249, 293-316, 390-403. |
DOCUMENTS:
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Reagan's presidential finding--a guide for permissible CIA activities in Nicaragua |
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William Casey himself urges a more aggressive effort to build public support for the contras |
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At this well-attended meeting, top administration officials wonder how to obtain funds for the contras |
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The CIA counsel's office examines how to get around congressional legislation |