Sen. Cranston: As you recall, the Vice President was besieged at that time with inquiries regarding
Rodriguez's ties to the Vice President's office. What did you tell [Bush press spokesman] MarlinFitzwater regarding that relationship?
Gregg: ... The thrust of the press inquiries was always that from the outset I had had in mind that
Rodriguez should play some role in the Contra support operation, and my comments to Marlin ...
were that that had not been in my mind....
Sen. Cranston: Let me quote again from the New York Times, George Bush quoted October 13, '86.
Bush said, `` To the best of my knowledge, this man, Felix Rodriguez, is not working for the United
States government. '' Now Mr. Gregg, you knew that Rodriguez was aiding the Contras and
receiving material assistance in the form of cars, housing, communications equipment andtransportation from the U.S. government. Did you inform Bush of those facts so that he could make (^)
calculated misleading statements in ignorance of his staff's activities?
Gregg: ... At that point I had no idea that Felix--you said--you mentioned communications
equipment. I had no idea he had been given by North one of those encryption devices. I think I wasaware that Colonel Steele had given him access to a car, and I knew he was living in a BOQ at the
air base. He was not being paid any salary. His main source of income was, as it is now, his
retirement pension from CIA.
Sen. Cranston: ... You told the Iran-Contra committee that you and Bush never discussed theContras, had no expertise on the issue, no responsibility for it, and the details of Watergate-sized (^)
scandal involving NSC staff and the [Edwin] Wilson gang was not Vice Presidential. Your
testimony on that point I think is demonstrably false. There are at least six memos from Don Gregg
to George Bush regarding detailed Contra issues....
Sen Cranston: Am I correct in this, that you have confirmed ... that senior U.S. military, diplomatic
... and intelligence personnel, really looked with great doubt upon Rodriguez's mission and that they
tolerated it only because Rodriguez used his contacts with the Vice President and his staff as part of
the way to bolster his mission.
Gregg: ... I was not aware of the diplomatic; I was aware of the military and intelligence, yes, sir.
The committee voted in favor of confirmation. Cranston voted no. But three Democrats--Charles
Robb, Terry Sanford and Chairman Claiborne Pell--joined the Republicans. Sanford confirmed
Cranston's viewpoint, saying that he was allowing the nomination to go through beafraid the path would lead to Bush, '' the new President. Sanford said, shamefacedly, If Gcause he wasregg (^)
was lying, he was lying to protect the President, which is different from lying to protect himself.
''[Emphasis added]@s8@s9
In George Bush's government, the one-party state, the knives soon came out, and the prizesappeared. The Senate Ethics Committee, including the shamefaced Terry Sanford, began in (^)
November 1989, its attack on the Keating Five. '' These were U.S. Senators, among them Senator Alan Cranston, charged with savings and loan corruption. The attack soon narrowed down to one target only--the Iran-Contrary Senator Cranston. On Aug. 2, 1991, Senator Terry Sanford, having forgotten his shame, took over as the new chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee. Bush, LaRouche and Iran- Contra George Bush and his friends have repeatedly told political pundits that America is tired '' and ``
bored '' of hearing about the Iran-Contra affair. Bush has taken a dim view of those who were not