“We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.”

William Casey
CIA Director (1981-1987)

January 29 2025 — William Joseph Casey (March 13, 1913 – May 6, 1987) was the Director of Central Intelligence from 1981 to 1987. In this capacity he oversaw the entire United States Intelligence Community and personally directed the Central Intelligence Agency. Follow us on Twitter: @INTEL_TODAY

RELATED POST: On This Day — Gadhafi Target of U.S. Disinformation [October 2 1986 — Bob Woodward]

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RELATED POST: On This Day — Reagan Approves Covert Arms Sales to Iran (January 17, 1986)

RELATED POST: On This Day — CBS Dan Rather and Vice President George Bush Clash Over Iran-contra Affair (January 25 1988)

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“Unger has pursued the story of the October surprise for more than 30 years, often to his own cost. …peppered with amazing details… Den of Spies comes out in a world where dark machinations to win power no longer seem so unthinkable as in the days of Carter, Reagan and Bush.”

The Guardian

UPDATE (January 29, 2025) — Recent revelations from Ben Barnes, a former Texas politician, lend credence to the “October Surprise” theory, which posits that the Reagan campaign engaged in clandestine efforts to postpone the hostages’ release, thereby undermining President Jimmy Carter’s re-election bid.

RELATED POST: Did the CIA Betray President Jimmy Carter ?

In March 2023, Barnes disclosed that during the 1980 presidential campaign, he accompanied former Texas Governor John Connally on a tour of several Middle Eastern countries. During this trip, Connally allegedly urged regional leaders to convey to Iran that delaying the release of American hostages until after the U.S. election would be advantageous, suggesting that Iran would receive a better deal under a Reagan administration. Upon returning to the United States, Connally reportedly briefed William J. Casey, Reagan’s campaign manager and later CIA director, about their discussions.

In his latest book, Den of Spies: Reagan, Carter, and the Secret History of the Treason That Stole the White House, Craig Unger revisits the “October Surprise” theory. Unger asserts that Ronald Reagan’s campaign, led by William Casey, engaged in clandestine meetings with Iranian officials to delay the release of the American hostages, thereby undermining President Carter’s re-election efforts. Unger also highlights the roles of key individuals such as William Casey and George H.W. Bush, alleging their involvement in these secret dealings. END of UPDATE

“There is no escaping it: generative AI like ChatGPT is the future of information processing and analysis, and it will change the teaching and practice of history. Although some of its effects can be felt already, its long-term implications are not as clear.”

Today’s AI, Tomorrow’s History:
Doing History in the Age of ChatGPT

UPDATE (January 29 2024) — Once again, I checked the information I had gathered on the role of Casey in the Iran-Contra scandal with the data available to ChatGPT.

Intel Today — Let’s talk about CIA Director William Casey — Was he aware of the so-called Iran-Contra scandal?

ChatGPT — William J. Casey served as the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 1981 until his death in 1987. He was a key figure in the Reagan administration’s foreign policy, particularly in relation to the Cold War and anti-communist activities.

The Iran-Contra affair was a political scandal in the United States that became public in 1986. It involved the Reagan administration secretly selling arms to Iran, which was then under an arms embargo, and using the proceeds to fund the Contras in Nicaragua, despite Congress explicitly prohibiting such support.

Regarding William Casey’s knowledge of the Iran-Contra scandal, there are conflicting accounts, and it remains a matter of controversy. Bob Woodward, a journalist, reported that Casey nodded in acknowledgment when asked if he knew about the diversion of funds to the Contras. However, it’s important to note that Woodward’s account is based on his recollection and interpretation of events.

Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh, who investigated the Iran-Contra affair, stated in his final report that no documentary evidence showed Casey knew about or approved the diversion of funds. The only direct testimony linking Casey to early knowledge of the diversion came from Oliver North, a key figure in the Iran-Contra affair.

Casey passed away on May 6, 1987, and he did not live to see the full extent of the Iran-Contra scandal unfold. The details of his involvement or knowledge remain unclear, and the controversy surrounding his role continues.

Casey’s family requested mourners to donate to the Contras in Nicaragua instead of bringing flowers to his funeral. That decision reflects the ideological stance and support for anti-communist causes that were associated with Casey during his tenure as CIA director.

The answer is fair and balanced. For sure, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. I find it nearly impossible that Casey was not fully aware of the Iran-Contra conspiracy. But Historians must accept the fact that Independent Counsel obtained no documentary evidence showing Casey was involved. Perhaps, TRUTH will come one day.

END of UPDATE

“My purpose was… to send a signal that the United States was prepared to replace the animosity between [the U.S. and Iran] with a new relationship… At the same time we undertook this initiative, we made clear that Iran must oppose all forms of international terrorism as a condition of progress in our relationship. The most significant step which Iran could take, we indicated, would be to use its influence in Lebanon to secure the release of all hostages held there.”

US President Ronald Reagan
November 13 1986

Casey suffered a cerebral seizure on December 15 1986. He resigned on January 29 1987 and died on May 6 1987, less than 24 hours after the first witness in Congressional hearings on the Iran–Contra affair named him as having assisted in providing arms to Nicaraguan rebels after Congress forbade such support.

In a 1987 book, Veil: The Secret Wars of the CIA 1981–1987, Washington Post reporter and biographer Bob Woodward, who had interviewed Casey on a number of occasions for the biography, said that he had gained entry into Casey’s hospital room for a final, four-minute encounter.

RELATE POST: The Russiagate Debacle — Bob Woodward : “Role Of Steele Dossier In Russia Probe Needs To Be Investigated”

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According to Woodward, when Casey was asked if he knew about the diversion of funds to the Nicaraguan Contras,

“His head jerked up hard. He stared, and finally nodded yes.”

Independent Counsel, Lawrence Walsh wrote:

“Independent Counsel obtained no documentary evidence showing Casey knew about or approved the diversion. The only direct testimony linking Casey to early knowledge of the diversion came from [Oliver] North.”

Mr. Casey Died on May 6 1987. His family requested that mourners not bring flowers to his funeral, but instead donate to the Contras in Nicaragua.

“It is now very clear that there were two separate agreements, one the official agreement with Carter in Algeria, the other, a secret agreement with another party, which, it is now apparent, was Reagan. They made a deal with Reagan that the hostages should not be released until after Reagan became president. So, then in return, Reagan would give them arms. We have published documents which show that US arms were shipped, via Israel, in March, about 2 months after Reagan became president.”

Former Iranian President Abolhassan Banisadr

Iran – Contra Scandal

On November 3 1986, the Lebanese magazine Ash-Shiraa exposed the Iran–Contra scandal. Senior administration officials secretly facilitated the sale of arms to Iran, which was the subject of an arms embargo.

They hoped, thereby, to fund the Contras in Nicaragua while at the same time negotiating the release of several U.S. hostages.

Under the Boland Amendment, further funding of the Contras by the government had been prohibited by Congress.

This affair is usually regarded as one of the most important scandals in US modern history.

PS — On Christmas Eve 1992, President Bush ended the Iran-Contra investigation by Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh. Bush pardoned all those involved, including Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, whose trial was about to begin.

William Barr, Bush’s Attorney General at the time, did not oppose the pardons. In effect, Bush had found a way to pardon the only man the Constitution does not allow the US President to pardon: himself. [Lockerbie – Three Decades of Lies: J’Accuse…! Chapter II : The Usual Suspects]

REFERENCES

WILLIAM CASEY, EX-C.I.A. HEAD, IS DEAD AT 74 — NYT

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On This Day — CIA Director William Casey Resigns (January 29 1987)

“This is the long-standing dilemma confronting philosophers: conspiracies do occur and they can seem quite outlandish and unexpected once publicly revealed—who would have thought that Oliver North would sell arms to Iran from the basement of the White House and launder the money to supply arms to Nicaraguan rebels in contravention of explicit legal prohibitions.”
 
Professor Stephan Lewandowsky
Chair in Cognitive Psychology at the University of Bristol