Iran-Contra affair
Arms-for-hostages scandal
The Iran-Contra affair was a political scandal during the Reagan administration in which U.S. officials secretly sold weapons to Iran—then under an arms embargo—and used the proceeds to fund Contra rebels fighting Nicaragua's socialist government, circumventing a congressional ban on such aid.
The scheme unraveled in 1986, leading to congressional hearings, criminal convictions, and lasting damage to Reagan's legacy.
The Iran-Contra affair revealed how far officials would go to bypass congressional oversight.
- Watergate1970s political crisis
- CIAU.S. foreign intelligence service
- Cold WarProlonged East-West standoff
- classified documentsFiles with access restrictions
- ContrasNicaraguan anti-government fighters
Ronald Reagan · constitutional law · impeachment · arms embargo · Nicaragua · arms smuggling · cover-up · Sandinistas · plausible deniability · clandestine networks · intelligence agencies · covert operations · proxy wars · paramilitary groups · black ops · whistleblower · hostages · executive privilege
Iran-Contra affairopen government
Right to state information
public disclosure · government transparency · congressional testimony · whistleblower protection
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