Honduras Raids a ‘Slap in the Face’--Reagan

President Reagan today called Nicaraguan raids into Honduras “a slap in the face” to House members who voted against military aid for the contras and said his congressional critics hold the lives of the anti-Sandinista rebels in their hands.

Speaking before the final Senate vote on his call for $100 million in contra aid, Reagan called on Congress to “grow up and face reality” by recognizing that throughout the world “serious negotiations flow not from proving sincerity but from resolve and leverage.”

Reagan, who was beginning an 11-day Easter vacation with a political speech in New Orleans before flying on to his ranch near Santa Barbara, did not mention this week’s clashes between Libya and the U.S. Navy in the Mediterranean.

Reagan Cites Examples

At a fund-raising appearance for Rep. W. Henson Moore, seeking to become Louisiana’s first Republican senator, Reagan cited examples of Congress’ grudgingly and narrowly supporting his foreign affairs initiatives--aid to El Salvador, the Strategic Defense Initiative and aid to the Nicaraguan rebels.

“In short, peace through strength is a fact of life, and it is about time America leaves uncertainty and indecision behind,” he said. “It is time to grow up and face reality.”

In the case of El Salvador, he said, congressional opponents had suggested that a communist victory was inevitable. “Today, the communists are on the run in El Salvador, and even critics believe President (Jose Napoleon) Duarte can make democracy work in his troubled country,” Reagan said.

The House voted last week against the $100-million aid package for the contras, $70 million of which would have been for arms--the first time the United States would have provided the rebels with weapons since 1984. However, the Senate was voting on a similar package today and the Administration hoped for approval in the House soon, possibly next month.

‘Reality Turned on Its Head’

Reagan noted the House vote and said: “Again, we see reality turned on its head. . . . Will serious talks be more likely once the democratic resistance has been stripped of its leverage?”

Quoting an unnamed House member as saying he hoped that the Sandinistas did not take the vote as a sign of friendship, Reagan sneered: “The Nicaraguan communists took the House vote as a sign all right--they invaded the territory of Honduras with about 1,500 heavily armed troops and then they lied about it. . . .

“This Sandinista offensive is a slap in the face to everyone who voted against aid to the freedom fighters thinking it to be a vote for reconciliation.”