Reagan Says He Won’t Toss Casey, Regan to the Wolves : Republicans Urge Him to Fire Them

President Reagan turned down advice from GOP lawmakers today to fire Chief of Staff Donald T. Regan and CIA Director William J. Casey, saying he does not want to throw people “to the wolves.”

Reagan met later in the afternoon with four leaders of the Senate and House and was advised by three of the four not to call a special session of Congress. The one holdout was Senate Republican Leader Bob Dole of Kansas, who first floated the idea of a special session.

The White House said in a written statement that Reagan is “reserving judgment at this time” on calling a special session.

Sen. John H. Chafee (R-R.I.) reported on Reagan’s feelings on Regan and Casey after a morning meeting with Reagan and 17 Republican leaders.

He said, “The President took the view that he didn’t want to throw anybody to the wolves without adequate cause.” He said Reagan used roughly those same words.

‘Freewheeling’ Session

Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-N.M.) called the meeting “freewheeling” and said the President looked directly at each of the 17 lawmakers present and denied early knowledge of the diversion of Iranian arms sales profits to the Nicaraguan contras.

Two newspapers reported today that former National Security Adviser Robert C. McFarlane had told the Senate Intelligence Committee on Monday that Reagan gave his approval in August, 1985, for Israeli arms sales to Iran. Atty. Gen. Edwin Meese III said last week that Reagan had been told generally about the shipments after they were made in September of 1985.

After the GOP leadership session, White House spokesman Larry Speakes said he had “not found anyone who has a recollection of the President approving” in advance an Israeli shipment of arms to Iran. Speakes declined to say which officials he had talked with, or whether the President was among them. “I have talked to people at very high levels who were participants,” he said.

Personnel Changes

Although the GOP leaders said they believe Reagan’s version of what he knew about the scandal and that his pledge to cooperate with various investigations was correct, Chafee said some members suggested personnel changes in the White House.

Chafee and other participants said Regan’s and Casey’s names were mentioned in discussion about staff dismissals.

Regan attended the meeting in the Cabinet Room.

Domenici confirmed that some members asked Reagan to consider firing some of his aides, but that “the President continued to take the position that to his knowledge they had done nothing wrong and they would stay there and help him.”

‘Looked Right at Each of Us’

On the use of the Iranian money for the contras, Domenici said: “He looked right at each one of us and said, ‘I knew nothing about it.’ I don’t think anybody challenged him.”

Domenici said that while he did not urge Reagan to “get rid of anybody,” he advised that “the President has to have somebody around him assessing the situation in depth and with a broader understanding of the investigations that will occur. . . . I urged that he get somebody very special, familiar with all of this, to be his right-hand person so the other people could get on with the business of running the government.”

The press conference in the White House driveway--recorded by 23 television cameras and dozens of reporters--produced fireworks when Sens. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) and Phil Gramm, (R-Tex.) denounced reporters for questioning the propriety of former Reagan aides John M. Poindexter and Oliver L. North taking the Fifth Amendment before the Senate Intelligence Committee.