Reagan and Revelations About Arms to Iran

President Reagan may hold onto whatever pieces of the truth he chooses, but he must deal with the terrible results of his Administration’s botch of foreign policy. He and others have criticized the press for revealing the emerging story of the Iran operation and for reacting like “sharks” in questioning him and officials of his Administration.

Since everyone from Danish sailors and Israeli and European gunrunners to Iranian students knew of this operation before the American press and American people were let in on it, the President can hardly blame the press for endangering “national security” or for being irresponsible.

The President’s advisers have acted with arrogance and extra-legalism to circumvent Congress, misled and put off the press, and ultimately to embarrass Americans before the world. The President needs to acknowledge that the November elections have an underlying “mandate” to Congress to balance the extremes manifested by the policies and actions of his Administration. The American people are basically moderate in their politics. They have no stomach for violations of the constitutional system of government that has worked well for most of the last 200 years. They don’t want a “James Bond” style of foreign policy and the nasty results that go with military adventurism.

There is far too much at stake, both domestically and in our relations with Soviet Russia, the Middle East, Central America, and the rest of the world to allow the President to become a true “lame duck” for the next two years.

President Reagan needs to meet with sensible Republicans like Sens. Robert Dole of Kansas and Richard Lugar of Indiana to get his bearings straight and act to moderate the course of his Administration. His extremist advisers have not served him well.

JOAN FIELD

Goleta