‘Voiceless’ Reagan Meets Press

For the second day in a row, President Reagan ducked questions from reporters Wednesday by claiming he had lost his voice. However, a White House spokesman said Reagan had not lost his voice.

As Reagan posed for pictures with congressional leaders around a table in the Cabinet Room, a reporter asked his view of a poll saying that two-thirds of Americans were skeptical about his explanation of the Iran- contra affair.

“I’ve lost my voice,” the President said, offering the same explanation he had used to avoid questions on Tuesday.

He repeated that statement when a reporter asked whether aid to the contras had been doomed by the Iran-contra affair.

Reagan found his voice briefly when a reporter noted there were no women seated around the table. “It’s just our bad luck,” he replied.

White House spokesman Mark Weinberg, asked later if Reagan had lost his voice, said: “No. His voice is fine.”

White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater added: “The President did have a rather remarkable recovery of his voice after you left.”