THE IRAN-CONTRA HEARINGS : ‘I Didn’t Come Here to Be Badgered,’ He Tells Counsel : Hostile Questions Irk Secord

Suddenly, the atmosphere in the Senate Caucus Room turned stormy.

For two days, Richard V. Secord had calmly answered relatively gentle questions about his central role in the Iran- contra affair, asserting repeatedly that he acted not for profit but out of a sense of patriotism.

But early in his third day of testimony Thursday at joint hearings by Senate and House select committees, the retired Air Force major general was confronted with aggressive, rapid-fire questions from Senate counsel Arthur Liman, who probed for profits that he suggested Secord might have plucked from the flow of millions of dollars into and out of secret bank accounts.

Icy-Blue Eyes

Secord, his icy-blue eyes glaring at Liman, bristled at what he called harassment and told Liman:

“I didn’t come here voluntarily to be badgered by these questions that I have answered already repeatedly. . . . Let’s get off the subject. . . . I did not come here to be badgered.”

Thus did the Iran-contra hearings abruptly take on an adversarial tone missing in the first two sessions. To some observers, they quickly took on a resemblance to the contentious moments of the Senate Watergate hearings 14 years ago in the same marble-walled room.

Secord appeared to be facing a congressional version of the “good cop-bad cop” routine.

Nields the ‘Good Cop’

John W. Nields Jr., the House counsel who led the first two days of questioning, had been the “good cop.” His approach was low-key and methodical, allowing Secord to have his say with few challenges.

Liman, a 54-year-old Manhattan trial attorney whose past clients have included fugitive financier Robert L. Vesco and figures in the recent Wall Street insider trading scandal, took over on Thursday and quickly assumed the “bad cop” role.

He never referred to the retired two-star general by his military title, instead calling him “Mr. Secord.” His heavy-lidded eyes blinked in seeming disbelief at some of Secord’s answers, and some questions were laced with sarcasm.

A Note for $400,000

When questioning turned to a note for $400,000 to $500,000 from a Swiss concern that handled some financial details of the Iranian arms transactions, there was this exchange:

Liman: “How long has this alleged loan been outstanding?”

Secord: “I didn’t call it an alleged loan.”

Liman: “How long has this thing you call a loan been outstanding?”

Secord: “Two years.”

Liman: “Paid any interest?”

Secord: “Not yet.”

At another point, Liman pressed for an explanation of why Secord had not used part of the balance of $8 million still in Swiss accounts to pay off bills outstanding from the Iranian arms transactions.

‘I’ve Got Bigger Problems’

“I’m not focusing on it right now,” Secord said with irritation. “I’ve got bigger problems to focus on than that. I’ve got a special prosecutor over here across the street (who) is trying to throw all of us in jail for performing our duty as we saw it. I haven’t focused on some technical issue like you’re bringing up here. This is crazy.”

At another point when Liman was questioning him about fund transfers, Secord replied: “You ought to do a little arithmetic and a little thinking on this, too.”

And when Liman persistently questioned Secord about certificates of deposit for airplane insurance and $4.6 million in Swiss accounts, there was this exchange:

Secord: “ . . . Mr. Liman, this is not a hard concept to understand. I don’t understand why you keep heckling me on this point. It’s not a hard concept to understand. If it’s too hard for you to understand, I’m sorry. I’ve answered the question.”

Liman: “And your position is that the $4.6 million--you had to keep in this enterprise?”

Secord: “My position is as I stated it, not as you state it. So, stop trying to change my story, and move my story around. The facts are the facts.”

When Liman shot back another question, Secord replied with a trace of exasperation: “Yes, fine. Get off it. . . . I’ll accept your construction. Go ahead, please.”