Secord Urges Giving Iran Profit to Fund for Contras

Retired Maj. Gen. Richard Secord, in the fourth day of testimony on the Iran- contra affair, said today he would recommend that up to $8 million in leftover profits from the Iran arms sales be donated to the William J. Casey Fund for the Nicaraguan Freedom Fighters.

Secord had been pressed in grueling daylong questioning Thursday about millions of dollars in profits from the Iran sales, but he maintained he was not involved in the initiative for profit.

“Yesterday we were discussing what was to become of the funds that remain intact in the various accounts,” Secord said in opening today’s session. Those funds included $8 million, he said, but some of the money is owed to creditors.

His Recommendation

“My recommendation will be that the funds which remain after obligations are met be donated to the William J. Casey Fund, which has just been established for the support of the Nicaraguan freedom fighters,” he said, prompting murmurs in the hearing room.

Sen. Warren B. Rudman (R-N.H.), vice chairman, wryly said he thought Secord’s recommendation was “laudable.”

“But I must tell you,” Rudman said, an edge to his voice, “that in my view you or no one else has a right to send that money anywhere. That money belongs to the people of the United States.”

Casey, the former CIA director who was a key player in the Iran-contra affair, died Wednesday at the age of 74. His family then announced the formation of the fund in Casey’s name.

Rebel Leader Consulted

During today’s proceedings, Sen. William S. Cohen (R-Me.) disclosed that a Nicaraguan rebel leader had been asked to contribute funds to help ransom U.S. hostages in Lebanon.

“I think the evidence will indicate that . . . (contra leader Adolfo) Calero was requested to produce cash and travelers checks to be used for this particular purpose,” Cohen said. “So we had, in effect, a reverse contra program being carried out to pay ransom.”

Secord said he had never heard of the arrangement.

In other testimony, Secord said he believes the White House sacrificed Lt. Col. Oliver L. North and Rear Adm. John M. Poindexter to calm the firestorm touched off by revelation of the contra cash connection in November.

Secord also fired off a sharp opinion about the public inquiry into the scandal that inflicted President Reagan with the most grievous crisis of his White House tenure.

‘Whole World Laughing’

“In my opinion, the whole world is laughing at us” as Americans “open up our guts to the rest of the world” to examine the scandal, Secord said.

At the lunch recess, Sen. Howell Heflin (D-Ala.) said of Secord’s offer on the $8 million, “He’s trying to save his hide now.” Heflin then offered several reasons for Secord’s motivations for making such a suggestion:

“Maybe they are a patriotic desire to help the contras and honor a man who he thinks is a fine citizen. Another is that he doesn’t want it to appear that this is government money or that the government is entitled to it. A third one is he is trying to protect his hide and trying to show he did not try to pocket it.”