After Panels Bicker, North Delivers His Slide Show--Without the Slides

The congressional Iran- contra committees, hoping to quickly finish their questioning of Lt. Col. Oliver L. North, instead spent about 1 1/2 hours this morning arguing over whether he should give a 15-minute slide show on the contras.

In the end, the most bitter dispute yet among committee members was resolved the way most are on Capitol Hill--with a compromise.

North was allowed to deliver his slide show--but without showing the 57 slides. Instead, he described each slide and copies were to be made available to committee members in the coming days.

In the speech, North again laid out a case for the Nicaraguan rebels, arguing that the communist Sandinista government was giving the Soviet Union a chance to build a beachhead in Central America.

As North described them, the slides were designed to portray both an active Soviet involvement in the area and the contra cause. They included, North said, one picture showing how “young Nicaraguan children learn how to count--by counting grenades and (Soviet-made) AK-47” rifles.

The battle over the presentation began when conservatives on the committee contended that since some lawmakers had questioned whether North had used the presentation to illegally solicit money for the Nicaraguan rebels, the Marine should give the speech to the panels on national television.

Played It Down

But many Democrats and some Republicans, not wanting to give the persuasive North such a forum, wanted to allow the presentation only in another room or in a night session. They said it was crucial to get the hearings moving and argued that dimming the hearing room lights could not be done because of security.

The contentious debate that preceded the presentation made it impossible for the committee to complete questioning North in the morning, as they had planned.

The Marine, whose six days of testimony was two days longer than planned, was forced to return this afternoon to complete it.

Committee conservatives, confident that North would make one of the best cases in recent years for aid to the contras, charged that holding the presentation at night, as suggested by Sen. Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii), chairman of the Senate panel, would give the slide show some tough television competition.

Choosing the Time Slot

“We have an obligation to put this on in the normal sequence of events and not pick a time at night when the (Major League Baseball) All-Star Game is going on, or we’re going up against ‘Jeopardy’ or something else,” Rep. Michael DeWine (R-Ohio) said.

But Democrats and a few GOP members contended that North’s testimony, which was supposed to have concluded last week, needed to move faster.

“The slide show has no apparent value to the hearings. The supporters of contra aid are seeking an opportunity for a free ad on TV,” said Rep. Thomas S. Foley (D-Wash.), a leading opponent of contra aid.

Also, Inouye said, it was technically impossible to properly televise the slide show without extensive advance preparation and it would harm security to turn down the lights in the room.

Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D-Md.) also argued that it would be impossible to tell if the slide show presentation to the committees would be the same one North gave to potential donors to the contras.