THE IRAN--CONTRA HEARINGS : ‘On-Again, Off-Again’ Support : Reagan Hits Congress Over Help for Contras

President Reagan, buoyed by what he believes is growing public support for his Central America policies, chided Congress on Friday for its “on-again, off-again” support for Nicaragua’s contras and called on a sympathetic audience to “get the word out and mobilize the American people” in support of the rebels.

But in his address to the annual Captive Nations Conference here, Reagan at the last minute watered down a scathing challenge to Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev to prove that his glasnost (openness) campaign is genuine by freeing the Communist nations of Eastern Europe.

Sequel to Berlin Talk

The written draft of Reagan’s speech, originally intended as a sequel to his emotional appeal last month to tear down the Berlin Wall, declared:

“Mr. Gorbachev, at home and throughout the Soviet Bloc, open up the gates, tear down the walls, let the political prisoners go. Mr. Gorbachev, we can have a peaceful world . . . but it is up to you to provide tangible deeds instead of melodious words. . . . Mr. Gorbachev, free Petro (Ruban, a political prisoner Reagan cited by name) and others in the gulag . . . and we will know glasnost is not just the 20th-Century version of a Potemkin village.”

But when Reagan actually gave the speech, all the references to “Mr. Gorbachev” were omitted, as were the gibe about “melodious words” and the taunting reference to the sham villages erected by Catherine the Great’s field marshal, court favorite and lover to show off the supposed prosperity of Crimean peasants during an imperial tour of the province.

Removed by Reagan

White House press officials took the unusual step of pointing out the omissions in advance and explaining that Reagan himself had made them on the index cards from which he spoke.

“The President went over the cards today, and he just thought the references to Gorbachev were too personal,” spokesman Marlin Fitzwater told reporters.

The omissions made Reagan’s reference to the contras the high point of the speech as delivered, and the President did his best to make the most of it.

He referred to recent reports of stepped-up Soviet arms supplies to Nicaragua’s Marxist regime and to recent polls showing that public support for arming the Nicaraguan rebels has grown in the aftermath of former White House aide Oliver L. North’s testimony at Congress’ Iran-contra hearings.

Friendly Audience

“The polls now suggest that the American people are waking up to the threat of a Communist power grab in their own neighborhood,” Reagan said. “Let me pledge to you here today, we are not about to stand by and see our neighbors in Central America added to the list of captive nations.” The friendly audience, Americans of mostly Eastern European descent, cheered.

“The threat is too close to home . . . to tolerate an on-again, off-again, vacillating congressional policy toward that region,” Reagan went on. “All indications suggest that the more people know about what’s happening in Central America, the more they support a strong stand for freedom. . . .

“I have one favor to ask of you, men and women who understand the threat communism poses. . . . Can I count on you to help me get the word out and to mobilize the American people?” The cheers were prolonged.

“Thank you,” Reagan said. “You just made my day.”