Reagan Plan Seen as Savvy Political Move

President Reagan’s new Central American peace initiative was seen in Congress on Wednesday as a savvy political maneuver designed to undermine Democratic opposition to continued U.S. military aid for the Nicaraguan rebels.

In addition, some members greeted it as evidence that Congress and the President are moving toward a period of cooperation after the bitterness generated by the Iran- contra affair.

Senate Republican Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.) noted that if Nicaragua’s Sandinista government rejects the peace offer, as many members of Congress expect, Democrats who have opposed contra military aid on grounds that Reagan was not seeking a diplomatic solution will be hard-pressed to justify their position.

“Obviously,” Dole added, “if the negotiations break down because of lack of cooperation on the part of the Sandinistas, that strengthens the President’s hand on contra aid.”

Democratic opponents of contra aid reluctantly agreed with Dole’s analysis.

“It is a clever move . . . a Trojan horse,” said Sen. Dale Bumpers (D-Ark.). “It’s a win-win situation for the Administration.”

The plan the President put forward Wednesday, which had the support of House Speaker Jim Wright (D-Tex.), is strikingly similar to a compromise that moderate House Democrats have been seeking from the Administration for several years in exchange for continued military assistance to the Nicaraguan rebels.

Rep. Dave McCurdy (D-Okla.), a chief proponents of those earlier peace plans, predicted that Reagan’s proposal would have wide appeal among moderate Southern Democrats who, like himself, have long been on the fence on the issue of contra aid.

“They are going to love this proposal,” he said, “because it takes the heat off of them.”

Reluctant to Commit

In the past, the President has been reluctant to commit himself to a diplomatic approach to the Sandinistas. It was his unwillingness to compromise with the Democrats on this issue, among other things, that caused a two-year suspension of military assistance to the contras in 1985 and 1986.

Democrats said they believe the President agreed to a diplomatic initiative this year because he fears that a more confrontational approach to Congress would lead to another cutoff of contra aid--particularly in the wake of the Iran-contra scandal.

California Rep. Tony Coelho (D-Merced), the assistant House majority leader, said that until the President made his announcement Wednesday, there still was a solid majority of Democrats in the House who opposed continued assistance to the Nicaraguan rebels.

As a result, Coelho said, many House Democrats sought to discourage Wright from endorsing the plan, adding that the House Speaker was fully aware of the political risks involved when he agreed to support the proposal. Wright not only endorsed the plan but took a lead role in negotiating its terms with the White House.

At the same time, a top Senate Republican aide suggested that the Democrats’ position on contra aid was weakened by the strong case made for it by former White House aide Oliver L. North during the Iran-contra hearings.

Others, however, viewed the change in Reagan’s strategy as a sign that the Administration may be adopting a generally more conciliatory approach toward Congress in response to the many cries for cooperation from members of the Iran-contra committees.

“I’ve always said that the important thing about these hearings is how we react to them,” said Sen. David L. Boren (D-Okla.). “This is the first straw in the wind that makes it look like we’re moving more toward cooperation.”

Times staff writer Karen Tumulty contributed to this story.