It’s ‘Nit-Picking,’ Says Helms to Sarbane’s Jabs in INF Debate

Senate Democrats began today to jump on criticisms of the INF treaty raised by conservative Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), a tactic Helms decried in a heated exchange as “nit-picking” when rivals aired an inconsistency in his comments.

Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes (D-Md.) noted that last week Helms referred to a 1976 article by Boston Globe reporter William Beecher and said the article reported that Moscow planned to provide five SS-20 missiles for each of its launchers.

Sarbanes said he had read the article involved and “there’s nothing in it” to back Helms’ report of its contents.

Helms said today he had other sources of information for the assertion, but that touched off a heated exchange with Sarbanes.

“I think you will find the official transcript will show what I actually said,” Helms told Sarbanes.

“I’m quoting from it right here,” said Sarbanes, one of three Senate Foreign Relations Committee Democrats who have started carefully monitoring the committee sessions so they can pounce when Helms makes a charge.

“What counts is what I said here,” Helms responded, “and of course the senator extrapolates and expands on every prepared speech he’s ever made and so do I.”

‘Keep Record Straight’

Sarbanes said he wanted to “keep the record straight,” and read again Helms’ previous comments about the size of the Soviet SS-20 force.

“Well,” Helms said, “the senator has a copy of this and it’s a U.S. intelligence estimate” from various press reports including columnists Evans and Novak and stories in the New York Times and added, “You’re nit-picking, that’s what you’re doing.”

“No . . . we’re going to set the record straight,” said Sarbanes. “I think it’s important to do it. If the senator is going to make these assertions and when we read the article and there’s no reference in it, that goes beyond nit-picking.”