CAMPAIGN ’88 : Iran Arms Sale Backed by Bush, Book Says

Two senators conclude in a new book that Vice President George Bush endorsed the sale of weapons to Iran. They say he did so either out of loyalty to President Reagan or because he, too, “was consumed” with the idea of freeing American hostages.

Noting that the issue remains important “because of Bush’s quest for the presidency,” Sens. William S. Cohen (R-Me.) and George J. Mitchell (D-Me.) say the central question is “exactly what were his thoughts about the propriety of the covert action itself, and what steps, if any, did he take to satisfy himself about the potential consequences to the United States if it went forward.”

For those questions, they have no answers.

The two Maine senators were members of the Senate Iran-Contra Committee, which, with its House counterpart, conducted hearings into the affair in the spring and summer of 1987.

Bush has said that, although he was generally aware of the secret sale of arms to Iran, he was not involved in the implementation of the plan.

In their book, “Men of Zeal: A Candid Inside Story of the Iran-Contra Hearings,” the two senators recall testimony and documentary evidence indicating that Bush was present at many meetings in which the secret arms sales were discussed.

However, they say that the nature of the vice presidency itself may have distanced Bush from the Iran-Contra affair. “Once elected, the President and his top advisers relegate the vice president to the role of understudy, to be informed of policies and events rather than actively involved in shaping them,” the senators write.