North Cheered as He Criticizes Congress
Oliver L. North, speaking before a cheering crowd of hard-core supporters Saturday, attacked Congress for intervening in foreign affairs but avoided any mention of his conviction on three of 12 counts in the Iran-Contra scandal.
North’s only reference to his legal situation was indirect, coming when he criticized Congress and the independent counsel’s office for spending $40 million on investigating the Iran-Contra affair. He said the money would better have been spent supporting the Contras.
It was the retired Marine lieutenant colonel’s first scheduled public appearance since he was convicted Thursday of supplying Congress with a false chronology of the Iran-Contra events, shredding documents to cover up the deceit and accepting a $13,800 home security system from Richard V. Secord, who still faces trial for his part in shipping weapons to Iran.
The event was sponsored by conservatives among Miami’s Nicaraguan and Cuban immigrants, who are helping pay North’s legal bill.
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