GATES SEEKS JUDGMENT ON HIS RECENT ACTIONS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP99-01448R000301270064-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 4, 2013
• Sequence Number: 64
• Publication Date: February 19, 1987
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/06/05: CIA-RDP99-01448R000301270064-6
Al.
WASHINGTON POST
19 February 1987
Boren, left, and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) of intelligence panel
Gates Seeks Judgment
On His Recent Actions
CIA Nominee Finishes 2nd Day
Of Testimony on Iran Affair
By Walter_Pincus and Dusko Doder
Washington Post Staff Writers
The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence yes-
terday ended two days of public hearings on the nom-
ination of Robert M. Gates to be director of central in-
telligence with the nominee asking to be judged by what
he has done in the two months since becoming acting
director of the agency rather than by his actions during
the Iran-contra affair.
"I can't revisit what happened," Gates said at one
point while being questioned about an episode in the
U.S. sale of arms to Iran. "But what [can tell you is that
I have taken steps that I think would prevent that kind
of problem from happening again and [took those steps
well before these hearings."
At the close of yesterday's three-hour session, Chair-
man David L. Boren (D-Okla.) said that the members
PHOTOS BY JAMES K W ATHERTON ? THE WASHINGTON POST
confer as CIA nominee Gates, right, testifies for second day.
felt "a strong obligation to be thorough" and that there
would be "at least" one closed hearing for those who
want to raise questions about classified matters.
He added that public hearings would be reopened if
necessary, a reference to the possibility that the report
of the Tower commission investigating the activities of
the National Security Council, which is expected on
Feb. 26, might raise additional questions for Gates.
Although Sen. Arlen _Specter (R-Pa.) and Sen. Bill
Bradley (D-N-.J.) voiced unhappiness at some
answers during the two days of questioning, a majority
of the members of the committee favors recommending
approval of his nomination, according to committee
sources.
One source cautioned, however, that "the ballgame is
not over" and that the ultimate decision will depend on
whether new information surfaces about Gates' per-
formance at the Central Intelligence Agency. Gates,
who had headed the agency's analytical division, be-
came deputy director last April. CIA Director William J.
Casey resigned earlier this month after undergoing sur-
gery for a brain tumor.
Yesterday's session again focusedaon the Iran arms
sale-contra aid scandal, Gates' role- and the lessons he
learned from it.
In the face of often critical questions, the nominee
stumbled several times and was forced to change or
amend earlier responses. For example:
Gates said the CIA general counsel told him that he
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did not believe a presidential au-
thorization, - or "finding," was
needed for the CIA's activities in
November 1985, when the agency
provided logistical. support for a
secret shipment of U.S.-made mis-
siles from Israel to Iran.
"Mr. Gates," Specter thundered,
"you are flatly wrong." Specter then
read from a variety of sources, in-
cluding a CIA inspector general's
report, to support his point.
al Specter accused Gates of trying
"to distance yourself" from the Nov.
.21 testimony of then-Director
Casey before the two congressional
intelligence oversight panels. Gates
testified in December and on Tues-
day that he had supervised Casey's
prepared testimony?overseeing
the "strategic direction"- of the tes-
timony and reading the first "two or
three" drafts. Gates yesterday de-
scribed Casey's prepared text as "a
fair statement of what we knew at
the time."
After Specter pointed out that
'Casey's testimony failed to mention
serious CIA skepticism about the
involvement of Iranian middleman
Manucher Ghorbanifar and the pro-
priety of the CIA helping with the
November 1985 arms shipment,
Gates said yesterday that he would
"have to talk to those who drafted
the testimony to determine what
rationale there may have been for
not putting" material in.
Furthermore, it has been recent-
ly revealed that Casey's testimony
would have misinformed the .con-
gressional investigators about some
aspects of the arms shipment until
Secretary of State George P. Shultz
complained directly to President
Reagan the night before Casey's
scheduled appearance .and had the
statement modified.
? Gates also drew the ire of Brad-
ley, who questioned why the nom-
inee did not pursue a cryptic refer-
ence by National Security Council
staff aide Lt. Col. Oliver L. North to
Swiss bank accounts and the con-
tras during a lunch at the CIA last
Oct. 9.
When Gates said he was pre-
vented by a congressional ban
against CIA .involvement with the
contras fighting the government
of Nicaragua, Bradley inter-
rupted: "This is Oct. 9, there was
no prohibition. The [congressional
ban' expired Oct. I, so how can
you put in your testimony a stat-
utory prohibition that no longer
existed?"
Gates replied that another law
prohibited. the CIA from investiga-
ting Americans, although he did not
explain how that prevented his
questioning North about the alleged
diversion of funds.
At one point, Specter asked
Gates if he ever warned Casey
against shipping arms to Iran in an
effort to free American hostages
held in Lebanon. Gates said he had,
but could not recall exactly when.
Specter then read ? aloud Gates'
Dec. 4. testimony in which he re-
plied "No" when asked a similar
question.
Gates then recalled that last Sep-
tember, after two more U.S. hos-
tages had been taken in Beirut,
Gates told Casey that he "thought
the entire activity should be called
off." He added, "I misspoke on Dec.
4."
Boren wrapped up the hearings
by saying that the more than eight
hours of "tough questioning" had
made Gates more aware of the
"kind of responsibility" he would
assume if confirmed by the Senate.
It demonstrated, he said, that even
in matters usually kept from public
view "we are going to follow the
law."
The "thorough" inquiry, Boren
added, was not generated by "any
hostility toward the nominee but
because We have a responsibility to
the Senate and to the country to be
thorough and careful in this pro-
cess:
Following a proposal by Sen. Wil-
liam V. Roth Jr. (R-Del.), Boren
said that his committee intended to
develop procedures to review CIA
fiscal expenditures "to make sure
that the money is spent for the pur-
poses mandated by Congress:
Gates expressed readiness to sit
down with the leaders of the intel-
ligence and government operations
committees to work out the pro-
posed review procedures.
In his final public remarks, Gates
called the hearings "healthy" and
"important in termsof clearing the
air" about the agency's involvement
in the Iran-contra affair.
Asked to contrast his 'concep-
tion of the job to that of Casey,
Gates said that his practice has
been that "my deputy should know
what I know" contrary to what he
said was Casey's tendency at
times to withhold information
from his deputy.
Gates also reaffirmed his vow
Tuesday to inform congressional.
CIA-RDP99-01448R000301270064-6
oversight committees about any
illegal intelligence activity. He
said he had been "confused by the
question" when he initially re-
sponded that he would feel
obliged only to inform the attor-
ney general and only about agen-
cies under his responsibility. He
also said that would "not tolerate
the NSC [National Security. Coun-
cid getting involved in operational
intelligence activities."
Gates, however; expressed his
opposition to legislation that would
specifically bar the NSC from intel-
ligence activities. -
Asked by Bradley what he would
do if he were to discover the exis-
tence of .a presidential "finding" ini-
tiating covert action that he was not
aware of, . Gates said: "The first
thing I'd do is hop in a car and come
lip here."
"You are certainly learning, Mr.
Gates," Bradley quipped..
"No one ever accused me of be-
ing slow," Gates replied..
Gates said yesterday that he
had just received a CIA inspector
general's report on the agency's
activities in support of the contras
at a time when Congress barred
most types of military aid. He pro-
vided no details but said he would
forward it to the committees.
On Tuesday, Gates testified
that he had asked for an inspector
general's investigation to specif-
ically look at the contra-related
activities of the former CIA sta-
tion chief in Costa Rica, known by
the pseudonym Tomas Castillo,
who has been placed on adminis-
trative leave.
The probe will cover "the role
that our officer played with respect
to [U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica
Lewis) Iambs," among other
things, Gates said. .
Asked if Tambs is being probed,
he. said, "I assume that it is?not
by us, but by others." lambs re-
cently retired from the govern-
ment.
Castillo, charged with passing
messages between the contras
and NSC staff aide North, who
was fired last November, was
cleared of 'allegations of improper
behavior by an initial inquiry late
last year.
But Gates testified that CIA In-
spector General Carroll 'buyer had
told him that "confronted with some
documentary evidence, our officer
had c-hanged aspects of his testimo-
ny:
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Gates also said that he has asked
the inspector general to investigate
the CIA-NSC involvement with
"Project Democracy," which has
been described in some news ac-
counts as North's umbrella oper-
ation for covert activities.
At the beginning of yesterday's
session, Gates bantered with pho-
tographers who were taking his pic-
ture:
"Remember that country-and-
western song, 'Take this job and
shove it'? "
SPECTER ON THE GATES NOMINATION
"This hearing is an important one for many
reasons. But I believe that one of the reasons is, ,
that there are many officials in many bureaus irL
this country today who are watching this proceed-
ing, and are observing what is happening for some- ,
one who is a high-ranking No. 2 man, who plays it ;
safe, doesn't speak up, then comes forward for a,
confirmation hearing and says, 'Well, in hindsight.,_,-,
it should all have been done differently.' And if
that position can be taken?not to speak up, and.,
then to be promoted, and then to say, 'Well,
should have done it differently' and for the intel?
ligence committee to say, 'Well, let's start-
again'?seems to me to provide incentives for that
kind of conduct and for a repetition of having this
committee kept in the dark.
"And that's why I'm pursuing not what you were' '
saying today, but what you had done in your po-
sition as deputy director. And that's why I weigh so"
much more heavily the actions you took in that, '
capacity?because I think, candidly, it's easy to.'
say today, 'Well, I would have done it differently.',
But the real weighty considerations are what you,,
did."
?Sen. Arlen Specter (12.12a.) at yesterday's_
confirmation hearings for Robert M. Gates,
President Reagan's nominee for director'
of central Intelligence
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