WASHINGTON (AP) – Former White House National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane, a senior aide to President Ronald Reagan, has pleaded not guilty to allegations of involvement in an illegal arms deal known as the Iran -Contra case. . . He is 84 years old.
McFarlane, who lives in Washington, DC, died Thursday of a complication from a previous illness at a Michigan hospital where he was visiting family, the family said.
“As her family, we would like to express our deepest condolences on the loss of our beloved husband, father and grandfather and celebrate its profound impact on our lives,” the family said in a statement. “Although he is recognized as a strategic political thinker, we remember him for his warmth, wisdom, deep faith in God and commitment to serve others.”
McFarlane, a former Marine Colonel and Vietnam War veteran, resigned from the White House in December 1985. The administration then hired him as part of a secret and illegal scheme in exchange for the freedom to sell weapons to Iran. Western hostages in the Middle East and give the proceeds to counter-insurgents in Nicaragua to fight the Sandinista Marxist government.
He played a key role in this case, leading a secret delegation to Tehran, then, as the current opponent of the United States, opening up contacts with so-called moderate Iranians who are thought to have influenced the kidnappers of America. He brought a cake and a Bible, which Reagan signed.
The plan began after a cargo plane carrying weapons carried by the CIA was shot down by Sandinistas in Nicaragua in October 1986, sparking what became one of the biggest modern political scandals.
McFarlane was rushed to a Washington district hospital in February 1987, a day after he overdosed on valium, before he was scheduled to testify before a presidential commission investigating the Iran-Contra scheme.
He pleaded guilty in March 1988 to four counts of withholding information from Congress. His lawyer said he was unfairly identified because he, unlike other key personnel, voluntarily testified before the investigative committees. He also recognized his role.
“I really withheld the information from Congress,” he told reporters at the time. “I strongly believe that all of my actions are motivated by what I believe is in the interest of U.S. foreign policy.”
He was pardoned by President George W. Bush, along with five other figures in the scandal.
McFarlane, a career Marine known to his friends as “Buddy,” became a lieutenant colonel and held positions in the Nixon and Ford administrations. He served with Richard M. Nixon and Gerald R. Special Assistant to National Security during the Ford presidency.
During the administration, Carter was at the Republican headquarters of the Senate Armed Services Committee. He returned to Reagan’s elected executive branch, serving as State Department adviser until he moved to the White House in January 1982 as William Clark’s Deputy National Security Advisor. In 1983 he was appointed to the highest position in national security.
McFarlane, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, is the son of former Texas Democratic Congressman William Dodridge McFarlane, who served from 1932 to 1938. He is survived by a 63-year-old wife, two daughters and a son. that man.
Associated Press news researcher Ronda Schaffner from New York contributed.
Source: Huffpost
