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The Secret Government /1
Bill Moyers 1988
Still timely.
“My colleagues and I have been investigating..the secret government.., the wars and tragedies that have been a part of it for 40 years, and where it will take us if we, the people, let it."
billmoyers.com/content/secret…
The Secret Government /1
Bill Moyers 1988
Still timely.
“My colleagues and I have been investigating..the secret government.., the wars and tragedies that have been a part of it for 40 years, and where it will take us if we, the people, let it."
billmoyers.com/content/secret…
The Secret Government /2
“We don't care what the people say, we don't care what the Congress says, we don't care what the other oversight organizations say, we're going to find some way to rid the planet of communism and we don't care who gets killed in the process."
“We don't care what the people say, we don't care what the Congress says, we don't care what the other oversight organizations say, we're going to find some way to rid the planet of communism and we don't care who gets killed in the process."
The Secret Government /3
MORTON HALPERIN: You start out breaking foreign laws -- since most countries have laws against secretly overthrowing their governments; and then you end up breaking the law at home.
MORTON HALPERIN: You start out breaking foreign laws -- since most countries have laws against secretly overthrowing their governments; and then you end up breaking the law at home.
The Secret Government /4
FAWN HALL: Sometimes you have to go above the written law.
SEN. JOHN KERRY: They were willing to literally put the Constitution at risk, because they believed somehow there was a higher order of things.
FAWN HALL: Sometimes you have to go above the written law.
SEN. JOHN KERRY: They were willing to literally put the Constitution at risk, because they believed somehow there was a higher order of things.
The Secret Government /5
ROGER WILKINS: If we continue these policies, to rob ourselves in order to feed this national security monster, we are going to continue to degrade American life.
NANCY JONES: We're only talking about subverting the Constitution, that's all.
ROGER WILKINS: If we continue these policies, to rob ourselves in order to feed this national security monster, we are going to continue to degrade American life.
NANCY JONES: We're only talking about subverting the Constitution, that's all.
The Secret Government /6
MOYERS: ..Its values are enshrined in beautiful monuments &noble inscriptions..But for 40 yrs a secret gov’t has been growing behind these stately tributes to American ideals, growing like a cancer on the Constitution..abuse of..power, a breach of faith.
MOYERS: ..Its values are enshrined in beautiful monuments &noble inscriptions..But for 40 yrs a secret gov’t has been growing behind these stately tributes to American ideals, growing like a cancer on the Constitution..abuse of..power, a breach of faith.
The Secret Government /7
MOYERS: Oliver North had been the secret gov’t’s chronic liar, long on zeal for his president &the cause. But he was not the only zealot..The hearings revealed a wholesale policy of secrecy shrouded in lies, of passion cloaked in fiction and deception.
MOYERS: Oliver North had been the secret gov’t’s chronic liar, long on zeal for his president &the cause. But he was not the only zealot..The hearings revealed a wholesale policy of secrecy shrouded in lies, of passion cloaked in fiction and deception.
The Secret Government /8
EDWIN MEESE, U.S. AG [11/86]: Certain moneys which were received in the transaction between representatives of Israel &representatives of Iran, were taken &made available to the forces in Central America which are opposing the Sandinista gov’t there.
EDWIN MEESE, U.S. AG [11/86]: Certain moneys which were received in the transaction between representatives of Israel &representatives of Iran, were taken &made available to the forces in Central America which are opposing the Sandinista gov’t there.
The Secret Government /9
ADM. POINDEXTER: And he [Reagan] had been very adamant at the time, that he says, "Look, I don't want to pull out our support for the Contras for any reason. This would be an unacceptable option. Isn't there something that I could do unilaterally?"
ADM. POINDEXTER: And he [Reagan] had been very adamant at the time, that he says, "Look, I don't want to pull out our support for the Contras for any reason. This would be an unacceptable option. Isn't there something that I could do unilaterally?"
The Secret Government /10
MOYERS: "Unilaterally." In other words, without congressional approval. Ronald Reagan's message was clear: find some way, any way, to help the Contras.
REAGAN: So I guess in a way they are counter-revolutionary..I guess..it makes me a Contra, too.
MOYERS: "Unilaterally." In other words, without congressional approval. Ronald Reagan's message was clear: find some way, any way, to help the Contras.
REAGAN: So I guess in a way they are counter-revolutionary..I guess..it makes me a Contra, too.
The Secret Government /11
MOYERS: Their ultimate goal was the violent overthrow of the Nicaraguan government, a government the United States legally recognizes. So the war had to be carried out covertly, as a campaign of terror.
MOYERS: Their ultimate goal was the violent overthrow of the Nicaraguan government, a government the United States legally recognizes. So the war had to be carried out covertly, as a campaign of terror.
The Secret Government /12
..a small cabal in White House took charge of policy..the secret team turned to right-wing gov’ts that could do favors for U.S..king of Saudi Arabia doled out $1MM a month; sultan of Brunei coughed up $10 MM that was misplaced thru a White House error.
..a small cabal in White House took charge of policy..the secret team turned to right-wing gov’ts that could do favors for U.S..king of Saudi Arabia doled out $1MM a month; sultan of Brunei coughed up $10 MM that was misplaced thru a White House error.
The Secret Government /13
MOYERS: Here at home, wealthy right-wingers were solicited directly by..North. Some of them were told their contributions would get them invited to the Oval Office.
MOYERS: Here at home, wealthy right-wingers were solicited directly by..North. Some of them were told their contributions would get them invited to the Oval Office.
The Secret Government /14
MOYERS: All this was being done to advance the president's policies, but it wasn't enough. To get around the law, the White House then enlisted the services of something called "The Enterprise."
MOYERS: All this was being done to advance the president's policies, but it wasn't enough. To get around the law, the White House then enlisted the services of something called "The Enterprise."
The Secret Government /15
RICHARD SECORD: I exercised overall control.
MOYERS: Gen. Richard Secord..in &out of covert operations for quarter-century. One of 1st Americans to fly secret missions in Vietnam..also helped run CIA's secret war in Laos..became a major Pentagon figure
RICHARD SECORD: I exercised overall control.
MOYERS: Gen. Richard Secord..in &out of covert operations for quarter-century. One of 1st Americans to fly secret missions in Vietnam..also helped run CIA's secret war in Laos..became a major Pentagon figure
The Secret Government /16
MOYERS: Albert Hakim was Secord's partner in the Enterprise. Born in Iran, he made millions selling American-made arms to the Shah, often relying on bribes and illegal payoffs to ease the way. Now, he handled financial matters for the Enterprise.
MOYERS: Albert Hakim was Secord's partner in the Enterprise. Born in Iran, he made millions selling American-made arms to the Shah, often relying on bribes and illegal payoffs to ease the way. Now, he handled financial matters for the Enterprise.
The Secret Government /17
SEN. DANIEL INOUYE [D] Hawaii [Iran-Contra hearings]: A shadowy gov’t w/its own air force, its own navy, its own fundraising mechanism, &the ability to pursue its own ideas of the NAT’L interest,free from all checks &balances, &free from the law itself.
SEN. DANIEL INOUYE [D] Hawaii [Iran-Contra hearings]: A shadowy gov’t w/its own air force, its own navy, its own fundraising mechanism, &the ability to pursue its own ideas of the NAT’L interest,free from all checks &balances, &free from the law itself.
The Secret Government /18
MOYERS: ..with the full knowledge of William Casey &Oliver North, Secord &Hakim controlled secret bank accounts in Switzerland that received those contributions from private citizens. The money was then funneled to the Contras. One donor was Joseph Coors
MOYERS: ..with the full knowledge of William Casey &Oliver North, Secord &Hakim controlled secret bank accounts in Switzerland that received those contributions from private citizens. The money was then funneled to the Contras. One donor was Joseph Coors
The Secret Government /19
MOYERS:But most of the money never reached the Contras, including $8 million remaining today in a private Swiss account operating in secret,the Enterprise was free to put profits above patriotism.They even sold arms directly to Contras at a huge markup.
MOYERS:But most of the money never reached the Contras, including $8 million remaining today in a private Swiss account operating in secret,the Enterprise was free to put profits above patriotism.They even sold arms directly to Contras at a huge markup.
The Secret Government /20
In Nicaragua the Contras use weapons from the Enterprise against civilians. It's a terrorist war they're fighting; old men,women,children are caught in the middle or killed deliberately,as the Contras use violence against peasants to pressure their gov’t
In Nicaragua the Contras use weapons from the Enterprise against civilians. It's a terrorist war they're fighting; old men,women,children are caught in the middle or killed deliberately,as the Contras use violence against peasants to pressure their gov’t
The Secret Government /21
MOYERS: Owen..reminded North that chief Contra leader, Adolfo Calero, is a creation of the U.S. gov’t. He warned North those around Calero,”..are not 1st-rate people. They're liars,greed &power-motivated. This war has become a business to many of them."
MOYERS: Owen..reminded North that chief Contra leader, Adolfo Calero, is a creation of the U.S. gov’t. He warned North those around Calero,”..are not 1st-rate people. They're liars,greed &power-motivated. This war has become a business to many of them."
The Secret Government /22
BILL MOYERS: All this—the contempt for Congress,the defiance of law,the huge markups &profits, the secret bank accounts,the shady characters,the shakedown of foreign governments,the complicity in death and destruction—they did all this in the dark,..
BILL MOYERS: All this—the contempt for Congress,the defiance of law,the huge markups &profits, the secret bank accounts,the shady characters,the shakedown of foreign governments,the complicity in death and destruction—they did all this in the dark,..
The Secret Government /22
BILL MOYERS: ..because it would never stand the light of day. Secrecy is the freedom zealots dream of; no watchman to check the door, no accountant to check the books, no judge to check the law. The secret government has no constitution...
BILL MOYERS: ..because it would never stand the light of day. Secrecy is the freedom zealots dream of; no watchman to check the door, no accountant to check the books, no judge to check the law. The secret government has no constitution...
The Secret Government /23
The rules it follows are the rules it makes up. So William Casey could dream that the Enterprise might take on a life of its own, permanent and wholly unaccountable.
The rules it follows are the rules it makes up. So William Casey could dream that the Enterprise might take on a life of its own, permanent and wholly unaccountable.
The Secret Government /24
OLIVER NORTH: [Iran-Contra hearings] The director was interested in the ability to go to an existing, as he put it, off-the-shelf, self-sustaining, stand-alone entity, that could perform certain activities on behalf of the United States.
OLIVER NORTH: [Iran-Contra hearings] The director was interested in the ability to go to an existing, as he put it, off-the-shelf, self-sustaining, stand-alone entity, that could perform certain activities on behalf of the United States.
The Secret Government /25
William Barr coordinated the granting of pardons to members of The Secret Government during IranContra. His involvement dates back 30 years.
Learn the 70 year history of The Secret Government. Read this thread.
billmoyers.com/content/secret…
William Barr coordinated the granting of pardons to members of The Secret Government during IranContra. His involvement dates back 30 years.
Learn the 70 year history of The Secret Government. Read this thread.
billmoyers.com/content/secret…
