Gang of Four (pro-Contra)
Encyclopedia
In the U. S. political history of the 1980s, the Gang of Four refers to Bernard W. Aronson
, Bruce P. Cameron, Robert S. Leiken
, and Penn Kemble
, four advocates of U.S. Congressional funding for the Nicaraguan Contras
, who were engaged in an armed campaign in opposition to the Sandinista government, during the Reagan Presidency. The four were prominent policy analysts and activists in the U. S. Democratic Party
.
, the Contras
were engaged in an armed campaign against the Sandinista government. In the beginning, the Contras consisted largely of former members of the National Guard
of Somoza
, the dictator who had been overthrown in the 1979 Revolution
. The Contras were joined also by former revolutionaries who had turned against the Sandinista policies; a third source of personnel were farmers angered by the Sandinista land reform and American Indians.
The Contras had financial and military support from the Central Intelligence Agency
of the U.S. However, a CIA-supported manual advocating killing Sandinista politicians and poisoning wells in Nicaragua, as well as mining harbors, provoked a backlash. The House Appropriations Bill of 1982 contained the Boland Amendment
, which outlawed U.S. assistance to the Contras
for the purpose of overthrowing the Nicaraguan government, while allowing assistance for other purposes. Having been passed unanimously, the appropriations bill was signed by President Ronald Reagan
on December 21, 1982. The Boland amendment enjoyed wide support among Democrats but had been opposed by the Reagan Administration.
Soon after they had blocked Contra aid, Congressional Democrats were embarrassed and politically vulnerable because of the Sandinistas. Very soon after the vote, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega
announced that he would visit the Soviet Union
. The Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neill
, a liberal Democrat, was troubled by reports of harassment of the Catholic Church. Some Sandinistas had earlier endorsed the Communist crack-down on Poland's labor movement, Solidarity.
published "Nicaragua's Untold Stories", which criticized the Sandinistas for economic mismanagement, corruption, and violations of human rights. The author was Robert S. Leiken
, a Democratic policy analyst who had previously been an opponent of the Vietnam War.
Leiken's article caused controversy among Democrats
, according to Time Magazine:
. Their goal was not to overthrow the democratically elected Sandinista government, but to pressure the Sandinistas to negotiate a peace treaty with the Contras. They differed from the Reagan Administration on some questions. For example, they supported efforts to transfer control of Contra funding from the Central Intelligence Agency
and Department of Defense
to the Department of State's USAID; they also supported negotiations opposed by Reagan Administration "hard-liners" who wished to overthrow the Sandinistas.
All four members were nationally prominent Democratic Party policy analysts who had criticized the conduct of the Vietnam War
. Their advocacy of Congressional funding for the Contras was unpopular among liberals and progressives in the Democratic Party. The label "Gang of Four", alluding to the Chinese Gang of Four
who had allegedly sought a revival of the Maoist Cultural Revolution
, was ironic.
Bernard W. Aronson
Bernard William Aronson was United States Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs from 1989 to 1993.-Early life and education:...
, Bruce P. Cameron, Robert S. Leiken
Robert S. Leiken
Robert S. Leiken is an American intellectual, political scientist, and historian. He is the Director of the Immigration and National Security Program and the Mexico Program at the Center for the National Interest.-Early life:...
, and Penn Kemble
Penn Kemble
Richard Penn Kemble , commonly known as "Penn," was an American political activist and a founding member of Social Democrats, USA. He supported democracy and labor unions in the USA and internationally, and so was active in the civil rights movement, the labor movement, and the social-democratic...
, four advocates of U.S. Congressional funding for the Nicaraguan Contras
Contras
The contras is a label given to the various rebel groups opposing Nicaragua's FSLN Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction government following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle's dictatorship...
, who were engaged in an armed campaign in opposition to the Sandinista government, during the Reagan Presidency. The four were prominent policy analysts and activists in the U. S. Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
.
Background: The Nicaraguan Contras and the United States
During the 1980s in NicaraguaNicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, the Contras
Contras
The contras is a label given to the various rebel groups opposing Nicaragua's FSLN Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction government following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle's dictatorship...
were engaged in an armed campaign against the Sandinista government. In the beginning, the Contras consisted largely of former members of the National Guard
National Guard (Nicaragua)
In Nicaragua, the National Guard was a militia and a gendarmerie created during the occupation of that country by the United States from 1909 to 1933. It became notorious for human rights abuses and corruption under the regime of the Somoza family.-Creation:...
of Somoza
Somoza
The Somoza family was an influential political dynasty who ruled Nicaragua as an hereditary dictatorship. Their influence exceeded their combined 43 years in the de facto presidency, as they were the power behind the other presidents of the time through their control of the National Guard...
, the dictator who had been overthrown in the 1979 Revolution
Nicaraguan Revolution
The Nicaraguan Revolution encompasses the rising opposition to the Somoza dictatorship in the 1960s and 1970s, the campaign led by the Sandinista National Liberation Front which led to the violent ousting of that dictatorship in 1979, and the...
. The Contras were joined also by former revolutionaries who had turned against the Sandinista policies; a third source of personnel were farmers angered by the Sandinista land reform and American Indians.
The Contras had financial and military support from the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
of the U.S. However, a CIA-supported manual advocating killing Sandinista politicians and poisoning wells in Nicaragua, as well as mining harbors, provoked a backlash. The House Appropriations Bill of 1982 contained the Boland Amendment
Boland Amendment
The Boland Amendment was the name given to three U.S. legislative amendments between 1982 and 1984, all aimed at limiting U.S. government assistance to the Contras in Nicaragua...
, which outlawed U.S. assistance to the Contras
Contras
The contras is a label given to the various rebel groups opposing Nicaragua's FSLN Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction government following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle's dictatorship...
for the purpose of overthrowing the Nicaraguan government, while allowing assistance for other purposes. Having been passed unanimously, the appropriations bill was signed by President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
on December 21, 1982. The Boland amendment enjoyed wide support among Democrats but had been opposed by the Reagan Administration.
Soon after they had blocked Contra aid, Congressional Democrats were embarrassed and politically vulnerable because of the Sandinistas. Very soon after the vote, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega
Daniel Ortega
José Daniel Ortega Saavedra is a Nicaraguan politician and revolutionary, currently serving as the 83rd President of Nicaragua, a position that he has held since 2007. He previously served as the 79th President, between 1985 and 1990, and for much of his life, has been a leader in the Sandinista...
announced that he would visit the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. The Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neill
Tip O'Neill
Thomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill, Jr. was an American politician. O'Neill was an outspoken liberal Democrat and influential member of the U.S. Congress, serving in the House of Representatives for 34 years and representing two congressional districts in Massachusetts...
, a liberal Democrat, was troubled by reports of harassment of the Catholic Church. Some Sandinistas had earlier endorsed the Communist crack-down on Poland's labor movement, Solidarity.
Advocacy of Congressional funding of Contras
The Gang of Four were four advocates of U.S. Congressional funding for the Contras, who were notable for being prominent Democrats.Leiken's criticism of Nicaraguan Sandinistas in 1984
In October 1984, The New RepublicThe New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
published "Nicaragua's Untold Stories", which criticized the Sandinistas for economic mismanagement, corruption, and violations of human rights. The author was Robert S. Leiken
Robert S. Leiken
Robert S. Leiken is an American intellectual, political scientist, and historian. He is the Director of the Immigration and National Security Program and the Mexico Program at the Center for the National Interest.-Early life:...
, a Democratic policy analyst who had previously been an opponent of the Vietnam War.
The turning point came in the fall of 1984, when, after an intense 10 day trip to Nicaragua, Leiken returned 'appalled and angry' over conditions there. He wrote an article criticizing the Sandinistas in terms that were, for a liberal Democrat, unmistakably powerful and all the more striking because they appeared in the traditionally liberal The New Republic [...].
Leiken's article caused controversy among Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, according to Time Magazine:
The idea that a well respected liberal analyst would launch such a strong attack on the Sandinistas caused considerable stir in Washington. Leiken's apparent conversion was seen by the entrenched left as a betrayal and by Reaganites as a vindication of their long held views. Most important, many Democrats who had relied on Leiken's analyses began to reconsider their Sandinista sympathies. Senator Edward Kennedy had the article read into the Congressional Record. Suddenly, Leiken became as controversial as Nicaragua itself.
Other advocacy
Aronson helped to draft President Reagan's speech on Contra aid, which influenced moderate Democrats. Excerpts were introduced into the Congressional RecordCongressional Record
The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress. It is published by the United States Government Printing Office, and is issued daily when the United States Congress is in session. Indexes are issued approximately every two weeks...
. Their goal was not to overthrow the democratically elected Sandinista government, but to pressure the Sandinistas to negotiate a peace treaty with the Contras. They differed from the Reagan Administration on some questions. For example, they supported efforts to transfer control of Contra funding from the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
and Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
to the Department of State's USAID; they also supported negotiations opposed by Reagan Administration "hard-liners" who wished to overthrow the Sandinistas.
All four members were nationally prominent Democratic Party policy analysts who had criticized the conduct of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. Their advocacy of Congressional funding for the Contras was unpopular among liberals and progressives in the Democratic Party. The label "Gang of Four", alluding to the Chinese Gang of Four
Gang of Four
The Gang of Four was the name given to a political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution and were subsequently charged with a series of treasonous crimes...
who had allegedly sought a revival of the Maoist Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
, was ironic.
See also
- Boland AmendmentBoland AmendmentThe Boland Amendment was the name given to three U.S. legislative amendments between 1982 and 1984, all aimed at limiting U.S. government assistance to the Contras in Nicaragua...
- Esquipulas Peace AgreementEsquipulas Peace AgreementThe Esquipulas Peace Agreement was an initiative in the mid-1980s to settle the military conflicts that had plagued Central America for many years, and in some cases for decades. It built upon groundwork laid by the Contadora Group from 1983 to 1985. The agreement was named for Esquipulas,...
- Nicaragua v. United States