EPISODE · May 4, 2022 · 20 MIN
Oliver North
from Now I've Heard Everything · host Bill Thompson
In the 1980s, the presidency of Ronald Reagan was facing two distinct foreign policy challenges. Members of Hezbollah had taken several Americans hostage in Beirut, Lebanon. And in Central America, a rebel group known as the Contras was trying to overthrow the socialist Sandinista government in Nicaragua. To free the hostages, the Reagan administration underook a secret plan to sell military missiles to Iran, in hopes that the Iranian government would persuade Hezbollah to release the hostages. In Nicaragua, meanwhile, the U.S. was funding, arming, and training the Contras. That is, until Congress abruptly cut off the entire funding. That's when someone had the idea to take the money that Iran was paying secretly for those missiles and hand it secretly to the Contras. The plan became known later as the Iran-Contra affair.
What this episode covers
In the 1980s, the presidency of Ronald Reagan was facing two distinct foreign policy challenges. Members of Hezbollah had taken several Americans hostage in Beirut, Lebanon. And in Central America, a rebel group known as the Contras was trying to overthrow the socialist Sandinista government in Nicaragua. To free the hostages, the Reagan administration underook a secret plan to sell military missiles to Iran, in hopes that the Iranian government would persuade Hezbollah to release the hostages. In Nicaragua, meanwhile, the U.S. was funding, arming, and training the Contras. That is, until Congress abruptly cut off the entire funding. That's when someone had the idea to take the money that Iran was paying secretly for those missiles and hand it secretly to the Contras. The plan became known later as the Iran-Contra affair.
NOW PLAYING
Oliver North
No transcript for this episode yet
Similar Episodes
Mar 3, 2026 ·44m
Feb 21, 2026 ·30m
Feb 4, 2026 ·18m
Dec 17, 2025 ·30m
Dec 11, 2025 ·26m
Dec 11, 2025 ·29m