Above: The Reagans at the White House in 1985. Photo taken by Harry Benson
Second Reagan-Mondale presidential debate 1984 #2
Oct 21, 1984 Debate between President Reagan v Walter Mondale
MS. GEYER: Mr. President, in the last few months it has seemed more and more that your policies in Central America were beginning to work. Yet, just at this moment, we are confronted with the extraordinary story of a CIA guerrilla manual for the anti-Sandinista contras whom we are backing, which advocates not only assassinations of Sandinistas but the hiring of criminals to assassinate the guerrillas we are supporting in order to create martyrs. Is this not, in effect, our own state-supported terrorism?
THE PRESIDENT: No, but I’m glad you asked that question, because I know it’s on many peoples’ minds. I have ordered an investigation. I know that the CIA is already going forward with one. We have a gentleman down in Nicaragua who is on contract to the CIA, advising — supposedly on military tactics — the contras. And he drew up this manual. It was turned over to the agency head of the CIA in Nicaragua to be printed. And a number of pages were excised by that agency head there, the man in charge, and he sent it on up here to CIA, where more pages were excised before it was printed. But some way or other, there were 12 of the original copies that got out down there and were not submitted for this printing process by the CIA.
Now, those are the details as we have them. And as soon as we have an investigation and find out where any blame lies for the few that did not get excised or changed, we certainly are going to do something about that. We’ll take the proper action at the proper time.
I was very interested to hear about Central America and our process down there, and I thought for a moment that instead of a debate I was going to find Mr. Mondale in complete agreement with what we’re doing, because the plan that he has outlined is the one we’ve been following for quite some time, including diplomatic processes throughout Central America and working closely with the Contadora group.
So, I can only tell you about the manual — that we’re not in the habit of assigning guilt before there has been proper evidence produced and proof of that guilt. But if guilt is established, whoever is guilty we will treat with that situation then, and they will be removed.
MS. GEYER: Well, Mr. President, you are implying then that the CIA in Nicaragua is directing the contras there. I’d also like to ask whether having the CIA investigate its own manual in such a sensitive area is not sort of like sending the fox into the chicken coop a second time?
THE PRESIDENT: I’m afraid I misspoke when I said a CIA head in Nicaragua. There’s not someone there directing all of this activity. There are, as you know, CIA men stationed in other countries in the world and, certainly, in Central America. And so it was a man down there in that area that this was delivered to, and he recognized that what was in that manual was in direct contravention of my own Executive order, in December of 1981, that we would have nothing to do with regard to political assassinations.
MR. NEWMAN: Mr. Mondale, your rebuttal.
MR. MONDALE: What is a President charged with doing when he takes his oath of office? He raises his right hand and takes an oath of office to take care to faithfully execute the laws of the land. A President can’t know everything, but a President has to know those things that are essential to his leadership and the enforcement of our laws.
This manual — several thousands of which were produced — was distributed, ordering political assassinations, hiring of criminals, and other forms of terrorism. Some of it was excised, but the part dealing with political terrorism was continued. How can this happen? How can something this serious occur in an administration and have a President of the United States in a situation like this say he didn’t know? A President must know these things. I don’t know which is worse, not knowing or knowing and not stopping it.
And what about the mining of the harbors in Nicaragua which violated international law? This has hurt this country, and a President’s supposed to command.
MR. NEWMAN: Mr. President, your rebuttal.
THE PRESIDENT: Yes. I have so many things there to respond to, I’m going to pick out something you said earlier. You’ve been all over the country repeating something that, I will admit, the press has also been repeating — that I believed that nuclear missiles could be fired and then called back. I never, ever conceived of such a thing. I never said any such thing.
In a discussion of our strategic arms negotiations, I said that submarines carrying missiles and airplanes carrying missiles were more conventional-type weapons, not as destabilizing as the land-based missiles, and that they were also weapons that — or carriers — that if they were sent out and there was a change, you could call them back before they had launched their missiles.
But I hope that from here on you will no longer be saying that particular thing, which is absolutely false. How anyone could think that any sane person would believe you could call back a nuclear missile, I think is as ridiculous as the whole concept has been. So, thank you for giving me a chance to straighten the record. I’m sure that you appreciate that. [Laughter]
It has been 150 years since the beginning of the Civil War that started in April of 1861 at Ft Sumter.
Civil War Veterans’ 1924 Reunion
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Stephenville, Erath County, Texas
This July 11, 1924 photo of Civil War veterans taken at the north entrance to the Erath County Courthouse by Stephenville’s famous photographer, Baxley. Please send the military unit/s in which each of the following soldiers served, along with their vital data, i.e. full name, birth and death years and counties, and marriage data.
Numbered men in photograph: (1) Dr. J.B. McGauhy; (2) J.C. Wright; (3) J.A. Cherry; (4) F.M. Marrs; (5) W.H. Pate; (6) G.W. Ledia; (7) W.P. Orr; (8) John Martin; (9) W.P. Chapman; (10) Mac D. Reid; (11) G.L. McIlhany; (12) N. McLaughlin; (13) James Collins; (14) W.R. Wolverton; (15) J.L. Bird; (16) T.B. Tudor; (17) A.L. Murphy; (18) A.C. McAlister; (19) J.F. Henderson; (20) J J. Marrs; (21) J.A. Buntin; (22) — Bassett; (23) Mack Wilson; ***(24) J.A. Shelton; (25) J. Matt Roberson; (26) __. This 1924 listing is alphabetized below the photo that can be enlarged by clicking on photo then clicking on the 2nd photo’s arrows in the lower right corner.
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Widow’s Web by Gene Lyons (August 1993)
Oh, What A Tangled Web She Weaved
Review by Kim Cantrell
On March 12, 1982, Ron Orsini was murdered in his home while he lay sleeping in his bed.
His widow, Mary Lee, and her 13-year-old daughter swore they never heard anyone inside the home or the sound of gunfire.
Although it was suspected and despite intense investigations, police were unable to prove that Mary Lee had murdered Ron.
And that should have been the end of the story.
But it wasn’t.
For the next two years, Mary Lee Orsini made wild claims about shadowy figures breaking into her home, chasing her in rural parts of North Little Rock, and of an underworld conspiracy that included many members of law enforcement.
And then Mary Lee’s attorney – who had represented her during the grand jury hearing in the matter of Ron’s death – came home to find his wife had been fatally shot.
Mary Lee’s claim was that it was part of a conspiracy.
But this time even the Pulaski County’s Sheriff’s testimony in her favor couldn’t save her.
Author Gene Lyons manages to relay the in a clear, comprehensive manner a story that if described as complicated would be an understatement.
Full of twist and turns, ups and downs, Widow’s Web is a most definitely edge-of-seat thriller; a real-life, honest-to-God story.
Heard that old saying, “You can’t make this stuff up?” That definitely applies to Mary Lee Orsini.
If you haven’t yet read Widow’s Web, you must put this one you list. You’re missing one heck of a story if you don’t!
Other Books About Mary Lee Orsini: Murder In Little Rock by Jan Meins.
Movies: Seduction In Travis County, a made-for-television movie which aired in 1991 on CBS (USA). Sold on VHS only under the title Blind Judgement
Updates on Mary Lee Orsini and Others:
On August 11, 2003, Mary Lee Orsini died of a heart attack at Newport, Arkansas, hopsital near the McPherson Unit where she was serving her life sentence. She was 55-years-old.
Just three weeks before her death, Mary Lee confessed to investigators that she had killed Ron. She also told them that she was involved in an affair with Bill McArthur but he had no knowledge of her plans to kill his wife, Alice.
Euguene “Yankee” Hall continues to serve a life sentence at the Cummins Unit in Grady, Arkansas.
On October 2, 2009, Bill McArthur died at the age of 71.
Sheriff Tommy Robinson served one term as a U.S. Congressman. Following the end of his political career, Robinson has piddled as owner of a couple of businesses; eventually winding in bankruptcy. Refusing to comply with bankruptcy proceedings, Robinson was ordered to jail in 2008 for contempt.
Updates on Tiffany Orsini, who would now be 41-years-old, could not be located.
The Daily Hatch 