I wasn't aware of this until this morning: John Kerry was responsible for breaking open the Iran Contra scandal. The criminal activity of illegally selling weapons to the terrorist, drug smuggling Contras makes Watergate look like shoplifting.

In April 1986, Kerry and Sen. Christopher Dodd, a Democrat from Connecticut, proposed that hearings be conducted by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee regarding charges of Contra involvement in cocaine and marijuana trafficking. Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, the Republican chairman of the committee, agreed to conduct the hearings.

Meanwhile, Kerry's staff began their own investigations, and on October 14 issued a report which exposed illegal activities on the part of Lt. Col. Oliver North, who they contended set up a private network involving the National Security Council and the CIA to deliver military equipment to right-wing Nicaraguan rebels (Contras). In effect, North and certain members of the President's administration were accused by Kerry's report of illegally funding and supplying armed militants without the authorization of Congress.

It's safe to say that the Republicans might still be bitter about Kerry's actions, which nearly convicted and imprisoned their President, Vice President (our current president's father), Secretary of Defense, and other assorted Reagan administration officials. National Security Advisor John Poindexter and Oliver North were convicted of multiple felonies. They were overturned on technicalities.George Bush Sr. issued pardons for several of the terrorism-supporting officials involved in the scandal:

Bush pardoned a number of figures implicated in the Iran-Contra scandal on December 24 1992, including former Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger. Weinberger had been scheduled to stand trial on January 5, 1993 for lying to Congress regarding his knowledge of arms sales to Iran and concealing 1700 pages of his personal diary detailing discussions with other officials about the arms sales. As Weinberger's private notes contained references to Bush's endorsement of the secret shipments to Iran, some believe that Bush's pardon was an effort to prevent an order for Bush to appear before a Grand Jury or possibly to avoid an indictment.

I wonder if, behind closed doors, George W. Bush is saying, "That man almost got my daddy throwed in jail!"