For the Record

Encouraging Space Shield developments. In less than a week, 1) Caspar Weinberger and West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl initialed agreement on West German SDI research, to be signed in Washington this week; 2) Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi, chairman of special committee on the subject, okayed research into SDI technology by private Italian companies; 3) British Foreign Minister Sir Geoffrey Howe, formerly a skeptic on Space Shield, says he’s concluded that a program dealing with research into a space-based missile defense is “a prudent hedge”; and 4) most important was victory of French conservatives in parliamentary elections. They plan to reverse President François Mitterrand’s refusal to associate French government with SDI research. . . . Incidentally, while Chirac & Co. did less well than expected, had last week’s election been carried out under the old rules, the conservative parties would have landed 350 to 400 seats in National Assembly, not the 277 they actually got, according to Hélène Riffault, a voting expert at Faits et Opinions, which was one of the few outfits to predict Jean-Marie Le Pen’s strength.

On Nicaragua: President’s not going to give up on this one, say those who know him best, even though some of them wish he would. According to Wall Street Journal, GOP pollster Richard Wirthlin is worried that Nicaragua isn’t catching on as election year issue. “The numbers aren’t with us on this,” he says, “and they aren’t changing.” Latest poll (ABC News) supports that view: It finds 60 per cent (this was pre Reagan speech) of people oppose aid to Contras. . . . Says former White House aide and longtime friend of Reagan, Michael Deaver: “He has taken on unpopular issues before both as governor and President. … In the case of Nicaragua, he has visceral feelings about Communism.” . . . Political analyst Kevin Phillips agrees: He “has three or four core beliefs and he just keeps acting on them. One is small government. The other is low tax rates. The third is strong defense. And the fourth is this one—standing up to the Communists.” . . . Two weeks before Reagan mentioned poll showing support in Central America for Administration position on Nicaragua, Rep. Robert Livingston (R., La.) had spelled it out on House floor. A Gallup-affiliated poll in Costa Rica, he said, showed 69 per cent in Costa Rica favoring RR’s Contra policy, 55 per cent in Honduras, 54 in Guatemala, and 52 in El Salvador.

Featured Tags

Manage following

Nicaragua

Mario Cuomo

Encouraging Space Shield developments. In less than a week, 1) Caspar Weinberger and West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl initialed agreement on West German SDI research, to be signed in Washington this week; 2) Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi, chairman of special committee on the subject, okayed research into SDI technology by private Italian companies; 3) British Foreign Minister Sir Geoffrey Howe, formerly a skeptic on Space Shield, says he’s concluded that a program dealing with research into a space-based missile defense is “a prudent hedge”; and 4) most important was victory of French conservatives in parliamentary elections. They plan to reverse President François Mitterrand’s refusal to associate French government with SDI research. . . . Incidentally, while Chirac & Co. did less well than expected, had last week’s election been carried out under the old rules, the conservative parties would have landed 350 to 400 seats in National Assembly, not the 277 they actually got, according to Hélène Riffault, a voting expert at Faits et Opinions, which was one of the few outfits to predict Jean-Marie Le Pen’s strength.

On Nicaragua: President’s not going to give up on this one, say those who know him best, even though some of them wish he would. According to Wall Street Journal, GOP pollster Richard Wirthlin is worried that Nicaragua isn’t catching on as election year issue. “The numbers aren’t with us on this,” he says, “and they aren’t changing.” Latest poll (ABC News) supports that view: It finds 60 per cent (this was pre Reagan speech) of people oppose aid to Contras. . . . Says former White House aide and longtime friend of Reagan, Michael Deaver: “He has taken on unpopular issues before both as governor and President. … In the case of Nicaragua, he has visceral feelings about Communism.” . . . Political analyst Kevin Phillips agrees: He “has three or four core beliefs and he just keeps acting on them. One is small government. The other is low tax rates. The third is strong defense. And the fourth is this one—standing up to the Communists.” . . . Two weeks before Reagan mentioned poll showing support in Central America for Administration position on Nicaragua, Rep. Robert Livingston (R., La.) had spelled it out on House floor. A Gallup-affiliated poll in Costa Rica, he said, showed 69 per cent in Costa Rica favoring RR’s Contra policy, 55 per cent in Honduras, 54 in Guatemala, and 52 in El Salvador.