10 Terrible Presidential Scandals


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7. The Iran-Contra Affair

 

During President Reagan’s second term, senior US officials were involved in a complex international deal that would lead to 14 indictments. Reagan’s officials secretly approved an illegal sale of missiles to Iran in return for money and the release of U.S hostages. As if trading arms to an enemy country under embargo wasn’t enough, the scheme also involved secretly funneling money from the deal to anti-communist rebels, “Contras,” in Nicaragua.

Once the secret deals began to unravel, investigations were stymied at various points when large volumes of documents relating to the scandal were shredded or withheld from investigators.

In the end, President Reagan addressed America via television broadcasts, stating that the weapons transfers had occurred, and later, taking full responsibility for any actions he was unaware of.

President Reagan’s role in the transactions is not known with certainty; it is unclear exactly what Reagan knew and when, and whether the arms sales were motivated by his desire to save the U.S. hostages.

Reagan’s approval ratings dropped sharply, making them “the largest single drop for any U.S. president in history,” plummeting from 67% to 46% in November 1986. But by January, 1989, as he was departing office, Reagan’s approval rating was reported at 64%.

 

If you though that was shocking check out what we found about President Andrew Jackson!

 

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