‘For a CIA Man, It’s 1954 Again’

The article by Roettinger, the retired Marine Corps colonel, was not too surprising. His account of the skulduggery he directed against Latin America for the American government in 1954 should draw attention to President Reagan’s schemes to injure Nicaragua.

A famous U.S. Marine general exposed the same sort of campaigns in the 1920s and ‘30s. It’s really old hat and U.S. policy is overdue for reform in Central America.

Reagan harps on the danger to our border and to San Diego, by little Nicaragua. He seems to believe they have developed magical powers akin to those of the Lilliputians who laid Gulliver low.

It is true that serious troubles loom from the South. Many economists fears a breakdown in Mexico’s economy that may also wreck the political structure. Little attention is given this problem by Washington. Plans to shore up Mexico are important to all of us, and good plans could lessen the damage of bankruptcy.

The Reagan blasts of propaganda feature an even graver danger right on our doorstep. That is, the right of a President to carry out his own private war, and underhanded at that, in the name and at the expense of the U.S.A.

No civilized country allows a political leader to act like a Barbary pirate.

If the Constitution and later legislation fail to cover this gap in national security it is surely time for protective legislation. A nut in the catbird’s seat can ruin us. Some other countries put a damper on monkey business by using a “Want of Confidence Vote” in the House of Representatives (parliament). Since we are short of this useful tool something can be devised to clip the claws of irresponsible leaders.

A measure to limit a President to the use of only 4,000 or 5,000 troops at his discretion, prevents a President from waging more than a police action.

Congress may figure out safety checks on overzealous individuals. There are several directions open, and the time has come for action.

G.F. FRAZER

Nipomo