A Legacy of Contempt

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They had not. George's mentor, former Director William Casey, was legendary for his utter contempt of Congress. The same attitude was expressed by former senior CIA officer Ray Cline, who complained after George's indictment last fall that "the only thing Clair has ever been accused of is lying to Congress." In the eyes of some agency veterans, Alan Fiers, chief of CIA's Central American Task Force, who admitted his own guilt in lying to Congress, was a "turncoat" for testifying against George; current spy chief Thomas Twetten was deemed a hero for stonewalling.

At one point during the trial, George banged his fist on the railing and denounced "those goddamned hypocrites" in Congress. "Congress wanted to set somebody up," he shouted, "and I walked right into it." Nonsense. As former Senator Thomas Eagleton testified, Congress just wanted the truth. "((We)) didn't put a noose around Clair George's neck," said Eagleton. "Clair George put a noose around his neck."

Former CIA Director William Webster believes that most agency staff members have learned the lessons of the Iran-contra debacle, and is against retrying George on practical grounds. If punishment is required, he argues, Clair George has already suffered profoundly. If it's a warning to other CIA officials that is needed, the messa