Iran to Sudan: Reagan-Era Troublemaker Back in Business

by Michelle . · 2009-09-30 17:39:00 UTC
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What is American foreign policy without a good scandal? And who better to deliver than an old pro?

In its second major Sudan piece this week, the Washington Post reported today that former Reagan aide Robert "Bud" McFarlane, of Iran-Contra Scandal fame, is working on behalf of the Sudanese government, collecting some $1.3 million in his effort to convince the Obama administration to normalize relations with the pariah regime. While the money officially came from the government of Qatar, the Post reports that a Sudanese diplomat, in close contact with Sudanese intelligence officials, played a key role in the negotiations and had frequent contact with McFarlane.

The fact that Qatar is paying for such services on behalf of the government of Sudan casts serious doubt on its already-questioned ability to act as an impartial mediator between Khartoum and the rebels in Darfur.

In his defense, Bud wrote to the Post:

"In the course of this work, I have of necessity had periodic contact with Sudanese officials. However, I do not now, nor have I ever had a business or other affiliation with any part of the Government of Sudan."

Spoken like a true politician -- wrapped so snuggly in his moral and legal gray zone that he wouldn't know his conscience was calling even if it jumped up and bit him in the you-know-what.

(Karma does come back, though. As my fellow Change.org blogger Michael Kleinman commented, "I love the fact that the various ambassadors he contacted all seem to have turned him down, and then had no qualms about dishing to the Washington Post.")

So while STAND is preparing to send gold stars to the Sudanese embassy, I propose an e-card campaign for Bud:

"Life's just been a tad too boring since the fall of the Berlin Wall."

"With $1.3 million, I can buy a new moral compass."

Add your suggestions below. Gold stars for anyone who can actually find his email address.

[Photo from WikiCommons: Reagan meets with aides on Iran-Contra.jpg November 1986 - President Ronald Reagan with Caspar Weinberger, George Shultz, Ed Meese, and Don Regan discussing the President's remarks on the Iran-Contra affair, Oval Office. (No free media sources have pictures of McFarlane.)]

Michelle . has been involved in various activist endeavors, including the Teach Against Genocide pilot campaigns.
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