George Bush: The Unauthorized Biography - Get a Free Blog

everything that we have on him [Noriega] in order to see if he is prosecutable." This
classic "enemies' list" operation was clearly aimed at fabricating drug charges against
Noriega, since that was the political spin which the US regime wished to impart to its
attack on Panama. In February, 1988, Noriega was indicted on US drugs charges, despite
a lack of evidence and an even more compelling lack of jurisdiction. This indictment was
quickly followed by economic sanctions, an embargo on trade, and other economic
warfare measures that were invoked by Washington on March 2, 1988. All of these
measures were timed to coincide with the "Super Tuesday" presidential preference
primaries in the southern states, where Bush was able to benefit from the racist appeal of
the assault on Noriega, who is of mestizo background and has a swarthy complexion.
During the spring of 1988, the Reagan Administration conducted a negotiation with
Noriega with the declared aim of convincing him to relinquish power in exchange for
having the drug charges against him dropped. In May, Michael G. Kozak, the deputy
assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American affairs had been sent to Panama to meet
with Noriega. Bush had come under attack from other presidential candidates, especially
Dukakis, for being soft on Noriega and seeking a plea bargain with the Panamanian
leader. Bush first took the floor during the course of an administration policymaking
meeting to advocate an end of the bargaining with Noriega. According to press reports,
this proposal was "hotly contested." Then, in a speech in Los Angeles, Bush made one of
his exceedingly rare departures from the Reagan line by announcing with a straight face
that a Bush Administration would not "bargain with drug dealers" at home or abroad. [fn
41]
Bush's interest in Noriega continued after he had assumed the presidency. On April 6,
1989, Bush formally declared that the government of Panama represented an "unusual
and extraordinary threat" to US national security and foreign policy. He invoked the
National Emergencies Act and the International Emergency Act to declare a state of
"national emergency" in this country to meet the menace allegedly posed by the
nationalists of little Panama. The May 1, 1989 issue of US News and World Report
revealed that Bush had authorized the expenditure of $10 million in CIA funds for
operations against the Panamanian government. These funds were obviously to be
employed to influence the Panamanian elections, which were scheduled for early May.
The money was delivered to Panama by CIA bagman Carlos Eleta Almaran, who had just
been arrested in Georgia in April, 1989 on charges of drug trafficking. On May 2, with
one eye on those elections, Bush attempted to refurbush his wimp image with a blustering
tirade delivered to the Rockefeller-controlled Council of the Americas in which he stated:
"Let me say one thing clearly. The USA will not accept the results of fraudulent elections
that serve to keep the supreme commander of the Panamanian armed forces in power."
This made clear that Bush intended to declare the elections undemocratic if the pro-
Noriega candidates were not defeated.
In the elections of May 7, the CIA's $10 million and other monies were used to finance
an extensive covert operation which aimed at stealing the elections. The US-supported
Civic Democratic Alliance, whose candidate was Guillermo Endara, purchased votes,
bribed the election officials, and finally physically absconded with the official vote