Breaking news on this day in February, 1988. After an all day debate on Military funding for the Nicaraguan Contra rebels, the house voted 219-211 to deny the Reagan request. Since it had already given over $36 million in aid opponents called on the House to "give peace a chance", a phrase that was widely mocked and ridiculed by the hawks and the White House.
Meanwhile - The Senate approved by a vote of 97-0 the confirmation of Justice Anthony Kennedy to the Supreme Court. Speaking of courts, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that Surrogate Mother contracts were akin to baby selling, which were considered illegal, so the Baby M controversy got a major set-back. On the matter of Election 1988, Presidential hopeful Bob Dole was being accused of handing favors to friends in the form of fat government contracts. Dole feigned amnesia.
Speaking of amnesia; Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega was to be indicted by the U.S. government for drug trafficking, even though it was casually revealed Noriega was on the CIA payroll to the tune of $200,000 a year for well over a decade as some sort of anti-Communist operation. The G-Man giveth - the G-Man taketh away.
An oil slick from a spill of some 300,000 gallons of crude was making its way to the Brittany coast of France. The uproar in Paris was palpable. And on the subject of uproars, it was discovered Brazil had entered into a very lucrative arms deal with Libya. That little bon mots didn't sit well with Capitol Hill.
And so it went, spinning quietly out of control this February 3rd 1988 as reported by CBS News and CBS Special Reports.
