Poindexter, North, Secord Take the 5th in Iran Probes : Resentment and Mystery Increasing

WASHINGTON — Two of President Reagan’s recently departed national security aides--both still active-duty military officers--refused to publicly answer questions today from a House committee trying to explore the Iranian- contra arms-and-money connection.

The dramatic invocations of Fifth Amendment rights by Vice Adm. John M. Poindexter and Marine Lt. Col. Oliver L. North were followed, on the other side of the Capitol, by retired Gen. Richard Secord’s refusal to answer questions before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Sen. David Durenberger (R-Minn.), chairman of the Senate panel, said Secord, who has been identified as having a key role in supplying money to contras under North’s direction, took the Fifth Amendment in a closed hearing.

The trio of refusals to testify brought an increasing aura of mystery and resentment to the burgeoning foreign policy scandal.

They came as the Reagan Administration appeared, still, to be at odds with itself over exactly what happened and how officials should respond to congressional demands for answers.

Both Refuse Answers

Citing their constitutional right against self-incrimination, Poindexter, Reagan’s former national security adviser, and North, fired as a key National Security Council aide, declined in separate, nationally televised, appearances before the House Foreign Affairs Committee to discuss any aspect of U.S. arms sales to Iran or the transfer of profits to Nicaraguan contra rebels.

In a TV spectacle witnessed by much of the nation live from the House Foreign Affairs Committee room, the two key figures in the Iranian arms sale uproar, and their lawyers, jockeyed to put the best face on a refusal to answer questions.

“I must decline to answer that question at this time because of my constitutional rights under the Fifth Amendment,” Poindexter, who resigned Nov. 25, told the committee.

“On the advice of counsel, I respectfully and regretfully decline to answer the question based on my constitutional rights,” responded North, who worked for Poindexter at the NSC.

Poindexter and North had last week declined to answer questions during private sessions of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and North later today cited the Fifth Amendment during an appearance before the House Intelligence Committee, said a committee source.

Vice Chairman Frustrated

Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he was frustrated by the repeated refusals by Poindexter and North to testify.

“I wish the White House would stop talking about the tremendous cooperation they’re showing when the people they used throughout this (arms deal) keep coming up and taking the Fifth,” Leahy said in a telephone interview from Puerto Rico, where he said he is on a “working vacation.”

“The PR (public relations) folks at the White House might not like it, but it would be a lot more factual if they just said, ‘We are not going to guarantee you cooperation,’ ” Leahy said. “From the people most closely involved, we are not getting cooperation.”

A frustrated Durenberger said that during his panel’s inquiry “no one has proven that the contras ended up with any of the money. . . . We don’t know how much money the contras got, if they got any at all.”

Poindexter and North, each accompanied to the House witness table by his attorney, repeatedly told the Foreign Affairs panel that they wanted to be helpful and to assist the lawmakers in uncovering the facts. But, they both said that on the advice of their lawyers, they could not be more forthcoming at this time.

First Admiral to Decline

Rep. Lee H. Hamilton (D-Ind.), echoing the comments of other legislators, said he was distressed to see Poindexter decline to testify. Citing information from the Library of Congress, Hamilton said, “At no time in the history of the country has an active-duty admiral taken the Fifth Amendment before a congressional committee.”

Poindexter, a 33-year veteran of the Navy, was wearing a dark business suit. He was smiling and affable throughout his roughly 30-minute appearance before the committee.

By contrast, North, who was wearing his olive-drab Marine uniform, complete with an impressive array of battle and service ribbons, was nervous, somber and obviously under stress as he appeared at times to be fighting to keep his composure.

“I don’t think there is another person in America who wants to tell his story as much as I do,” North said.

But, when Hamilton sought to question him about the affair, North replied, “On the advice of counsel, I respectfully and regretfully decline to answer the question based on my constitutional rights.”

Bickering Among Members

The attorneys for both witnesses did more talking than their clients, and most of the committee’s time today was taken up by bickering and statements among members of the panel.

At one point, Rep. Michael D. Barnes (D-Md.), himself a lawyer, implored Poindexter to testify, saying the worst that could happen, even if Poindexter were prosecuted and convicted of some crime, would be the imposition of a suspended sentence.

Poindexter’s lawyer, Richard Beckler, exploded, saying the comments were “nothing short of outrageous.”

Poindexter did not speak.

Staff members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee noted that under the panel’s rules North would have been entitled to ask that cameras and microphones be turned off and that Poindexter would not have been so entitled. The reason: North appeared under subpoena, and Poindexter appeared voluntarily.

“No witness served with a subpoena by the committee shall be required against his or her will to be photographed at any hearing or to give evidence or testimony while the broadcasting of that hearing by radio or television is being conducted,” the rule states.