The Reagan Legacy

Reagan's Vision Triumphed ... But Is His the World We Want to Live in?: "During the Reagan era, the United States offered aid and assistance to a variety of despots throughout the world. In El Salvador and Guatemala, American officials turned a blind eye to right-wing death squads that murdered tens of thousands of civilians. The CIA forged close alliances with President Manuel Noriega of Panama despite Noriega's repressive regime and close ties to Columbian cartels exporting drugs to the United States. In Liberia the United States backed the murderous anti-communist Samuel K. Doe, whose reign destabilized Liberia and neighboring countries for decades. The Reagan Administration demonstrated scant inclination to assist those seeking to unseat dictatorships and oppression in Haiti, the Philippines, and South Africa, which, Reagan incorrectly asserted had 'eliminated the segregation that we had in our country.'"