The Iran-Contra Affair refers to a political scandal in the United States during the administration of President Ronald Reagan, in which senior officials of the executive branch facilitated the covert sale of arms to iran - then under an official U.S. arms embargo - and diverted proceeds from those sales to fund the contras, rebels opposing the sandinista government in nicaragua. The Nicaraguan funding violated restrictions Congress had placed on military aid to the Contras through the boland-amendment. The affair became public in November 1986 and led to congressional investigations, an independent counsel investigation, and the indictment or conviction of several administration officials. The characterization of the affair - whether as a rogue operation by mid-level officials, a policy approved at the highest levels, or a constitutional crisis - remains a matter of dispute; see iran-contra-affair-viewpoint sections below.
The basic factual sequence of the affair is not seriously disputed: the National Security Council staff, principally Lieutenant Colonel oliver-north, coordinated arms sales to Iran beginning in 1985, ostensibly to secure the release of American hostages held in Lebanon, and redirected a portion of the proceeds to the Contras. What remains contested is the scope of President Reagan's knowledge and authorization, the degree to which Vice President George H W Bush was informed, and whether the operation constituted an impeachable offense or a more limited failure of oversight. The Tower Commission, congressional committees, and independent counsel lawrence-walsh each reached somewhat different conclusions on these questions. For background on the arms embargo, the Boland Amendment, and the Contra war, see Iran-Contra Affair - History.
There is broad agreement among historians and the official investigative bodies that examined the affair - the Tower Commission, the congressional Iran-Contra committees, and the Office of Independent Counsel - that arms were sold to Iran and proceeds were diverted to the Contras in violation of congressional restrictions, and that this was concealed from Congress. This narrow factual consensus is described at iran-contra-affair-factual-record-consensus. No comparable consensus exists regarding President Reagan's personal knowledge or culpability, which remains a matter of viewpoint; see below.