The Other Reagan Doctrine: Keeping the Lid On

Townhall.com::The Other Reagan Doctrine: Keeping the Lid On::By Michael Reagan

I got thinking about something my dad Ronald Reagan wrote about in his book ?An American Life? about the importance of sometimes keeping secrets from Congress.

He recalled certain things he refused to reveal to members of Congress and explained why he would not take them into his confidence.

For example, he recalled that he would not share with Congress the fact that he was about to go into Grenada to prevent a Communist takeover of that island and to rescue endangered American students there.

He would not share with Congress the fact that he was about to order a fly-by over Khadafy?s Libya, and take out one or two of his homes in the process.

He wouldn?t share with Congress that he was ordering Ed Meese to shoot down Libyan planes if they locked on to our fighter planes with their missiles. He said if our pilots believed they were locked-on they should not hesitate to shoot them down. And they did.