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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, APRIL 26, 1985
PAGE 13
The Washington, D
.c.
law firm of Reichler
&
Applebaum is the
Nicaraguan government's official registered agent in the U.S.
For its services, the firm is paid an annual rate of about
$320,000. From all outside appearances the firm has ably repre
sented its client. An accounting of the lobbyists' appointments
with legislators ancr--staff reads Tike � Who
r
s Who among Senate
and House liberals.
But Reichler & Applebaum's lobbying efforts on the Sandinistas'
behalf have gone beyond the congressional routine. In an inter
view, Mr. Reichler confirmed that some months ago he originated
and orchestrated a plan to send a team of "professional attorneys
to Nicaragua to conduct an objective, independent investigation
of contra atrocities." Reed Brody, a 31-year-old lawyer, and Jim
Bordeloin, a law-school student, were selected to conduct the
"objective investigation." They spent four months in Nicaragua
taking statements from witnesses of resistance-force atrocities,
all with the full cooperation of the Sandinistas. Mr. Brody con
firms that most of the investigators' in-country transportation,
boarding, housing, office space, staff and, one can assume, the
witnesses themselves, were provided compliments of their Marxist
hosts and sympathizers in Managua.
Upon completion of the "investigation," the 141-page Brody Re
port, consisting of nearly 150 sworn affidavits from "witnesses,"
was duly processed back through the Sandinistas' lobbyists at
Reichler & Applebaum. There it was prepared in final form••.•
The Brody document made its way into the public and congressional
debate with a splash. The media fallout included articles in the
Washington Post and the New York Times, and network coverage, in
cluding about 2� minutes on the CBS Evening News. None of these
accounts seriously challenged the report's origins or handling,
ignoring or playing down the Sandinista sponsorship to the point
that it was virtually unrecognizable to the audience. The over
all impact of the press accounts and congressional responses
served the purposes of a Marxist regime to distort the U.s.
public and Congress's understanding of the human-rights saga in
Nicaragua.
It has often been said that the Vietnam War was lost in the living rooms of
America, as television journalists began to openly question, debate and
distort U.S. policy. The Communists have learned this "lesson from Viet
nam" well. In their latest campaign of disinformation, they are influenc
ing the news media in order to mobilize public op1n1on to their cause, as
well as influencing Congress to take a stand against the President. This
campaign is working well, as the new Editor-in-Chief of the WASHINGTON
TIMES, Arnaud de Borchgrave observed in his paper's April 8 edition (before
the Congressional votes):
President Reagan told The Washington Post last week that "we've
been subjected, in this country,· to a very sophisticated lobbying
campaign by a totalitarian government--the Sandinistas. There
has been a disinformation program that is virtually worldwide,
and we know that the Soviets and Cubans have such a disinforma
tion network that is beyond anything we can match."