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Iran-Contra: The Reagan Scandal

Iran-Contra: The Reagan Scandal is the definitive podcast series unpacking one of the most audacious political cover-ups in American history. In the 1980s, senior officials in Ronald Reagan's White House secretly sold weapons to Iran — then under an arms embargo — and illegally funneled the profits to Nicaraguan Contra rebels, all while Congress had explicitly banned such funding. The result was a constitutional crisis that shook the foundations of the executive branch and tested the rule of law in the United States. This show takes you deep inside the clandestine operation run out of a White House basement, tracing the decisions, deceptions, and power plays of the key figures involved: Oliver North, John Poindexter, William Casey, and Reagan himself. Each episode draws on declassified documents, congressional testimony, and historical analysis to reveal how two illegal schemes were woven together into a single, sprawling conspiracy. Whether you're a history buff, a political junkie, or someone who wants to understand how secret government operates — and how it gets exposed — this podcast delivers the full story with clarity and depth. No prior knowledge required. If you've ever asked how Watergate compares to Iran-Contra, or why this scandal still matters decades later, subscribe now and find out.

14 episodes · Verified by YesOui

Episodes

Latest episodes

12 Oct 2026 · 12 min

Walsh vs. the System: When Convictions Weren't Enough

Lawrence Walsh won Iran-Contra convictions against Oliver North and John Poindexter — then watched them vanish on procedural grounds. This is the story of what happens when legal accountability meets an executive branch determined to protect itself.

11 Oct 2026 · 13 min

Cover-Up as Evidence: Fawn Hall, the Shredder, and What Got Left Behind

When Fawn Hall's shredder jammed in November 1986, the fragments it left behind became the evidence that unravelled the Iran-Contra scandal. This episode traces the two illegal schemes Oliver North ran from the White House basement — and how the cover-up itself became the proof of guilt.

10 Oct 2026 · 14 min

Christmas Eve Pardons: How Bush Buried the Iran-Contra Reckoning

On December 24, 1992, George H.W. Bush signed pardons that ended the Iran-Contra prosecution before it could reach the highest levels of the Reagan administration. Lawrence Walsh called it the completion of a six-year cover-up — and the man who signed the pardons was himself a subject of the investigation.

9 Oct 2026 · 12 min

Conviction, Reversal, Revival: Oliver North's Second Act

Oliver North was convicted of three Iran-Contra felonies — then watched every charge collapse on appeal. This episode traces how the man at the center of America's biggest post-Watergate scandal rebuilt himself into a conservative media icon and NRA president.

8 Oct 2026 · 13 min

Caught in London: How British Intelligence Exposed the Iran-Contra Network

The Iran-Contra scandal wasn't just a domestic cover-up — British intelligence discovered American officials running an illegal arms pipeline through London without a word to their closest allies. This episode follows the covert architecture Oliver North built inside the NSC basement and the moment it began to unravel across the Atlantic.

7 Oct 2026 · 15 min

North in the Basement: The Architecture of Iran-Contra

Oliver North ran one of the most audacious covert operations in American history from a White House basement — simultaneously violating two federal laws. This is the full story of how Iran-Contra was built, justified, and nearly buried.

6 Oct 2026 · 13 min

Reckoning That Backfired: The 1987 Iran-Contra Hearings

The Iran-Contra hearings of 1987 were meant to deliver accountability — instead, Oliver North turned them into a public triumph. This episode examines the full architecture of the scandal: the illegal arms sales, the Boland Amendment, Fawn Hall's shredded documents, and Reagan's memory defense.

5 Oct 2026 · 12 min

Justice Undone: How Immunity Shielded Poindexter from Accountability

John Poindexter was convicted on five felony counts for authorising the Iran-Contra diversion — then every conviction was thrown out on a legal technicality rooted in his own congressional testimony. This episode traces how the machinery of justice built the case, then dismantled it.

4 Oct 2026 · 13 min

Blank Check: How the NSC Lost Its Constitutional Bearings

The Tower Commission's 1987 report didn't just expose the Iran-Contra scandal — it indicted the entire system that made it possible. How did three men in a White House basement run an illegal foreign policy with no oversight, no legal review, and a president who claimed he didn't know?

3 Oct 2026 · 12 min

The Memory Defense: Did Reagan Know, and Does It Matter?

The Iran-Contra scandal's defining question was never fully answered: did Ronald Reagan authorise the illegal arms sales and Contra funding, or was plausible deniability the design all along? This episode dissects the 1987 hearings, Oliver North's uniform gambit, Poindexter's bombshell testimony, and Reagan's 130-plus 'I don't recall' responses.

2 Oct 2026 · 12 min

Reagan's Contradiction: Arms for Hostages and the Boland Betrayal

The Iran-Contra scandal exposed a White House running two illegal operations at once — selling arms to Iran for hostages while secretly funding the Nicaraguan Contras in defiance of Congress. This is the chapter where the shredder jammed, the cover-up unravelled, and Oliver North's basement empire came crashing into the light.

1 Oct 2026 · 14 min

Shredding the Evidence: The Cover-Up That Nearly Buried Iran-Contra

When the Iran-Contra scandal began to unravel in 1986, Oliver North's secretary Fawn Hall fed classified documents into a shredder — and stuffed the rest into her boots. This is the story of the cover-up that almost worked.

30 Sep 2026 · 14 min

Oliver North's Basement: How a Marine Ran a Secret Government

The Iran-Contra scandal didn't happen in the open — it was engineered in a basement office by Oliver North, a Marine who believed the mission justified breaking the law. This episode traces how the Boland Amendment was circumvented, how weapons flowed to Iran, and how a small group of officials built a shadow government inside the Reagan White House.

29 Sep 2026 · 13 min

Two Illegal Schemes, One Basement: How Iran-Contra Worked

The Reagan White House secretly sold arms to Iran and funneled the profits to the Nicaraguan Contras — both illegal, both running out of a basement NSC office. This is the full story of how Iran-Contra actually worked, and why it remains the biggest scandal since Watergate.