Cold War contacts

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In 1983, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy offered to help the Soviets mount a public-relations offensive in the United States. This propaganda attack would target President Reagan and his policies. These are the same policies that eventually ended the Cold War and reduced the possibility of nuclear annihilation. This charge was made by Paul Kengor in his book "The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism."

This new book adds to research done by Herb Romerstein, Yevgenia Albats, Vladimir Bukovsky, Pavel Stroilov and others. They all indicate that Mr. Kennedy felt that any bad relations between the United States and the Soviet Union were the sole fault of Mr. Reagan and that talk of a Soviet military threat was nonsense. These articles seem to validate reports that were first published by Vasili Mitrokhin — the former KGB historian who secretly copied sensitive KGB files and released them after the fall of the Soviet Union.

According to this research and released KGB papers, Mr. Kennedy felt that the booming economy during Mr. Reagan's presidency made him popular — and thus a difficult target for Democratic criticism. Because of this, Mr. Kennedy reportedly felt that Mr. Reagan's only weakness was in foreign policy. Here, the articles say Mr. Kennedy felt the Soviets might be of assistance, if Mr. Kennedy and the Democrats could get the ear of the general-secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

Numerous articles also saidthatthisanti-Reagan/anti-U.S. conspiracy was not a one-man operation by Mr. Kennedy. They indicate that former Sen. John V. Tunney, a California Democrat, went to Moscow and met with officials of the KGB on Mr. Kennedy's behalf. Additionally, in their book "The Sword And The Shield," Christopher Andrew and Vasili Metrokhin said that as early as 1975 the KGB began operations to penetrate the inner circles of a number of leading Democrats, including the likes of Mr. Kennedy and Ramsey Clark. They also mentioned that a Democratic Party activist had been recruited by the KGB and had supplied the Soviets with information from a variety of Democratic leaders, including President Carter.

Speaking of Jimmy Carter, according to John Burtis of the Canada Free Press, Mr. Kennedy also worked against Mr. Carter in 1979. Mr. Burtis reported that Mr. Kennedy offered to help Moscow when Mr. Carter harshly criticized the Soviets for their invasion of Afghanistan. According to Charles Dunn, the dean of the Robertson School of Government at Regent University, these types of subversive activities were in "clear violation of the U.S. Constitution and at the expense of presidential authority."

Here the question arises, are these accusations true? Would a U.S. senator, the brother of a beloved U.S. president, conspire with the Soviets against his own country? The works by Messrs. Metrokhin, Kengor and Romerstein, and others seem to lend credence to the charges if they don't actually confirm them.

In considering all this information, it is necessary to understand how the USSR and the KGB operated during the Cold War. The Soviet KGB (i.e. the Secret Police) was nothing if not thorough. Visitors to Moscow, especially important visitors, could count on total and constant surveillance, both audio and video. Total surveillance would include meetings, private conversations, bedrooms and even bathrooms. The Soviets were also masters in using any information that was acquired to manipulate or even blackmail the victim. So, like perversion of the Miranda rights statement, anything anyone said or did in Moscow could be and often was used against them — but not in a court of law.

Reportedly, after Mr. Reagan left office, Mr. Tunney said that he had indeed contacted the Soviets on behalf of several U.S. senators — not just Mr. Kennedy. So, the question is, did some of the Democratic Party leadership offer to work with the Soviet KGB against Mr. Reagan? If so, were they later blackmailed into working for the KGB and against the United States on other fronts? How many Democratic politicians were compromised and later blackmailed? Lastly, if they were controlled by the Soviets, are they now "influenced" by the Russians? Inquiring minds want to know.

Any foreign influence over U.S. politicians could have drastic consequences in the politically charged atmosphere seen in today's Washington.

The bottom line is that if there is any shred of truth in these documented stories, the senator from Massachusetts, as well as any other compromised politicians, should resign or be kicked out of the Senate or Congress.

John Smith is the pseudonym for a retired CIA analyst.