Charlie Wilson (Texas Politician) - Support For The Somoza Government in Nicaragua

Support For The Somoza Government in Nicaragua

The Somoza government ruled Nicaragua from the 1930s to the 1970s and Anastasio ("Tachito") Somoza Debayle was the effective leader of the country in 1967. Wilson was a strong supporter of Somoza, and felt his strong anti-communist regime was being undermined by the Carter Administration's human rights-focused foreign policy. In trying to cajole President Carter into supporting Somoza, he fought in the House Appropriations Committee, and at one point threatened to wreck President Carter's Panama Canal Treaty if the U.S. did not continue supporting Somoza.

Wilson's admiration for Somoza was unaffected by his offer of a large cash bribe to Wilson the first time they met in person (which was unnecessary - Wilson was a true believer). And when Wilson set up a meeting between Somoza and an allegedly former CIA operative, at a small party where booze was flowing freely, Somoza was initially delighted at the offer of a 1000-man squad of ex-CIA operatives to fight on Somoza's behalf. But in a drunken stupor, Somoza made the mistake of fondling Tina Simmons, a secretary of Wilson's who was also his girlfriend at the time. (It was not Wilson but Somoza's mistress, Dinorah, who was present at the meeting and who went into a rage, ripping Somoza from Tina.) The fiasco embarrassed Somoza, who then lost interest in the squad when he heard about the price tag of US$100 million. Wilson was so embarrassed at the situation and his awkward attempt to hijack U.S. foreign policy that, after word of the meeting leaked out, he abandoned his support for Somoza.