It is a story of how a great nation betrayed the principles which made it great, and thereby became hostage to hostage-takers …
No times were more dangerous than when our country was born, when revolution was our midwife. Our system of government has withstood the tests and tensions of civil conflict, depression, and two world wars, times hardly less challenging than our own presently. …
My fellow Americans, out of this experience, may we all better understand and appreciate our Constitution, strive harder to preserve it, and make a fresh start at restoring the trust between the branches of government. For, in America as 200 years ago, the people still rule.
– DANIEL K. INOUYE
Excerpts from Chair Inouye’s closing statement at the Iran-Contra hearings, August 3, 1987.