Manuel Noriega

Sometime later, Noriega becomes the dictator in 1983.

CIA are asking a lot of favors of him to support their efforts in Nicaragua.

Noriega does like weapons trafficking, things like that.

Oliver North and Point Dexter come to him in 1984.

They say, thanks for helping us out in Nicaragua with all the weapons and the money and whatever.

Now we want you to send Panamanian troops there and really dive into that for us.

Noriega says no.

As the years progress, he continues to say no to the U.S.

government and CIA when they ask him for favors.

He's really focused on curbing the drug trade coming out of Colombia.

The documents that I have prove that that he was just like basically stopping like all of that trade.

Right.

So a lot of those drugs coming out of Colombia could not go to the US.

Obviously, they did filter through, you know, and the CIA and the whole Barry Seale thing.

That's how they got them in through the airplanes and through those trade routes.

Right.

1986-87 rolls around, Iran-Contra is exposed, Noriega becomes a scapegoat.

The media, the narrative, they find a way to shift the blame to Noriega.

The war on drugs starts, Nancy Reagan makes that announcement, and Noriega continues to contest.

the US government as the years passed by.