President Reagan said improperrecord keeping of meetings and decisions made on the Iran arms
initiative led to his failure to recollect whether he approved
arms shipments by Israel before or after the fact.
    In a televised address to the American people Reagan said
he is still upset that no-one kept proper records -- a
complaint made by the Tower commission.
    The arms shipment was made in August of 1985 by Israel.
    "I did approve it; I just can't specifically say when,"
Reagan said.
    Reagan added: "Rest assured, there's plenty of
record-keeping now going on at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (the
White House)."
    The timing of Reagan's approval of the Israeli shipment is
important because it could determine whether the sale violated
various laws, including the Arms Export Control Act.
 Reuter
