J. Daniel Howard Carlucci and his deputy, General Colin Powell. Howard focussed on arms control issues and remained through the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty in January 1988. He also dealt with many issues associated with the Iran–Contra affair. On December 21, 1987, President Reagan nominated Howard to serve as Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) and Howard would hold this post from February 1988 through May 1989. He worked for Secretary of Defense Frank Carlucci and dealt with the aftermath of the shooting down of Iran Air Flight 655 by the U.S.S. "Vincennes" and the explosion of a gun mount
Ronald Reagan for AIDS-related programs was $2.3 billion in 1989 and nearly $6 billion total over his presidency. In a September 1985 press conference Reagan said: "this is a top priority with us...there's no question about the seriousness of this and the need to find an answer." Gary Bauer, who was Reagan's domestic policy adviser near the end of his second term, similarly argued that Reagan's belief in cabinet government led him to assign the job of speaking out against AIDS to his Surgeon General and Secretary of Health and Human Services. Relations between Libya and the United States under President Reagan