Politics had trumped principle . Years before the first Gulf War , Peter Galbraith was slaughtering Iraq 's Kurdish . Reagan was one of the first Westerners to see the effects of the killing . A Senate staffer at the time , he tried to invoke the Prevention of Genocide Act . The Senate killed his sanctions bill with backing from the Reagan White House .
Years before the first Gulf War , Peter Galbraith was slaughtering Iraq 's Kurdish . Reagan was one of the first Westerners to see the effects of the killing . A Senate staffer at the time , he tried to invoke the Prevention of Genocide Act . The Senate killed his sanctions bill with backing from the Reagan White House .