Question

why did president reagan order the cia to recruit the contras?
\bigcirc he wanted to use the contras to help free us hostages in iran and other middle eastern countries.
\bigcirc he thought the contras could help sell us arms to countries fighting communism in latin america.
\bigcirc he thought the contras were necessary to oust a threatening leftist government in nicaragua.
\bigcirc he felt that such action would prompt congress to change its stand on us involvement in latin america.

Explanation:

During the Reagan administration, the Sandinistas (a leftist government) had taken power in Nicaragua. Reagan viewed this government as a Communist-aligned threat in the Western Hemisphere, so he directed the CIA to support the Contras, a rebel group seeking to overthrow the Sandinista government. The other options are incorrect: the Iran-Contra affair involved arms sales to Iran for hostages separately from Contra support, the Contras were not used to sell arms to other anti-Communist nations, and the action was not aimed at changing Congress's stance (Congress actually restricted funding for the Contras later, leading to the Iran-Contra scandal).

Answer:

He thought the Contras were necessary to oust a threatening leftist government in Nicaragua.