On August 11, 1984, U.S. President Reagan, checking the microphone before a press conference, declared to the entire country, unaware that the microphone was on:
“My fellow Americans, I’m pleased to tell you today that I’ve signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes.”News of his flippant remark soon leaked to the media, turning what Reagan believed to be a harmless private quip into an international embarrassment, precipitating dismay among America’s allies and providing fodder for Soviet propaganda mills.
