The CIA is a unique federal organization. It operates under a thick canopy of secrecy. Covert agents killed in the line of duty become lonely stars etched into the wall of CIA headquarters. Those officers who live must remain seated at ceremonies recognizing patriots serving openly in the military; sacrificing the recognition they so often deserve. This can be a lonely experience. I know this feeling. The sacrifices CIA officers have made, including risking their lives, remain hidden; locked away in their memories. For many officers, it is a unique brand of courage that will never be known.
CIA officers face a plethora of challenges in the field. They are held to the highest standards of any federal agency and undergo the most stringent clearance process in the world. Many times they are assigned to countries where torture is a real option if they are discovered. There is simply no room for mistakes or negligence. The environments they are routinely sent to are toxic, hellish war zones; where death has become a way of life. This kind of exposure, sometimes over long periods of time, can only be handled by vetted, seasoned men and women who will not bend under pressure. This pressure could include the loss of their life. They must tolerate the real possibility of illness from what they are forced to eat or drink to ensure they blend in to the culture. Long separations from their family are common. And many families do not survive the absence of a husband and father. Due to solitude and loneliness, some make moral mistakes while overseas, then try to cover up their moral failures so their husband or wife does not find out what they have done. But these flaws usually come out in the end and the state of their marriage is never the same again. Trained to keep secrets, they will sometimes leak to the ones closest to them. Significant others have an uncanny way of reading the behavior of those they love. These officers’ rank and duties are a distinct privilege. They have worked and studied hard to earn them. They must continually live their cover, even in the US, so others do not expose their operations. The CIA will hold them accountable if they fail. There is no loyalty among spies.
In this book I stress Congress must continually hold the CIA accountable and provide oversight; ensuring it functions under the restraints of the Constitution and protects the freedom of the Americans it serves. This has not always been the case, and in the past Congress has been forced to take action and rein the CIA in. The Agency does not operate by popular vote and the majority of its action takes place in the darkness of secrecy.
This book is about that Agency. It is written to provide a three hundred and sixty degree view of the CIA and its function. It reveals the good, the bad and the ugly of the Agency I loved and served for so many years.
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