Chasing Spies: How the FBI Failed in Counterintelligence But Promoted the Politics of McCarthyism in the Cold War YearsThe long history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation under J. Edgar Hoover is studded with serious questions about the Bureau's professionalism and accountability. Revelations in the recent cases of Wen Ho Lee, Robert Hannsen, and Timothy McVeigh illustrate these misgivings. In Chasing Spies, Athan Theoharis, historian and perhaps the foremost authority on the FBI's record, raises urgent new uncertainties about the Bureau's behavior--and about the prospects for giving the FBI expanded powers of surveillance during the current national emergency. Mr. Theoharis here redefines the politics of the World War II and cold war eras, moving the debate beyond the narrow perspective triggered by the release of KGB records and intercepted Soviet consular reports (the Venona messages). The intriguing issue, he argues, is not the effectiveness of Soviet espionage activities as supported by the new evidence. Nor is it the long-standing charges of "softness toward communism" in the Roosevelt and Truman administrations. The real issue, he says, is the failure of the FBI to apprehend and convict Soviet agents. Based on meticulous research in FBI files, Chasing Spies uncovers the FBI's role in the most important espionage cases of the cold war years. The book shows how secrecy immunized FBI operations from critical scrutiny and enabled FBI officials to mask their counterintelligence failures while promoting a politics of McCarthyism. |
Contents
Acknowledgments vii | 3 |
The Soviet Espionage Threat | 15 |
The Failure of U S Counterintelligence | 34 |
Copyright | |
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Common terms and phrases
Alger Hiss allegations Alsop Amerasia American Communist party April Athan Theoharis Belmont to Ladd Bentley Bentley's Boardman break-ins Brownell Brunini Bureau Chambers Chambers's Comintern Committee COMRAP confirm congressional Coplon counterintelligence Cronin December documents employees espionage espionage activities FBI agents FBI assistant director FBI Director FBI investigation FBI records FBI reports FBI wiretap FBI's February federal folder grand jury Hiss Hiss's Hollywood Hollywood Ten homosexual Hood to FBI Hoover O&C Hoover to SAC Hoover to Tolson HUAC HUAC's identified illegal indictment Inslerman intelligence Judith Coplon July June Justice Department KGB agents Letter March McCarthy Memo memoranda memorandum name-redacted agent Nichols to Tolson Nixon November October onage Personal and Confidential political President recruited redacted Remington Republican request Roosevelt secret Senator senior FBI officials Silvermaster SISS Soviet agents Soviet Union Stevenson Tamm Theoharis tion Truman Venona messages Venona Project Washington White House wiretap York to Moscow Zubilin