History
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1942
As the U.S. enters WWII, President F.D.Roosevelt commissions the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the predecessor to the CIA. It's main goal was to collect intelligence and analyze plans and strategies. (History of the CIA 1) 1947 After the war ended, the OSS and other War Departments were disassembled. President Truman, however, wanted a fully centralized intelligence organization, as national defense. Thus, the National Security Act of 1947 was signed, and the CIA was created. (History of the CIA 1) 1948-1949 Between these two years, the CIA gained authority due to two policy changes. First, in 1948, the National Security Council Directive gave the CIA authority to utilize covert operations "against hostile foreign states or groups or in support of friendly foreign states or groups but which are so planned and conducted that the U.S. government responsibility for them is not evident to unauthorized persons." Second, the Central Intelligence Agency Act granted the organization the ability to use "confidential fiscal and administrative procedures," with exemption from Federal funds limits. In addition, the CIA no longer had to disclose information about its organization and functions. (Central Intelligence Agency 1) |
Cold War (1953-1970s)
Following the government's containment policy, the CIA set out to use covert operations and intelligence gathering to stop communist movements. Foreign reconnaissance of communist nations, in coordination with the military, was famously done by U-2 planes, SR-71s, and early Satellite imaging.
(Central Intelligence Agency 1)
Following the government's containment policy, the CIA set out to use covert operations and intelligence gathering to stop communist movements. Foreign reconnaissance of communist nations, in coordination with the military, was famously done by U-2 planes, SR-71s, and early Satellite imaging.
(Central Intelligence Agency 1)
The first successful CIA covert operation was the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, which overthrew the democratically-elected government, lead by Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh. Under the name TPAJAX Project, the CIA helped form a military government under Mohammad Reza Phhlavi and General Fazlollah Zahedi, primarily to have a tighter control over Iranian oil.
After the events of the Cuban revolution, when Fidel Castro came into power, the CIA infamously tried, numerous times, to assassinate Castro. The Bay of Pigs Invasion, a CIA funded and planned overtake of the Castro regime in 1961, was a failure.
The CIA is also known to have assisted Mobutu Sese Seko in becoming dictator of Zaire, also known as the Republic of the Congo.
After the events of the Cuban revolution, when Fidel Castro came into power, the CIA infamously tried, numerous times, to assassinate Castro. The Bay of Pigs Invasion, a CIA funded and planned overtake of the Castro regime in 1961, was a failure.
The CIA is also known to have assisted Mobutu Sese Seko in becoming dictator of Zaire, also known as the Republic of the Congo.
In its anti-communist endeavors, the CIA also focused on projecting its political nature onto Laos.
During the events of the Vietnam war, the CIA primarily dealt with intelligence analysis, such as the movements of the Vietcong and Northern Vietnamese armies and the statistical data from both sides of the conflict. Covert action was still undertaken , usually by paramilitary members and black bag operation groups to carry out anti-communist plans. The Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, Special Operations Group (MACVSOG) was a covert task force made, in 1964, of Army and Navy special forces, but directed by the CIA, with a sole purpose of slowing North Vietnamese advance and incentive.
The Phoenix Program, designed by the CIA, was the first use of interrogation centers and "neutralization" techniques in a time of war. To gain intelligence on the activities of the National Liberation Front (Vietcong), the CIA, between the years of 1965 and 1972, would capture both civilian and military personnel to extract information. Targeted killings, brutal torture methods and terrorism methods in Vietnam soon caught light in the American public, shutting the program down. The abuse of the CIA, especially when labeling some civilians as "Vietcong" just so there is authorization to kill, arrest or torture, began the tendency for the CIA to act "outside the law" of the United States. (Rosenau and Long 15)
During the events of the Vietnam war, the CIA primarily dealt with intelligence analysis, such as the movements of the Vietcong and Northern Vietnamese armies and the statistical data from both sides of the conflict. Covert action was still undertaken , usually by paramilitary members and black bag operation groups to carry out anti-communist plans. The Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, Special Operations Group (MACVSOG) was a covert task force made, in 1964, of Army and Navy special forces, but directed by the CIA, with a sole purpose of slowing North Vietnamese advance and incentive.
The Phoenix Program, designed by the CIA, was the first use of interrogation centers and "neutralization" techniques in a time of war. To gain intelligence on the activities of the National Liberation Front (Vietcong), the CIA, between the years of 1965 and 1972, would capture both civilian and military personnel to extract information. Targeted killings, brutal torture methods and terrorism methods in Vietnam soon caught light in the American public, shutting the program down. The abuse of the CIA, especially when labeling some civilians as "Vietcong" just so there is authorization to kill, arrest or torture, began the tendency for the CIA to act "outside the law" of the United States. (Rosenau and Long 15)
Reform (1970s-1990)
Nixon's Watergate scandal forced Congress to increase its oversight over the executive branch, leading to several revelations of illegal, covert CIA activity. Operations such as attempted and successful assassinations of leaders such as Castro and Trujillo, dictator of the Dominican Republic, came into public eye. Congress and the population were not happy about the illegal domestic surveillance of U.S. citizens, as such activities breached civil liberties.
In summary of the CIA's involvement in Watergate: Nixon attempted to manipulate the CIA to cover up the FBI's investigation of the scandal, as well.
In 1974, investigative journalists disclosed a series of reports titled "the Family Jewels." The article, in The New York Times, revealed several more instances of the CIA's illegal activity, such as wiretapping, unwarranted confinement, more assassination plots, break-ins and surveillance (The CIA's Family Jewels 1). Under an investigation led by the Senate Church Commission, several reforms such as the Rockefeller Commission, an executive order prohibiting the CIA from covertly killing foreign leaders, were instigated, thus insuring a measure of control the CIA's many implied authorities.
Following the Iran-Contra affair (1986), Congress passed the Intelligence Authorization Act of 1991, a direct response to the scandals and illegal behavior of the CIA in the decades before. The act clearly defined that covert operations must be approved by the President of the United States, and disclosed to the members of Congress. However, the act also counter-intuitively gave the Director of the Central Intelligence (DCI) control over what reports are specifically given to Congress.
President Ford denied involvement in the CIA's illegal interests. The act, passed after the revealing of the CIA's and executive branch's abuse of power, attempted to limit the secrecy and authority of America's intelligence agencies (Central Intelligence Agency 1).
Nixon's Watergate scandal forced Congress to increase its oversight over the executive branch, leading to several revelations of illegal, covert CIA activity. Operations such as attempted and successful assassinations of leaders such as Castro and Trujillo, dictator of the Dominican Republic, came into public eye. Congress and the population were not happy about the illegal domestic surveillance of U.S. citizens, as such activities breached civil liberties.
In summary of the CIA's involvement in Watergate: Nixon attempted to manipulate the CIA to cover up the FBI's investigation of the scandal, as well.
In 1974, investigative journalists disclosed a series of reports titled "the Family Jewels." The article, in The New York Times, revealed several more instances of the CIA's illegal activity, such as wiretapping, unwarranted confinement, more assassination plots, break-ins and surveillance (The CIA's Family Jewels 1). Under an investigation led by the Senate Church Commission, several reforms such as the Rockefeller Commission, an executive order prohibiting the CIA from covertly killing foreign leaders, were instigated, thus insuring a measure of control the CIA's many implied authorities.
Following the Iran-Contra affair (1986), Congress passed the Intelligence Authorization Act of 1991, a direct response to the scandals and illegal behavior of the CIA in the decades before. The act clearly defined that covert operations must be approved by the President of the United States, and disclosed to the members of Congress. However, the act also counter-intuitively gave the Director of the Central Intelligence (DCI) control over what reports are specifically given to Congress.
President Ford denied involvement in the CIA's illegal interests. The act, passed after the revealing of the CIA's and executive branch's abuse of power, attempted to limit the secrecy and authority of America's intelligence agencies (Central Intelligence Agency 1).