Summary from book jacket: "For the last sixty years, the CIA has managed to maintain a formidable reputation in spite of a terrible record. Its inability to understand the world has started wars and undermined the White House. It has spun presidents, policymakers, and the American people in order to preserve its own power. LEGACY OF ASHES is the definitive history of the CIA, from the end of World War II to the battle for Baghdad. It is based on more than 50,000 documents, primarily from the archives of the CIA, and a decade of interviews with hundreds of CIA officers, including every living Director of Central Intelligence. Everything in this book is on the record. There are no anonymous sources, no blind quotations."
Extract of Book Review from the Houston Chronicle published 6 July:
"From its founding after World War II the CIA sometimes considered "eliminating" those considered a threat to U.S. national security. But in 1975 it looked as if the agency itself might face elimination as news of its dirty operations and information-gathering failures began leaking out to the public.
With Gerald Ford as a caretaker president after the impeachment of Richard M. Nixon, an era of clean (or cleaner) government seemed possible. Ford jettisoned William Colby as CIA director and asked a Texan, George H.W. Bush, to assume the job." Full book review
With Gerald Ford as a caretaker president after the impeachment of Richard M. Nixon, an era of clean (or cleaner) government seemed possible. Ford jettisoned William Colby as CIA director and asked a Texan, George H.W. Bush, to assume the job." Full book review
Listen to Podcast
C-Span Book TV Interview- After Words: Tim Weiner author of "Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA" interviewed by David Ignatius
C-Span Book TV Interview- After Words: Tim Weiner author of "Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA" interviewed by David Ignatius
Tim Weiner
Legacy of Ashes
CIA
