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Moles, Defectors, and Deceptions:
James Angleton and CIA Counterintelligence
by DAVID ROBARGE

Abstract

James Angleton, the longtime chief of counterintelligence at the Central Intelligence Agency, shaped American counterintelligence for good and bad for nearly 20 years until his dismissal from the CIA in 1974. His eccentricities and excesses, described in an extensive nonfiction and fiction literature, have been widely portrayed as paradigmatic of how not to conduct counterintelligence. Yet more is known about his legend than his ideas, accomplishments, and true shortcomings. His theories about Soviet strategic deception and espionage were based on his prior experience in counterintelligence and his extensive study of Soviet intelligence successes against Western services. He conducted his search for moles in the CIA during a time when the West was under unprecedented intelligence attack from the USSR, but some of his tactics were extreme and did more damage than good. An anti-Angleton orthodoxy emerged after his forced retirement, causing a laxity in counterintelligence that contributed to later security lapses. The "Angleton Syndrome" still influences counterintelligence practices in the United States government and public perceptions of the CIA.