The Island Intelligencer: CIA gold and dirty laundry

CIA Executive David Rush's $40 million stolen gold-bar stash begs another look at Langley ethics. (Newcomers, see 'Ethics in Espionage,' June 4, 2023, Tribune-Herald.) I earlier promised to address my encounters with officers exhibiting elastic integrity during 23 years inside. CIA Executive David Rush's $40 million stolen gold-bar stash begs another look at Langley ethics. (Newcomers, see 'Ethics in Espionage,' June 4, 2023, Tribune-Herald.) I earlier promised to address my encounters with officers exhibiting elastic integrity during 23 years inside. Let me start on a positive(ish) note, though. ADVERTISING As an international speaker and college lecturer, when I present on morality and spying, I open with a photo of a marble-wall-engraved quote, 'And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free,' and the questions, 'Where is this located? What work is being cited?' Puzzled looks turn to wide-eyed expressions when I answer for the silent audience, 'CIA headquarters' inside foyer wall' and 'the Gospel of John.' Holy Scripture chiseled into agency halls. In my days (1991-2014), that sense of Judeo-Christian righteousness surfaced in other ways. Operations officers referred to their labors as 'God's work' and justified covert actions through biblically underpinned concepts of just war. Much of this reflected cultural religiosity and simpatico, not true conviction. Faith was given a polite feel-good nod in public, even by those who shunned church, kept a bottle of scotch in the office desk, and paid more attention to attractive subordinates than their wives. It felt organic, spontaneous, unlike top-down Christian nationalist pushes at the Defense and Labor Departments today. There were people of genuine faith 'fighting the good fight' too, as covered in my previous article, and literal Boy Scouts (former) were sprinkled among ops leaders in the field. Indeed, some foreign intelligence services view CIA as Pollyanna-like with its prohibitions on the operational use of minors, contact with missionaries, and use of journalism for cover. Clean police records and drug and polygraph tests remain employment requirements — not foolproof, but generally effective national security HR tools (a subject for another day). There was also an 'honor among thieves' reflected in the oft repeated mantra, 'Don't case officer a case officer,' code forbidding the use of our dark art, manipulation, on each other. My wife, a former CIA colleague, regularly chides me so. Now, down to brass tacks. One chief of station asked me to violate regulations for his personal financial gain; I refused and reported it. I witnessed a deputy chief of station commit the very same violation for the personal benefit of a colleague, at taxpayer expense; I confronted the coworker. Another of my field chiefs, removed for off judgement and behavior, was taking medication outlawed in the U.S. for its affect on sanity. Yet another one day asked me to stop work to drive him across town to 'meet women.' (He resigned short of tour, a romantic relationship with a foreign national subordinate — a double violation — later coming to light.) One other was arrested just after retiring in the field for touching a flight attendant. (The local intelligence service asked my station to retrieve the drunkard from custody.) I knew officers, some married, who frequented prostitutes. At headquarters, support staff called one boss's office 'the frat house' (regular cacophonous laughing behind closed, albeit thin, doors accompanied commentary on subordinates' bodies and sexual orientation). So what? Ethical and criminal offenses and poor behavior exist in government and industry worldwide. Are they more prevalent at CIA? I lack hard data to answer that, but sometimes felt that I encountered more than a fair share (while also hearing many second hand tales). Then again, considering the number of ethical and criminal violations surfaced in Hawaii government and law enforcement in the past decade, and ones I personally observed working in the local private and public sectors, I wager that bad behavior at Langley merely reflects the human condition. (Ask your kahu.) That said, the public invests a special level of trust in CIA officers that comes with higher expectations. Willful ethical lapses are inexcusable. As you judge agency personnel, though, consider the unique context of their job. First, the extreme stress of clandestine work requires coping mechanisms; not everyone finds healthy ones. The clandestine service's divorce and alcoholism rates have long surpassed national averages, and sexual addiction was the top issue for which officers sought counseling when I left. At least one star on the infamous wall of the fallen is for a suicide. Second, in closing, it's compartmented, high-trust work that provides unique opportunities for crime (including treason) by bad apples. This is a longstanding liability of the spy trade. Mitigation measures will never see absolute success as long as that human condition is involved. J.P. Atwell is a former senior CIA operations officer. His two-decade career began as an intelligence analyst and took him to every continent, save Antarctica. He now calls Hawaii Island home. He welcomes your comments at island.intelligencer@gmail.com.