Sorry, conspiracy theorists – Israel did not rig the 2016 election.
Journalists covering American intelligence face a daunting task. They often lack access to active-duty sources and working-level officials within agencies like the CIA, DIA, NSA, and FBI. The days of foreign correspondents rubbing shoulders with operatives on the cocktail circuit are long gone, and polygraph exams can question press contact.
However, senior intelligence and FBI officers in Washington can sometimes be more forthcoming with journalists, and congressional members and staff with access to classified material may be more loquacious with the press. But most journalists on the intel beat become captives of the institutions they cover, unable to alienate the officials who feed them.
It’s rare to find a journalist who can meld open-source information with bits of classified information from authorized or retired officials. But when done well, the resulting tapestry can be a passable verisimilitude of the truth.
James Bamford’s 1982 book, The Puzzle Palace, was the first to try to limn a picture of the NSA. He undertook arduous and clever open-source research, and his personal biases were mostly checked. However, the Bamford of today is different. He has become a deeply ideological journalist who weaves a story damning his intended target, with conspiracy defining his work.
In his latest book, Spyfail, Bamford’s primary target is Israel, which he sees as constantly working against the interests of the United States. He is convinced that Israel and Jewish Americans allied with the country are violating the law and bending the political establishment to their will.
Bamford’s breathless rendition of history suggests that Israel massively and illegally interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, with foreign cash being pumped into Republican Party coffers and Israelis heavily involved in the campaign. However, his conjectures are often silly and reveal a journalist disconnected from Washington and not particularly well-versed in foreign affairs.
While Spyfail has its moments, it is ultimately a work of conspiracy-mongering. If you have a section in your personal library for such works, then this book should be in it. Otherwise, go read a Le Carré novel for better prose and wittier cynicism.
Spyfail: Foreign Spies, Moles, Saboteurs, and the Collapse of America’s Counterintelligence
by James Bamford
Twelve, 496 pp., $32
Reuel Marc Gerecht, a former case officer in the Central Intelligence Agency, is a resident scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
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