Athan Theoharis is professor of history at Marquette University and the author, most recently, of Chasing Spies: How the FBI Failed in Counterintelligence But Promoted the Politics of McCarthyism in the Cold War Years.
"Athan Theoharis has owed us this book for some time. He has had a
career battling and pursuing the FBI and forcing it to open files
that meticulously document the FBI's imperial aggrandizement and
constant intrusion into the political sphere. . . . All of us are
in his debt."--Stanley I. Kutler, author of The Wars of
Watergate"Brings to light missing or previously hidden parts of the
FBI's storied history to help us more clearly see its potential for
both good and harm as we try to balance national security and civil
liberties in a post-9/11 world."--Steven Aftergood, Federation of
American Scientists"A short but amazingly comprehensive and
up-to-date account."--John Prados, author of Lost Crusader: The
Secret Wars of CIA Director William Colby
"Theoharis, a recognized expert in FBI research, is neither a
muckraker or a whitewasher. [He argues] that the bureau has never
lived up to its grandiose reputation; believes that its fame in
tracking and apprehending gangsters, kidnappers and international
terrorists has been grossly fictionalized; [and] condemns as
threats to our civil liberties the FBI's use of wiretaps, buggings
and break-ins. . . . His book relates in grim detail, when, where
and how the FBI went wrong."--Washington Post Book World"The FBI
has had a substantial impact on U.S. society from its inception in
1908 through the advent of the war on terror. Theoharis inquires
into its myths and realities. He criticizes the bureau for frequent
abuses of power and its failure to meet its stated law enforcement
or intelligence goals. This clear, thoughtful presentation is
strongly recommended."--Library Journal"Theoharis is unquestionably
the dean of FBI history. {An] authoritative
volume."--Choice"Theoharis has spent the last quarter-century using
the Freedom of Information Act to ferret out Hoover-era memos and
files that the secretive director never imagined anyone outside the
bureau would ever see."--Chicago TribuneTheoharis masterfully
documents the FBI's history of suppressing political activity but
does not demonstrate that a different approach would have improved
the mishmash of intelligence that led to September 11 . . .
Overall, this is an excellent piece of scholarshiip with important
implications for currently policy debates."--Law and Politics Book
Review"Unquestionably the first book that either a novice or an FBI
specialist should turn to."--History: Reviews of New Books"A
valuable, balanced study of how a federal law enforcement agency
relying on informants and secret investigations coexists with an
open, democratic society, a topic that has become even more
relevant in a post-September 11 world."--American Historical Review
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