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A season of inquiry: Congress and intelligence
The civil rights movement, protests against the Vietnam War, Watergate-rumors and revelations stemming from these and other events provoked in the 1970s a rising clamor against the scope and conduct of American intelligence operations. Finally, in 1975, Congress launched investigations of the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and other federal agencies in the intelligence community. This is the story of one of those investigations-that by the Senate committee chaired by Frank Church of Idaho. The hearings of the Church committee, together with investigations by the House of Representatives and a presidential commission, rocked the intelligence bureaucracy like nothing before; even the CIA's involvement in Kennedy's Bay of Pigs debacle paled in comparison. A deep schism developed within the Senate committee, and the House of Representatives was torn by acrimony and recrimination. From his special vantage point as an investigator and aide to Senator Church, Loch Johnson incisively portrays the human element-jealousy, friendship, pique, ambition, fatigue-in these deliberations and traces the tangled lines of conflict and cooperation that stretch between Congress and the White House. Season of Inquiry affords a unique look at the workings of the United States Senate, not in its ordinary day-to-day business but in the heat and glare of publicity during the conduct of a major inquiry.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
317 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 20, 2019
This book revolves around the Church investigation of the US' intelligence agencies, including the CIA, FBI, NSA, and military intelligence. In the wake of the Watergate scandal, this details more intelligence accountability in the US and less trust in the agencies by US citizens. While this is certainly an interesting topic, I found it too dry to hold my interest and kept finding reasons not to continue reading it.
September 11, 2025
An engaging and accessible work.
The book is both a recollection of Johnson’s time on the Church Committee and a history of the investigation. Most of it deals with the Senate investigation; there is little on Pike's House committee. Johnson also defends Frank Church from charges that he politicized the investigation. He does, however, note the colorful personalities who dominated the committee, and how strong their political ambitions and partisan streaks could be. He does describe Church as genuinely interested in the investigation, but also notes how distracted he was by his own campaign for the presidency. Church here also comes off as indecisive and angry. Johnson also notes that Barry Goldwater boycotted most of the hearings as a show of support to the intelligence agencies. Johnson notes that some senators feared that the probe was going too far, and others were frustrated that it was not going far enough.
Johnson does a good job describing the inner workings of a congressional investigation, as well as the challenges of such a, at the time, unprecedented probe. He notes how some CIA and FBI officials resisted cooperation. Some, such as Kissinger, refused to testify. He describes the Ford White House’s maneuverings as it tried to placate the committee and public opinion on one hand while trying to preempt it with its own investigation and intelligence reforms. He also notes how some White House officials warned that the congressional probe would damage national security, and how this idea gained traction after the assassination of Richard Welch.
Johnson also describes the leaks from the Committee, and how this led to tension and frustration among members and their staffers, and from the White House and the intelligence agencies. Johnson also notes how revelations about assassination plots tended to dominate the headlines and public interest, and how this often made it more difficult to investigate other subjects that may have been of more interest to the public. Of course, congressional reforms need public support, and public support often comes after explosive headlines. Explosive headlines, however, made the White House more cautious about cooperation. And some committee members, Johnson writes, were more interested in publicity than reform.
The analysis is strong, and Johnson’s treatment is witty and evenhanded. If you’re familiar with the Agency’s history, you probably won’t learn anything new, but Johnson’s style is very readable (if a bit colloquial at times) and the subject is rather interesting. Some readers may wish for stronger conclusions, or more discussion of Johnson’s overall takeaways. Also, the index could have been more comprehensive, and perhaps better edited.
I was under the impression that this newer edition would reflect new research or newly declassified documents. The only changes to the original edition, however, are a new foreword and a new postscript, some minor changes to the appendices, and the removal (?) of photographs and drawings that were present in the original. It made me wonder what the point of this new edition even was. In the original preface from 1985, Johnson calls the book an “interim report” and writes of his hope that a “more definitive account of the intelligence investigation will be written only decades from now.” I would have thought that a newer edition published decades later would allow him to do so. The postscript seems too short and even has a few typos. It made me wonder what the point of this new edition even was.
A thoughtful, insightful and straightforward work.
The book is both a recollection of Johnson’s time on the Church Committee and a history of the investigation. Most of it deals with the Senate investigation; there is little on Pike's House committee. Johnson also defends Frank Church from charges that he politicized the investigation. He does, however, note the colorful personalities who dominated the committee, and how strong their political ambitions and partisan streaks could be. He does describe Church as genuinely interested in the investigation, but also notes how distracted he was by his own campaign for the presidency. Church here also comes off as indecisive and angry. Johnson also notes that Barry Goldwater boycotted most of the hearings as a show of support to the intelligence agencies. Johnson notes that some senators feared that the probe was going too far, and others were frustrated that it was not going far enough.
Johnson does a good job describing the inner workings of a congressional investigation, as well as the challenges of such a, at the time, unprecedented probe. He notes how some CIA and FBI officials resisted cooperation. Some, such as Kissinger, refused to testify. He describes the Ford White House’s maneuverings as it tried to placate the committee and public opinion on one hand while trying to preempt it with its own investigation and intelligence reforms. He also notes how some White House officials warned that the congressional probe would damage national security, and how this idea gained traction after the assassination of Richard Welch.
Johnson also describes the leaks from the Committee, and how this led to tension and frustration among members and their staffers, and from the White House and the intelligence agencies. Johnson also notes how revelations about assassination plots tended to dominate the headlines and public interest, and how this often made it more difficult to investigate other subjects that may have been of more interest to the public. Of course, congressional reforms need public support, and public support often comes after explosive headlines. Explosive headlines, however, made the White House more cautious about cooperation. And some committee members, Johnson writes, were more interested in publicity than reform.
The analysis is strong, and Johnson’s treatment is witty and evenhanded. If you’re familiar with the Agency’s history, you probably won’t learn anything new, but Johnson’s style is very readable (if a bit colloquial at times) and the subject is rather interesting. Some readers may wish for stronger conclusions, or more discussion of Johnson’s overall takeaways. Also, the index could have been more comprehensive, and perhaps better edited.
I was under the impression that this newer edition would reflect new research or newly declassified documents. The only changes to the original edition, however, are a new foreword and a new postscript, some minor changes to the appendices, and the removal (?) of photographs and drawings that were present in the original. It made me wonder what the point of this new edition even was. In the original preface from 1985, Johnson calls the book an “interim report” and writes of his hope that a “more definitive account of the intelligence investigation will be written only decades from now.” I would have thought that a newer edition published decades later would allow him to do so. The postscript seems too short and even has a few typos. It made me wonder what the point of this new edition even was.
A thoughtful, insightful and straightforward work.
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August 12, 2011A good description of the changing atmosphere of Congress and the CIA in the aftermath of Vietnam.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews