The Quiet Americans: Four CIA Spies at the Dawn of the Cold War—A Tragedy in Three Acts

by Scott Anderson

There was an air of inevitability about this expansion, and much of it could be attributed to President Eisenhower’s personal preferences. In contrast to many of his more tradition-minded colleagues in the American military, Eisenhower had been a strong advocate of covert operations throughout World War II, and saw even greater application for them in the postwar era. Part of the lure was simple economics. When compared to conventional war, engaging the enemy through covert action cost a pittance—the coups in Iraq and Guatemala had amply proved that—which meant the CIA could pursue many more such missions at a fraction of the cost. Such operations also offered plausible deniability. While Eisenhower personally approved every major CIA covert operation conducted during his administration, he was careful to stay ignorant of their details—at least until after the fact.