The KGB "played" overly ambitious, scandal-plagued, and revengeful Jim Garrison

[Benjamin Cole]

AI version:

J. Kenneth McDonald served as the Chief Historian of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1982 to 1996.

During his tenure, he helped establish the CIA Historical Review Program and oversaw declassification, internal research, and the creation of official, in-house histories of sensitive intelligence operations.

Background and Academic Career Education: He earned his doctorate from Oxford University.

Teaching: He taught at George Washington University and held the King Chair of Maritime History at the U.S. Naval War College.

Military: He was a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps.

---30---

I trust J. Kenneth McDonald's description of Shaw as a "highly paid contract source."

See JKM's credentials above. McDonald was not a leftie, or soured socialist or Jew-hater. He had enormous experience in matters CIA, and in fact, worked as the CIA's historian, and wrote those words in an initially classified CIA document.

Fred Litwin does a lot of good work, but flubbed it on JKM and Shaw.

[Tom Graves]

AI version:

J. Kenneth McDonald served as the Chief Historian of the Central Intelligence Agency from 1982 to 1996.

During his tenure, he helped establish the CIA Historical Review Program and oversaw declassification, internal research, and the creation of official, in-house histories of sensitive intelligence operations.

Background and Academic Career Education: He earned his doctorate from Oxford University.

Teaching: He taught at George Washington University and held the King Chair of Maritime History at the U.S. Naval War College.

Military: He was a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps.

---30---

I trust J. Kenneth McDonald's description of Shaw as a "highly paid contract source."

See JKM's credentials above. McDonald was not a leftie or soured socialist or Jew-hater. He had enormous experience in matters CIA, and in fact, worked as the CIA's historian, and wrote those words in an initially classified CIA document.

Fred Litwin does a lot of good work but flubbed it on JKM and Shaw.

J. Kenneth was under-the-gun timewise, and very likely overworked, understaffed, and perhaps even infiltrated by one of Bruce Leonard Solie's or Leonard V. McCoy's protégés, or . . . gasp . . . himself influenced by Comrade Stone's KGB-influenced film to change "highly valued contact source" to "highly paid contract source."

Question:

Do you believe world-travelling businessman Clay Shaw was a voluntary Domestic Contacts source from 1948 to 1956 who submitted eight reports to that "evil, evil" department?

Yes, or no?

If so, why doesn't J. Kenneth mention that?

Hmm?

[Benjamin Cole]

TG-

The preface to JKM's report shows he had a lot of help.

What makes you think JKM was understaffed and overworked?

I never heard of an overworked government employee. JKM likely held a comfortable position, which may be why he held onto it for 14 years, despite having qualifications for all sorts of positions anywhere.

What makes you think JKM, with enormous background and experience on matters CIA, made a basic error on Shaw? In a prominent position in a report submitted to his employer, the CIA? That stretches credulity.

JKM was not writing for Rolling Stone crackpots.

My take is JKM summed up Saw accurately.

The CIA never issued a correction or clarification to JKM's findings, so it appears the CIA stands behind JKM's work.

 

[Tom Graves]

TG-

The preface to JKM's report shows he had a lot of help.

What makes you think JKM was understaffed and overworked?

I never heard of an overworked government employee. JKM likely held a comfortable position, which may be why he held onto it for 14 years, despite having qualifications for all sorts of positions anywhere.

What makes you think JKM, with enormous background and experience on matters CIA, made a basic error on Shaw? In a prominent position in a report submitted to his employer, the CIA? That stretches credulity.

JKM was not writing for Rolling Stone crackpots.

My take is JKM summed up Saw accurately.

The CIA never issued a correction or clarification to JKM's findings, so it appears the CIA stands behind JKM's work.

 

Question:

Do you believe world-travelling businessman Clay Shaw was a patriotic voluntary Domestic Contacts source from 1948 to 1956 who submitted eight reports to that department, or do you think it was just a cover for his "fascistic" activity in Italy?

If the former, why doesn't J. Kenneth mention that?

Hmm?

[Benjamin Cole]

TG--

AFAIK, this is accurate: "Clay Shaw was a patriotic voluntary Domestic Contacts source from 1948 to 1956 who submitted eight (written) reports to that department."

Shaw may have submitted verbal reports, or other CIA'ers may have submitted written reports encompassing Shaw insights and observations, or contacts, but without crediting Shaw for security reasons. 

[Tom Graves]

TG--

AFAIK, this is accurate: "Clay Shaw was a patriotic voluntary Domestic Contacts source from 1948 to 1956 who submitted eight (written) reports to that department."

Shaw may have submitted verbal reports, or other CIA'ers may have submitted written reports encompassing Shaw insights and observations, or contacts, but without crediting Shaw for security reasons.

Maybe.

Maybe not.

Regardless, what's the difference between a gunsel, a CIA'er, and a perp?

Flash-bang in the bushes?

JBC's wincing, dropping his shoulder, and raising is hand along with JFK because he was just so happy to be there?

PS If, as you believe, Clay Shaw was a patriotic voluntary Domestic Contacts source from 1948 to 1956 who submitted eight informative written reports to that department, wouldn't that qualify him as a highly valued contact source?

[Benjamin Cole]

TG-

The word "voluntary" is not mutually exclusive with "highly paid."

I assume JKM is accurate in his description of Shaw as "highly paid." The CIA has never retracted, corrected or clarified that description of Shaw by their own historian.

As a non-CIA officer, Shaw was likely not instructed or ordered anywhere, but was likely asked to perform certain tasks, and voluntarily did so, and then was highly paid.

Shaw may have contributed large amounts of information to the CIA, though verbally, or may have performed tasks for which there is no revealing paperwork, such as moving goods internationally through front companies.

Shaw may have been a source for documents written by others, including CIA officers.

My take is Shaw was among a group of US assets somewhat monitoring LHO, and other Cuban assets, in New Orleans, and for good reason. LHO was a declared Marxist, had been to Russia, and may have been seen in company of G2'ers or DGI'ers.