[3]“\104-10105-10126 | 2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992 |
[5]3 June 1976
[7]MEMORANDUM FOR: Chief, External Activities Branch
[8]Office of Security
[10]FROM > John H. Stein
[11]Deputy Chief, Soviet/East European Division.
[13]SUBJECT : Manuscript by David Phillips.
[15]_ 1. At the risk of tilting continually at windmills, it ;
[16]is the undersigned's view, and that of innumerable colleagues,
[17]that Mr. Phillips’ book should not be published. In the first
[18]‘instance, those portions we have read are superficial and give
[19]the reader the impression that the profession which Mr. Phillips
[20]practiced so well is one of derring-do, frivolity and foolishness.
[21]More seriously, the entire book is based on knowledge acquired
[22]by Mr. Phillips during his career in the Agency. Whether a
[23]given sentence is in the public domain or not, Mr. Phillips
[24]should not put his stamp of authenticity on that sentence.
[26]If publish Mr. Phillips must, and if the Agency cannot legally
[27]stop him, then so be it. Hopefully, while there is still time,
[28]someone will push for appropriate legislation to stop this
[29]foolishness. ;
[31]2. While it is perhaps fruitless, we have attempted to
[32]identify some of the more damaging items in the text as
[33]drafted. These are cited below:
[35]a. Page 15: Discussion of back channel communi-
[36]cations used to circumvent the Secretary of State seems
[37]to be ill-advised and not designed to enhance Agency
[38]relations with State.
[40]b. Page 23: There begins here a discussion of the
[41]use of women by the DDO. While I understand
[42]Mr. Phillips' desire to indicate that the DDO does in
[43]fact hire women and minorities, this section causes
[44]Some anguish. At the present time, certainly in the
[45]Near East, Eastern Europe, and the Soviet Union, the
[47]E2 IMPDET
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[55]‘use of women provides us an operational flexibility
[57]which we would not otherwise have. It is quite
[58]evident, furthermore, that the local security services
[59]have not focused on the extent to which we do use
[60]women. We would like to keep it that way as long as
[61]we possibly can, and it is the undersigned's firm
[62]belief that statements from Mr. Phillips, obviously
[63]authentic, will rather quickly bring the women we do
[64]use under increased scrutiny of hostile intelligence
[65]services. Further, in opening the Pandora's box of
[66]the use of women and minorities in the DDO, Mr. Phillips
[67]may be opening both himself and the DDO to unjustified
[68]criticism that we are either exploiting women or not
[69]hiring enough of them; similarly the minorities.
[71]c. Page 25: I have known personally for 17 years
[72]the girl who, although stripped naked by burglars,
[73]managed to save her mother and father from harn. There
[74]are others elsewhere in the government and probably
[76].outside who are knowledgeable about the incident. The
[78]girl, now a lovely lady, is about to be dispatched under
[79]very sensitive cover abroad. Mr. Phillips would do well
[80]to delete reference to her as being an Agency employee.
[82]d. Page 26: I think it is unwise for Mr. Phillips
[83]to conjecture on the reason why there are few blacks
[84]employed in the DDO. His reasoning may be correct,
[85]but I would venture that not everyone who reads his
[86]book will believe so, and the Agency may come under
[87]unfortunate pressure because of it. The specific
[88]black cited on page 27 as having removed a flag from
[89]the hands of demonstrators is a personal friend of
[90]mine. He is under cover. By citing the incident,
[91]Mr. Phillips removes that cover, for the black re-
[92]trieved the flag as an American citizen, not as a CIA
[93]officer. In sum, I would suggest the deletion of the
[94]section involving women and minorities because it
[95]opens a Pandora's box and because, as written, the
[96]cover of two highly effective officers is placed in
[97]jeopardy.
[99]e. Page 36: The anecdote on page 36 should at_
[101]least be modified. The person referred to is the
[102]undersigned. JI am the only Agency and State officer
[104]‘who owns a Chow dog. All my acquaintantes abroad
[106]Era
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[113]: 5 A590 Neg Reproducs
[115]know I own the Chow dog. To avoid damaging further
[116]what cover I have left, I would appreciate Mr. Phillips
[117]Simply citing "dog" or calling it a "poodle."
[119]hn ta Ceo —~