The Founding Fathers of American of Intelligence

The CIA opened its new Liaison Conference Center in 1997, which has three fully renovated conference spaces for receiving visitors from other countries. The three primary components of the intelligence discipline—collection of foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, and covert action—were named after former practitioners by agency officials. Three Revolutionary War generals were chosen after extensive historical research, all of them are better known for their other historical exploits and successes than for their exceptional intelligence abilities.

The obvious choice for gathering foreign intelligence was George Washington. The founding father of our nation was a skilled spymaster. Throughout his lengthy military career, he oversaw a number of agent networks, gave his agents thorough training in intelligence tradecraft, and efficiently utilized their intelligence while organizing and carrying out military actions. John Jay is regarded as the father of American counterintelligence. He later rose to the position of Chief Justice of the United States. Jay's efforts in this field are rarely mentioned in historical accounts; instead, his reputation is entirely based on his work in politics and the law. He did, however, indubitably earn the distinction of being the country's first national counterintelligence chief. The final room was named for the American hero Benjamin Franklin. His activities in what is now referred to as covert action were extensive and frequently successful. Franklin conducted propaganda campaigns, acted as an agent of influence, and oversaw paramilitary attacks against British property during the Revolutionary War.