Spies Next Door! 3 Stories of Espionage and Counterintelligence in Arlington VA

One does not think of Arlington, VA as an exotic center of international espionage and intrigue. But this quiet suburban neighbor of the nation's capital has played an intriguing role -- for good and ill -- in the modern-day struggle between spy and counter-spy.
Encore Learning and Arlington TV present a talk by Dr. David Robarge, chief historian of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Dr. Robarge's stories range from that of Arlington Hall, where the Army Signals Intelligence unit cracked parts of the Soviet intelligence code after WWII to James Angleton, whose obsession with a "mole" in the CIA destroyed careers and led to his own downfall, and Aldrich Ames, the most destructive spy in CIA history, whose treason led to the deaths of ten clandestine American sources inside the Soviet Union.
These tales tell of genius and betrayal, dogged detective work and missed opportunities, and intelligence success and failure in Arlington.
Dr. Robarge has also worked in the CIA Counterterrorism Center and in the Directorate of Intelligence as an analyst on Palestine and Iraq. His articles and book reviews have appeared in the CIA's in-house journal "Studies in Intelligence," "Intelligence and National Security" and the "Journal of Intelligence History." Dr. Robarge holds a Ph.D. in American history from Columbia University and has taught United States intelligence history at George Mason University.

[@James_Bowie]

Excellent presentation. 👍

[@stevehartman1730]

My older brother was Naval intel codebreaker 81/2 yrs very deeply involved in serving our Nations Defense. Thats bout all i know. He died in 2001 miss him. In 1968 he told Mom we think we have a mole. Noone would ever think he was anything more than a Navy Seaman.

[@MommaLousKitchen]

Well that's just a badass job

[@armytc86]

They will never tell the real complete truth of how things work, unless your in the circle. They say what they think you want too hear.

[@IZotit]

You didn’t listen. They did that to squelch the already corrupt US citizens that were Soviet assets. I’d like to be with the men and women that want to help me not kill me.

[@pinklady7184]

D V There are rare good people like that, including spies and moles, provided that they are altruistic.

[@ScribblebytesWorldwide]

Obviously. That's what your imagination is for...to fill in the blanks.

[@topherthe11th23]

37:44 - I can maybe understand how Hanssen avoided getting discovered. But Ames? Is it because the neon sign above his head saying "I am a Soviet spy?" wasn't plugged in? I mean, what would it have taken? That house, and the Jaguar parked at the Langley parking-lot didn't ring any bells? "Oh, thanks, Aldrich. Rich relative of the wife's. We'll give you a phone-call after we've confirmed that she existed and lived at the address your wife provides". I mean, you get in the car and say "That sounded convincing, so let's not check it". One guy, who wrote in during a presentation about a woman who caught Ames, caught where she said "So it was handed to me over our cubicle wall and ..." and he realized "Oh good night! This woman was in charge of hunting the worst mole ever" (up to that date) "and she is in a CUBICLE and not in an OFFICE? And nobody sees how the PRIORITIES are all wrong there?".

[@topherthe11th23]

But even while I recognize that Hanssen wasn't as stupid as Ames, I have to wonder why it is that a fellow who worked for the FBI (not the CIA) was able to inflict so much damage. I think the Russians didn't know him by name until almost the end, or maybe not even until after his arrest, and that there were both Russians and Americans who believed that whoever they would later discover him to be, he'd turn out to be employed by an agency on a list that did NOT include the FBI.

[@chief1960]

Follow the money all of it, an accountant is very smart and the credit report tells it all. It is all done now for money Period great program.

[@marshalllapenta7656]

I was surprised he mentioned that in the end?

[@deoglemnaco7025]

My daddy was a spy who then died in death row. Although he was a traitor to the USA as well as being a sexual criminal, he never lost sight of his love for me. I miss you dad and I will see you in heaven.

[@dominicseanmccann6300]

Well, everyone has a good side...😆

[@coimbralaw]

Your daddy?😂😂😂 wtf

[@deoglemnaco7025]

@@coimbralaw yes. My dad. I miss him very much. Shows like this remind me of him. Do you have a dad?

[@topherthe11th23]

What country imprisoned him on death row?

[@robertkerr3059]

I wonder how many spooks were on the committee that ok`d this version, certainly cant be the good doctor deciding what to pedal one would think

[@user-go7in7rw7r]

Agora eu sei de onde vem a voz anasalada kkk

[@whoknowsidont.5147]

Wow

[@taylorj6177]

Didn't they discover years later that it was in fact Angleton himself that was the mole... Was discussed in 2019 book *Talking with Strangers*

[@burnhamsghost8044]

Umm. No.

[@whoknowsidont.5147]

Been there

[@topherthe11th23]

17:44 - This speaker (Robarge) is fond of simultaneous but mutually contradictory statements. It's impossible for a person to be "exonerated" on a technicality. A conviction may get reversed and pending charges dismissed on technicalities, but that's not "exoneration", which is what happens when your innocence is confirmed or your guilt is cast into question. At 18:07 he holds the view, embracing simultaneous contradictions, that Ted Hall was NOT "implicated" (Robarge's word) but WAS "clearly" (my paraphrase) "involved" (again, list to HIS words). If evidence shows that you are "implicated", that's the same as showing that you are "clearly involved". If no evidence has "implicated" you, then no evidence has shown that you are "clearly involved". The two phrases are synonyms, and one either is both of them or is neither of them. Duh. (I believe Ted Hall's own confession in the matter.) Maybe Robarge doesn't actually believe his own nonsense but is just hoping to speak in a confusing manner to cloud the issues.

[@user-go7in7rw7r]

Espião vai preso, né?

[@MommaLousKitchen]

Yeah they'd never hire me. Still fascinating 😂

[@ScribblebytesWorldwide]

What makes you say that?

[@MommaLousKitchen]

@@ScribblebytesWorldwide idk, that was a year ago. I'd have to relisten lol

[@MommaLousKitchen]

@@ScribblebytesWorldwide daycare hours would kill it, no weekends, lmmfao 💀 probably my train of thought.

[@ronbyrd1616]

Then there are those that are caught and then there are those who aren't and the ones we dont know about. Also, a virtually open border for more than 2 decades could mean..!

[@willieboy3011]

Excellent program. Considering President Roosevelt's love of socialism and his socialist programs that he began, the utter infiltration of his administration, and his behaviour at Yalta; One cannot but speculate whether there was information implicating Roosevelt, in betraying Eastern Europe and the west by givcing away this to the USSR. Considering his admiration for socialism, did President Roosevelt look the other way or deemphize examination of CPUSA or communist sympathsizers under his administration that led to the saturation of his administration by SOVIET spies?

[@skianddie]

"The Problem" was quite a project during WWII. The problem was quietly figuring out what the hell our Russian friends were up to. Cracking the Russian code was a priority. The multi-layer pads the Russians used were tough to crack till USSR made mistakes. 'Course this was after Roosevelt took a dirt nap.

[@Prodriver33]

Fun

[@garfieldfarkle]

Capitalism thrived as never before or since, under Roosevelt. GDP in his first term was over 8% and no 4 year term since has risen to even half that total. Even more remarkable is the previous administration had seen a negative 8% GDP contraction. In his second term, GDP went up nearly 7% and was over 8% in his third term, which included WWII.. Roosevelt invested in the American people and it paid off in spades. Unemployment tumbled, loans to farmers turned agriculture into a mechanized industry, rural electrification and massive infrastructure projects built a foundation for the massive expansion of capitalism on his watch.. FDR is the subject of intense jealousy from Republicans, who can not point to anything they have done to improve the lives of Americans like Social Security, Rural Electrification or the infrastructure projects under FDR. But to their shame, Republicans fought the buildup of the U.S. military that FDR wanted. He saw war coming while Republicans were too busy listening to the Nazi sympathizer wing of their party and their "America first" claptrap.

[@kenzeier2943]

Garfield Farkle You are a babbler, not an historian.

[@garyowen9044]

Harry Hopkins was a Soviet mole.

[@ronbyrd1616]

When this govt doesnt recognize honor in its citizens affairs, e.g. individual or marriage/divorce , why would it expect honor in govt affairs? Most state laws now read "conduct is not an issue in matters of divorce". I personally hold this govt in contempt, and now view this as my country but not my government .

[@justinhaase8825]

Government: What if we put all the important people in one area such as the DC area to simplify life for foreign actors…we have an entire country but it’s all family here in NoVA/MD/DC… So smart they don’t even recognize their biggest flaws.

[@topherthe11th23]

29:04 - There is a school of thought that James Jesus Angleton worked for the Soviets, and that they had tasked him with the mission of destroying certain CIA projects that were going to end up being too harmful to Soviet interests. The method for destroying those projects would be to cast some exceptionally effective U.S. agent under the suspicion of being "the mole", sidelining that agent, and ruining their effectiveness. Do this enough, and do it in a country where people are free to resign if their friends are mistreated or they feel that they themselves might be wrongly suspected someday, and you eventually cripple the agency and starve it of talent. You might not do it to EVERY promising project, because that could cause suspicion to fall on Angleton. You don't want people saying "Why is it that everything we do that looks like a payday is 'revealed' by Angleton to be 'suspected of' harboring a mole? EVERY TIME?" because then Angleton himself might receive too much scrutiny. I don't know how likely it is that Angleton was a mole destroying the CIA from within by "finding" some other "mole". But the revelation here that Angleton and Philby were friends doesn't, to me, make it LESS likely.

[@nicoblaytherealflamingo445]

Talk about the whittier sheriffs department. Was USA s largest academy so much undercover, lots of people. Work government in area or hospital. They get to use military advanced counter Intel, Tunnels , drones everyvnight

[@IZotit]

Yeah my man. You should use voice dictation. I can’t understand a word you said.

[@colinstewart1432]

Who killed John A Paisley ? Who killed William Colby?

[@deejaye2647]

According to Kay Griggs one of the Seal Teams killed Colby.

[@sierrasfdph3486]

Corporate contractors are they biggest risk. No interest in reporting concerns or they will lose contract

[@TheCardAcctant]

Later2.7+Supplies

[@topherthe11th23]

19:17 - Again, a mistake that no elementary-school student would make. Had FDR died while Henry Wallace was Vice-President, the new President Wallace ABSOLUTELY COULD NOT have appointed Soviet Spy Laurence Duggan to be Vice-President. WHAT NONSENSE! Until the 1960s, when a Vice President became President there was no Vice-President until the next regular-cycle four-year election for both a President and a Vice-President took place. This mistake by Robarge is so bad that he should hide in s'ham'e. Look, genius, who became Vice President when LBJ was sworn in on the plane in Dallas? NOBODY. There was never another Vice President until Hubert Humphrey was elected Veep in 1964 (with LBJ being elected to remain President) and, in 1965, was sworn in. Vice Presidents were NOT appointed until the 1960s with the 25th Amendment.

[@matabeleman]

they did not catch him because of the old boy network...

[@maxsmith695]

maybe.

[@dianahill5116]

Humans have been evolving for at least five million years: stalking and animal tracks.

[@SedriqMiers]

Chief historian of the CIA ? that would be a redactor or censor !

[@maxsmith695]

LMAO. In another talk he mentioned 9/11 and Usama Bin Laden in the same sentence. That sock puppet is so worn out from use, it has holes in it. But if that is the prop, I guess you use it, holes and all.

[@burnhamsghost8044]

@@maxsmith695these things always bring out the loons.

[@deejaye2647]

Harry Dexter White - Silvermaster Spy Ring. Kissinger still alive

[@topherthe11th23]

36:52 - "Any reason you can think of for wanting to spy for the enemy is depicted here. Ego, greed, need, fantasy, disgruntlement, loneliness, psychological issues, you name it. They're all in here ..." Umm, what about a desire to combat the wrongdoing perpetrated by some sectors of some NATO-member governments? Did that not motivate even ONE spy to work for an enemy of the West? Wasn't George Blake motivated by the unconscionable bombing of civilian populations in North Korea? To deny that people might betray their country because their country is doing something wrong is the stepping-stone to fanatical nationalism that places loyalty to one country (or one idea about who God is) above loyalty to upholding Right and opposing Wrong. It is a form of nihilism that ultimately REPLACES "right" and "wrong" with "our side" and "their side". Nothing is more reprehensible.

[@marciasloan534]

Who in the HELL would risk working in the CIA !? If the enemy doesnt “Get you”, your co-workers will.

[@deoglemnaco7025]

A man named John Winnebago, that’s who. When America was occupied during the early 1970s, he was underground. People looked to him and rallied around him. It’s because of that man our government was restored

[@ScribblebytesWorldwide]

@@deoglemnaco7025 Who is that?

[@MommaLousKitchen]

Does work like that in the movies huh?

[@deoglemnaco7025]

@@ScribblebytesWorldwide I just explained it

[@michaelinzo]

Wtf why I'm watching this??

[@MommaLousKitchen]

Just in case, sh lol

[@MommaLousKitchen]

It's fascinating of you give it a minute

[@relaxwithnature6532]

America problem is that they keep giving access to classified information to foreigners.

[@MommaLousKitchen]

Not wrong

[@2AoDqqLTU5v]

Yet all of America’s most infamous traitors were born in America 😂

[@secretaryofstate1]

Are you referring to US citizens that come from other countries ?

[@011angelfire]

Both Ames and Hansen were natural born US citizens, so I don’t think it’s that in those specific cases.

[@tamikadriver36]

They live in my street Birmingham Alabama I'm a targeted person and all these evil folks moved on my road doing crimes

[@angelabetts9329]

Hey I live in Birmingham AL, are you okay?

[@beatlejuice7755]

The CIA does not like colored people or liberals. Free thinking is the antithesis of the US government.

[@rosesprog1722]

The Israelis erected a statue to a CIA man for services rendered to the Jewish state: James Jesus Angleton himself, could he be the famous mole? Certainly looks like it.

[@SedriqMiers]

see Brendon O'Connell II

[@colinstewart1432]

Angleton got a statue because he seeded the Israeli nuclear programme

[@rosesprog1722]

@@colinstewart1432 Possible, I think Grant Smith and his book or video 'Divert" got it quite right on thins. I also think Angleton has TWO statues in Israel.

[@deejaye2647]

You think this has stopped? Ha ha ha ha.

[@danr5105]

What is hard to understand is how "Soviet spies" were able to overlook how treacherous and murderous Stalin was. They had to know how evil Stalin was, they must have seen a second equal evil somewhere.

[@pinklady7184]

They forget that Stalin was Georgian, not true Russian. He treated Georgians many times better than Russians. He actually sent surplus food aids to Georgia, while he let several millions of Russians starve during famine.

[@danr5105]

@Suomalaisia rukouksia Hello "suo" What first came right to my mind while reading your thread was just how many of these "group x against group y" conflicts there are. I can remember whey I first heard about "Shiite vrs Sunni" (I say from Iraq/Iran events,not Middle East) I thought "it will never be important keeping these groups straight". I mean there are so many conflicts. Why watch? For one, identifying when "we" are sliding to a tipping point.

[@orlandusbarrow8692]

Because Stalin made the people he killed “others” based on creed religion education level and socioeconomic status just like every othe piece of shit like him!!

[@dominicseanmccann6300]

Fascism.

[@krystalgrimes716]

Anyone ever hear of Jerry K. Lester?

[@Prodriver33]

Krystal Grimes dead, CIA?

[@bruce8429]

Doing the job. Example of CIA at work keeping all Americans paranoid as hell.

[@baldogtondo7017]

ames wife is liken to imelda marcos of the Philippines the mother of newly elected president Ferdinand Marcos Jr. the son of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. quo Vadis Philippines..

[@topherthe11th23]

40:22 - Thank you for the correct use of "Ames's victims" rather than the far-too-common "Ames' victims", the latter of which implies that there is more than one person sharing the last name "Ame", and that the group of them are "the Ames", and that something they posses is "the Ames' possession". Even the New York Times is contradicting its own stylebook on that, lately.

[@samking4179]

this guy is a salesman

[@savannajane3705]

tips on ugly intruders.. spell as many words incorrectly n then take a while to correct, watch closely n you may see the help in correction..

[@randalfarrington2612]

OK he

[@headdragondavidaustinsimmo4025]

My land Pima DAS Ying dynasty belong to me adam and king pima Chinese president

[@headdragondavidaustinsimmo4025]

George branam cherokee 3 mole on cheek Aaron Neville Puma king pume county down George Forman Pawnee king mole below knee Benjamin priminster the tallest one thats all folks

[@charleskuehn1517]

L

[@matabeleman]

the investigator was a female...

[@pinklady7184]

They least suspect a female as a spy.

[@user-go7in7rw7r]

Tudo mentira kkkkkkkkkkk mentirosos