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The Last Honest Man: The CIA, the FBI, the Mafia, and the Kennedys―and One Senator's Fight to Save Democracy
Witnesses were mysteriously murdered. The FBI, NSA, CIA, and even the IRS were on the warpath. It was 1975, and a senator named Frank Church stood almost alone in the face of extraordinary abuses of power.
For decades now, America’s national security state has grown ever bigger, ever more secretive and powerful, and ever more abusive. Only once did someone manage to put a stop to any of it.
Senator Frank Church of Idaho was an unlikely hero. He led congressional opposition to the Vietnam War and had become a scathing, radical critic of what he saw as American imperialism around the world. But he was still politically ambitious, privately yearning for acceptance from the foreign policy establishment that he hated and eager to run for president. Despite his flaws, Church would show historic strength in his greatest moment, when in the wake of Watergate he was suddenly tasked with investigating abuses of power in the intelligence community. The dark truths that Church exposed—from assassination plots by the CIA, to links between the Kennedy dynasty and the mafia, to the surveillance of civil rights activists by the NSA and FBI—would shake the nation to its core, and forever change the way that Americans thought about not only their government but also their ability to hold it accountable.
Drawing upon hundreds of interviews, thousands of pages of recently declassified documents, and reams of unpublished letters, notes, and memoirs, some of which remain sensitive today, Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter James Risen tells the gripping, untold story of truth and integrity standing against unchecked power—and winning—in The Last Honest Man.
For decades now, America’s national security state has grown ever bigger, ever more secretive and powerful, and ever more abusive. Only once did someone manage to put a stop to any of it.
Senator Frank Church of Idaho was an unlikely hero. He led congressional opposition to the Vietnam War and had become a scathing, radical critic of what he saw as American imperialism around the world. But he was still politically ambitious, privately yearning for acceptance from the foreign policy establishment that he hated and eager to run for president. Despite his flaws, Church would show historic strength in his greatest moment, when in the wake of Watergate he was suddenly tasked with investigating abuses of power in the intelligence community. The dark truths that Church exposed—from assassination plots by the CIA, to links between the Kennedy dynasty and the mafia, to the surveillance of civil rights activists by the NSA and FBI—would shake the nation to its core, and forever change the way that Americans thought about not only their government but also their ability to hold it accountable.
Drawing upon hundreds of interviews, thousands of pages of recently declassified documents, and reams of unpublished letters, notes, and memoirs, some of which remain sensitive today, Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter James Risen tells the gripping, untold story of truth and integrity standing against unchecked power—and winning—in The Last Honest Man.
480 pages, Hardcover
First published May 9, 2023
278 people are currently reading
4609 people want to read
About the author
James Risen
12 books118 followersJames Risen covers national security for The New York Times.
He was a member of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting in 2002 for coverage of September 11 and terrorism, and he is the coauthor of Wrath of Angels and The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB.
He lives outside Washington, D.C., with his wife and three sons.
He was a member of the team that won the Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting in 2002 for coverage of September 11 and terrorism, and he is the coauthor of Wrath of Angels and The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB.
He lives outside Washington, D.C., with his wife and three sons.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 148 reviews
March 22, 2025
James Risen’s new biography, The Last Honest Man, is a long-overdue chronicle of the Church Committee’s 1975 investigation of American intelligence abuses. Risen, a veteran intelligence writer, centers his narrative around Frank Church, the Idaho Senator who spent most of his career butting heads against America’s military-industrial complex. A liberal from a conservative state, Church started his career as a typical Cold War hawk only to become disillusioned by the Vietnam War. This was a common enough position for Democrats by the late ‘60s, but Church went further, launching probes that questioned the very basis of American foreign policy. He held hearings on multinational ITT’s meddling in Chile and other foreign countries, then launched an investigation of corrupt airline contracts that led to scandals in both the United States and Japan, hoping to spur a broader exposure of corporate influence in geopolitics. This gained Church a circle of admirers as a rare Washington truth teller, but also earned the enmity of presidents and colleagues in the Senate, who viewed him as a pompous gadfly.
Finally, soon after the Watergate scandal and the fall of Richard Nixon, Church found himself heading a Senate committee investigating the bulwarks of America’s Cold War security state: the FBI, CIA, NSA and other intelligence agencies. After a series of reports by Seymour Hersh laid the groundwork, Church and his committee plunged into a months-long excavation of intelligence abuses, interviewing FBI officials, CIA directors and witnesses to their activities. Battling resistance from the Ford Administration (including a whitewashed presidential commission), stonewalling by the agencies (save CIA director William Colby, who cooperated in an effort to lessen the Committee's impact) and skepticism from his colleagues, Church exposed some of the darkest secrets of postwar America: CIA complicity in assassinations in Chile, Congo and South Vietnam, along with the repeated, failed attempts to kill Cuba’s Fidel Castro; the Agency’s ties to organized crime, particularly in the Castro plots; domestic surveillance of dissidents and mind control experiments; the FBI’s COINTELPRO program against Martin Luther King and other Civil Rights and antiwar leaders; and the NSA, virtually unknown outside of Washington before the investigation, with its widespread surveillance of American communications.
Though Church initially viewed these agencies as a “rogue elephant,” he was forced to conclude that decades of presidents were complicit in their crimes. Eisenhower explicitly ordered an assassination of Congo’s Patrice Lumumba (though Belgian operatives killed him first), Kennedy encouraged the plots against Castro, Johnson expanded CHAOS and COINTELPRO operations against the domestic Left and Nixon, of course, abused all of these agencies in ways both typical and personalized. Hopes by Democratic committee members that they could focus on Republican abuses came a cropper as witnesses testified about Robert Kennedy approving FBI wiretaps on King and other civil rights leaders, or JFK's secondhand ties to organized crime, or Johnson's cozy, mutually beneficial relationship with J. Edgar Hoover - clearly, the abuse was systemic and not merely a partisan issue. Church’s committee briefly shot him to fame, resulting in a failed presidential campaign; it also earned him the enmity of the Washington establishment, who teamed with conservative Idahoans to defeat him in his 1980 reelection bid.
Risen expertly details all of this, most of these stories individually known through previous books but still staggering when compiled together. (Earlier works about the committee, like Senate researcher Loch Johnson’s memoir A Season of Inquiry, can be hard to track down.) The book emphasizes that while the Church Committee failed to gain the attention of the Watergate hearings, its revelations were far more momentous and the stakes for exposure far more deadly (multiple committee witnesses, notably gangsters Sam Giancana and Johnny Rosselli, were murdered soon after testifying). Certainly Church faced at least comparable efforts of smear and obfuscation, notably the Ford Administration’s attempts to blame Church for the murder of a CIA agent by Greek radicals, and predictable efforts by Republicans (including committee member Barry Goldwater) to accuse Church of leading a partisan "witch hunt." Even so, Church and his colleagues persisted and presented a record of government overreach and abuse of power that no one could ignore.
Risen’s view of Church himself is unreservedly positive, stressing his bold anti-corporate stance, his early environmental activism (an important issue in the Western state of Idaho) and his willingness to take unpopular stances at risk to his career. Risen does occasionally acknowledge Church’s sometimes contradictory stances; he could sound like a typical Kennedyesque hawk on some issues and a radical writing for Ramparts at other times, he opposed gun control and held a few other positions that modern progressives would not appreciate. It’s also likely that Risen overstates the ultimate impact of Church’s hearings; while the CIA and FBI’s reputation was tarnished and stronger congressional oversight enacted, the reforms implemented after 1975 continued to be ignored or circumvented long after. The NSA, meanwhile, happily returned to obscurity until Bush and Obama-era revelations about its surveillance programs enhanced its notoriety. Even so, Risen makes a compelling argument that Church and his investigators rendered an invaluable service, in exposing the sordid inner workings of the American state and demonstrating Congress’s ability, and willingness to stand up to unfettered executive power. It’s hardly Church’s fault if his warnings went unheeded; and for modern readers, Risen’s book serves as an important reminder.
Note: Full-length review and commentary here.
Finally, soon after the Watergate scandal and the fall of Richard Nixon, Church found himself heading a Senate committee investigating the bulwarks of America’s Cold War security state: the FBI, CIA, NSA and other intelligence agencies. After a series of reports by Seymour Hersh laid the groundwork, Church and his committee plunged into a months-long excavation of intelligence abuses, interviewing FBI officials, CIA directors and witnesses to their activities. Battling resistance from the Ford Administration (including a whitewashed presidential commission), stonewalling by the agencies (save CIA director William Colby, who cooperated in an effort to lessen the Committee's impact) and skepticism from his colleagues, Church exposed some of the darkest secrets of postwar America: CIA complicity in assassinations in Chile, Congo and South Vietnam, along with the repeated, failed attempts to kill Cuba’s Fidel Castro; the Agency’s ties to organized crime, particularly in the Castro plots; domestic surveillance of dissidents and mind control experiments; the FBI’s COINTELPRO program against Martin Luther King and other Civil Rights and antiwar leaders; and the NSA, virtually unknown outside of Washington before the investigation, with its widespread surveillance of American communications.
Though Church initially viewed these agencies as a “rogue elephant,” he was forced to conclude that decades of presidents were complicit in their crimes. Eisenhower explicitly ordered an assassination of Congo’s Patrice Lumumba (though Belgian operatives killed him first), Kennedy encouraged the plots against Castro, Johnson expanded CHAOS and COINTELPRO operations against the domestic Left and Nixon, of course, abused all of these agencies in ways both typical and personalized. Hopes by Democratic committee members that they could focus on Republican abuses came a cropper as witnesses testified about Robert Kennedy approving FBI wiretaps on King and other civil rights leaders, or JFK's secondhand ties to organized crime, or Johnson's cozy, mutually beneficial relationship with J. Edgar Hoover - clearly, the abuse was systemic and not merely a partisan issue. Church’s committee briefly shot him to fame, resulting in a failed presidential campaign; it also earned him the enmity of the Washington establishment, who teamed with conservative Idahoans to defeat him in his 1980 reelection bid.
Risen expertly details all of this, most of these stories individually known through previous books but still staggering when compiled together. (Earlier works about the committee, like Senate researcher Loch Johnson’s memoir A Season of Inquiry, can be hard to track down.) The book emphasizes that while the Church Committee failed to gain the attention of the Watergate hearings, its revelations were far more momentous and the stakes for exposure far more deadly (multiple committee witnesses, notably gangsters Sam Giancana and Johnny Rosselli, were murdered soon after testifying). Certainly Church faced at least comparable efforts of smear and obfuscation, notably the Ford Administration’s attempts to blame Church for the murder of a CIA agent by Greek radicals, and predictable efforts by Republicans (including committee member Barry Goldwater) to accuse Church of leading a partisan "witch hunt." Even so, Church and his colleagues persisted and presented a record of government overreach and abuse of power that no one could ignore.
Risen’s view of Church himself is unreservedly positive, stressing his bold anti-corporate stance, his early environmental activism (an important issue in the Western state of Idaho) and his willingness to take unpopular stances at risk to his career. Risen does occasionally acknowledge Church’s sometimes contradictory stances; he could sound like a typical Kennedyesque hawk on some issues and a radical writing for Ramparts at other times, he opposed gun control and held a few other positions that modern progressives would not appreciate. It’s also likely that Risen overstates the ultimate impact of Church’s hearings; while the CIA and FBI’s reputation was tarnished and stronger congressional oversight enacted, the reforms implemented after 1975 continued to be ignored or circumvented long after. The NSA, meanwhile, happily returned to obscurity until Bush and Obama-era revelations about its surveillance programs enhanced its notoriety. Even so, Risen makes a compelling argument that Church and his investigators rendered an invaluable service, in exposing the sordid inner workings of the American state and demonstrating Congress’s ability, and willingness to stand up to unfettered executive power. It’s hardly Church’s fault if his warnings went unheeded; and for modern readers, Risen’s book serves as an important reminder.
Note: Full-length review and commentary here.
July 27, 2023
I campaigned for Church in his 1976 campaign for the presidency and was anxious to read this book to see if my opinion had changed. With this well researched and well written book, I am glad to say that not alone has my opinion not changed but that it has been strengthened. Risen covers the story of Church's Intelligence Committee hearings through the lens of all the players and from outsiders and journalists of the times.
Risen never claims that Church was perfect- but he was exceptional and he was honest. It was this very quality that led many people to dislike him. It was his investigation into the wrongdoings of the CIA that led them and their defenders to attack him. He also investigated wrong doing by the FBI and other heretofore unregulated government agencies. They had gotten away with a multitude of "sins" and Church sought to stop them- for the first time. He also held the politicians who let them away with it. From Eisenhower to Kennedy to Nixon, they were held to account. The regulations put into place at the time remain in place and have proven to be very important in holding these agencies to account. For example, following 9-11, those who violated the law were brought to task.
I highly recommend this book.
Risen never claims that Church was perfect- but he was exceptional and he was honest. It was this very quality that led many people to dislike him. It was his investigation into the wrongdoings of the CIA that led them and their defenders to attack him. He also investigated wrong doing by the FBI and other heretofore unregulated government agencies. They had gotten away with a multitude of "sins" and Church sought to stop them- for the first time. He also held the politicians who let them away with it. From Eisenhower to Kennedy to Nixon, they were held to account. The regulations put into place at the time remain in place and have proven to be very important in holding these agencies to account. For example, following 9-11, those who violated the law were brought to task.
I highly recommend this book.
May 23, 2023
A stunning portrait of how a politician motivated by principle uncovered serious abuses of power. Every other sentence reveals a new story that might be worthy of its own book. Together they make a compelling case for what can be accomplished because of - and in spite of - our representative democracy.
August 2, 2023
This was a fascinating read that I flew through, which is not normal for nonfiction. I am fascinated by this era, all the death, conspiracies, and intertwined nature of the government, CIA, Hollywood and whatnot. The Last Honest Man focuses on Frank Church, and his role in trying to fight the good fight and hold those accountable that did wrong, and he had a task ahead of him in doing so, but was actually quite successful believe it or not. The Senator of Idaho led congressional opposition to the Vietnam War, but his big moment came when he was tasked with investigating abuses of power in the intelligence community. Church exposed dark truths from assassination plots by the CIA to links between the Kennedy dynasty and the mafia, to the surveillance of civil rights activists by the NSA and FBI. This was such a riveting read about an era that holds a mystique about it and has so many conspiracy theories due to how much speculation there is I think, and that is why I enjoyed this so much.
I read this via audiobook and the narrator did a great job with it, but I did follow along with the book, and I thought that it was helpful to do it that way as the book had pictures which helped me keep some of the more obscure folks straight that I was not as familiar with. The ending drug a little bit for me, but I absolutely enjoyed this one and highly recommend it if you like this period and all of the drama and corruption that came with it.
Thank you to Novel Suspects and Little, Brown, and Company for the free copy to review.
I read this via audiobook and the narrator did a great job with it, but I did follow along with the book, and I thought that it was helpful to do it that way as the book had pictures which helped me keep some of the more obscure folks straight that I was not as familiar with. The ending drug a little bit for me, but I absolutely enjoyed this one and highly recommend it if you like this period and all of the drama and corruption that came with it.
Thank you to Novel Suspects and Little, Brown, and Company for the free copy to review.
November 4, 2024
A solid and readable work, basically a biography of Church.
Much of the book deals with the hearings held by Church’s Senate committee, and Risen suggests that, while explosive, many of these revelations were soon forgotten in the aftermath of Watergate. The book also covers the committee’s revelations about CIA assassination plots and the FBI’s domestic surveillance. Risen also notes Dick Cheney’s efforts to impede Church’s reform efforts. “By trying to erase Church Committee reforms in order to engage in illicit and immoral activities, Cheney reminded the country of the importance of those reforms. Cheney's constant harping against the Church Committee's reforms eventually convinced many Americans that if Cheney hated them so much, maybe they weren't so bad. Dick Cheney became an unlikely salesman for the Church Committee.”
Risen does a good job capturing the atmosphere of the times and the character of Church. He points out Church’s ego and his presidential ambitions, and how these may have helped him lose re-election in 1980. He also details his often hostile relationships with America’s presidents. The narrative is pretty straightforward.
Occasionally, Risen comments on the contemporary political scene, which some readers may find distracting. Also, Risen’s discussion of the Church Committee investigation focuses heavily on the CIA; there is little on its revelations about FBI and NSA operations. The book’s conclusion may feel rushed to some readers. At one point Risen speculates that, since he was Catholic, Bill Colby “may secretly have felt compelled to cooperate with Church’s investigation as a form of penance for his involvement in the blood-soaked [Phoenix] program.” At one point Risen mentions the famous incident where the senators on the Church Committee handled that dart gun, which the public assumed was a CIA asssassination tool, even though the Army had developed it as a tool against sentry dogs, something the authors don't clarify. Kim Philby is called a “double agent,” when he was a mole. Risen claims the CIA was involved in coup plots against Diem. He also calls the 1973 coup against Allende “CIA-backed.” One of the book’s pictures is a series of tiny photographs, set up to look like a film reel for some reason. There’s also a few typos.
A well-written and well-researched work.
Much of the book deals with the hearings held by Church’s Senate committee, and Risen suggests that, while explosive, many of these revelations were soon forgotten in the aftermath of Watergate. The book also covers the committee’s revelations about CIA assassination plots and the FBI’s domestic surveillance. Risen also notes Dick Cheney’s efforts to impede Church’s reform efforts. “By trying to erase Church Committee reforms in order to engage in illicit and immoral activities, Cheney reminded the country of the importance of those reforms. Cheney's constant harping against the Church Committee's reforms eventually convinced many Americans that if Cheney hated them so much, maybe they weren't so bad. Dick Cheney became an unlikely salesman for the Church Committee.”
Risen does a good job capturing the atmosphere of the times and the character of Church. He points out Church’s ego and his presidential ambitions, and how these may have helped him lose re-election in 1980. He also details his often hostile relationships with America’s presidents. The narrative is pretty straightforward.
Occasionally, Risen comments on the contemporary political scene, which some readers may find distracting. Also, Risen’s discussion of the Church Committee investigation focuses heavily on the CIA; there is little on its revelations about FBI and NSA operations. The book’s conclusion may feel rushed to some readers. At one point Risen speculates that, since he was Catholic, Bill Colby “may secretly have felt compelled to cooperate with Church’s investigation as a form of penance for his involvement in the blood-soaked [Phoenix] program.” At one point Risen mentions the famous incident where the senators on the Church Committee handled that dart gun, which the public assumed was a CIA asssassination tool, even though the Army had developed it as a tool against sentry dogs, something the authors don't clarify. Kim Philby is called a “double agent,” when he was a mole. Risen claims the CIA was involved in coup plots against Diem. He also calls the 1973 coup against Allende “CIA-backed.” One of the book’s pictures is a series of tiny photographs, set up to look like a film reel for some reason. There’s also a few typos.
A well-written and well-researched work.
March 30, 2026
Should be required reading for all Idahoans.
Was not expecting to see Will Smith’s Oscar slap to get a mention
Was not expecting to see Will Smith’s Oscar slap to get a mention
May 23, 2023
This is a great story, a fast read, and I enjoyed it and learned a lot. However, I think it might have been a much better book if it had been written by an historian rather than a journalist. The were too many positive or negative adjectives, depending on the noun being modified. Just present the facts, and let the readers form their own opinions.
February 27, 2023
The Last Honest Man by James Risen and Thomas Risen
To start, The Last Honest Man is former Senator Frank Church from Idaho. I enjoyed reading this book but it is certainly for a specific type of political junky. The story stays on track and is essentially the life and times of Church as he becomes the head of an investigation in the Senate that was called The Church Commission. The purpose was to understand and then propose legislation to finally put in controls on the Intelligence Agencies including the CIA, NSA and the FBI. Coming out of the Red Scare Era, congress had provided no oversight to these groups and either on their own or with a wink from multiple presidents had overstepped boundaries. This included assassination of foreign leaders, spying on Americans, illegal wire- tapping and attempting to destroy the reputations of leading controversial Americans such as Martin Luther King.
The story is timely, since at the moment the Republican controlled US House has started an investigation against some of the same agencies in an attempt to suggest there is bias against the Right. This committee headed by Jim Jordan even tries to cloak themselves as a Church Committee investigation. The original committee headed by Senator Church was remarkably bipartisan. Although at that time ( during the Ford Administration) The House was vastly Democrat, Church set up the committee 6-5 Democrat. And even with Barry Goldwater, and Senator Towers of Texas as vice-chair there was a very impartial effort to get to the bottom of the illegal activities of the spy agency.
It is worth a read for those who believe or not that there is a Deep State today. It is just a shame we will not have an investigation run by adults.
October 10, 2025
This was a well-researched book focusing on the life and political career of Senator Frank Church from Idaho. A Democrat who served as chairman of the Church Commission, his committee led the first investigation into the US Intelligence community, exposing covert operations, political assassinations, LSD experimentation, and a host of other speculative activities.
Throughout his tenure in the Senate he served under both Democratic and Republican administrations, encountering issues with both in their priorities and and personal goals, and battled each with a direct conviction to honor the Constitution while gaining publicity and prominence in hopes of a future presidential candidacy.
To be honest, the more I read the madder I became. My father worked in Army Security/Intelligence via NSA from 1955-1977 and I shudder to think what activities he was a part of in the name of patriotism and duty. As a current military spouse, the same arguments and excuses given by Congress, Intelligence, and the White House fifty plus years ago are still touted out daily via the media. Which leads me to believe it will take another generation or two for those outdated ideas and archaic politicians to lose favor and disappear.
Throughout his tenure in the Senate he served under both Democratic and Republican administrations, encountering issues with both in their priorities and and personal goals, and battled each with a direct conviction to honor the Constitution while gaining publicity and prominence in hopes of a future presidential candidacy.
To be honest, the more I read the madder I became. My father worked in Army Security/Intelligence via NSA from 1955-1977 and I shudder to think what activities he was a part of in the name of patriotism and duty. As a current military spouse, the same arguments and excuses given by Congress, Intelligence, and the White House fifty plus years ago are still touted out daily via the media. Which leads me to believe it will take another generation or two for those outdated ideas and archaic politicians to lose favor and disappear.
January 25, 2025
What I find most fascinating about this book is that the CIA reviewed it (see the link below) and pointed out areas that it saw as inaccurate. Given the CIA's known history of misdeeds (MKULTRA, illegal domestic spying, etc.), I view their assessment of truth skeptically. I would love to read someone with a better knowledge of CIA history review their review.
https://www.cia.gov/resources/csi/sta...
https://www.cia.gov/resources/csi/sta...
February 2, 2024
A thorough biography of Frank Church, the Senator from Idaho, and his work on the Church Committee investigating the misdeeds of CIA, FBI, and NSA. Church is an icon for the progressive platform whose work, I feel, is unfortunately overshadowed by the Watergate Scandal. You will like this book if you are interested in government conspiracies, political assassinations, and the 1960s-1970s.
June 10, 2023
The last honest man was a very good book. It told the story of senator Frank church and how he rose from a small town in Idaho and became a well known and respected senator from Idaho.
March 30, 2026
We need a new church committee
May 25, 2023
While those of us of a certain age may vaguely remember Senator Frank Church, this book tells a story that most of us have forgotten—how the Democratic senator from Idaho led a committee that delved into the secret and unguarded worlds of the CIA, the FBI, and the NSA and prompted reforms and enduring antipathy. Although Church was in many ways a conventional and ambitious politician, he was also ahead of his time. After an early hawkish outlook on Vietnam, he evolved to see our engagement in that civil war as hopelessly muddled and morally wrong and spoke out passionately against the war. He was also the first senator to recognize and criticize the dangers of letting government agencies wage clandestine campaigns on behalf of oppressive regimes that serve American interests or against democratically elected regimes that don't. In telling Church's story, Risen opens a window on many different political figures and practices of another era. The Church Committee exposed some of the worst abuses of power by the FBI—especially the spying on Martin Luther King, Jr.—but held back some other abuses, such as the assassination of the Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton in 1969. Even as they exposed some of the CIA's assassination attempts, they held others back. Yet Risen argues the Church Committee still represents a high water mark in senate investigations. This is a well-told story that is enlightening and surprising, and I'm very glad I read it.
July 11, 2023
I was looking forward to this book about an absolutely critical and understudied effort in 20th c. American history. But I really struggled with a) the author's inability to get any critical distance from Frank Church and take any of the criticism of him seriously and b) the book's tendency to wander away from Church and spend a bunch of time with the stuff his committee investigated, much of which has been extensively covered in other books. Still a good book, but for me it fell a bit short of its promise.
August 9, 2023
This was a pretty good book. I learned a lot of stuff I didn’t know.
I think it could have been a better book if it had told the whole story about the reasons the CIA did what they did. An example of this is the Salvador Allende issue. The book says he was “duly elected” but leaves out that he only had 36% of the vote and that a morjority of Chileans disapproved of him. He also had Fidel Castro and the soviet Union helping him out. He had begun extremely destructive economic policies similar to those of Mao tse Tung. Seizing peoples property and giving it to those who had no idea what to do with it and in the process ruining the economy. Allende alse engaged in more than his fair share of butchery. An investion showed that he really did commit suicide as opposed to being assasinated.
Senator Church did find a lot of bad things that the CIA and FBI were doing so in the balance of things he seems to have done a good job.
Senator Church was naive enough to visit Fidel Castro and be taken on a tour of Cuba by him. The author seems to think this was a good thing. If he is going to write a book about assasination being bad then maybe he could have pointed out the horrible things Castro did. In fact while thinking about this I am going to lower my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars.
I think it could have been a better book if it had told the whole story about the reasons the CIA did what they did. An example of this is the Salvador Allende issue. The book says he was “duly elected” but leaves out that he only had 36% of the vote and that a morjority of Chileans disapproved of him. He also had Fidel Castro and the soviet Union helping him out. He had begun extremely destructive economic policies similar to those of Mao tse Tung. Seizing peoples property and giving it to those who had no idea what to do with it and in the process ruining the economy. Allende alse engaged in more than his fair share of butchery. An investion showed that he really did commit suicide as opposed to being assasinated.
Senator Church did find a lot of bad things that the CIA and FBI were doing so in the balance of things he seems to have done a good job.
Senator Church was naive enough to visit Fidel Castro and be taken on a tour of Cuba by him. The author seems to think this was a good thing. If he is going to write a book about assasination being bad then maybe he could have pointed out the horrible things Castro did. In fact while thinking about this I am going to lower my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars.
July 21, 2023
Rounded up to 4 stars somewhere. It's a well written book chronicling the life of Frank Church, someone whose committee I know was important but I haven't read that much about since it happened during the Ford presidency and there's just not that much on that in general. I'm a little confused by the title 'The Last Honest Man' because I'm not sure it lives up to that, but Church was certainly a politician of another era. The story itself is pretty surface level, but certainly comprehensive of Church's life. If you are interested in reform of our intelligence agencies, this is certainly for you.
July 31, 2023
Been a long time reading, in part, I think, because I didn’t want to miss a word, a context, a connection. Risen’s telling is thorough and sincere. In this current environment, never is it more glaringly important than we do not fail to remember the past. Church’s passion for steering this country to right over might and in plain sight made an infinite imprint on this country in the spirit of keeping this country healthy, ethically upholding the ideals that set this country on its enduring path, all in the spirit of do no harm.
August 25, 2024
Great man !!! Should be required reading for every American!!!
Remarkable, amazing, fantastic American Hero !!! Perfect title for a moral, principled man with the foresight to be concerned about our democracy becoming imperialistic !!!! This happened during my lifetime, but partly due to dislike of politics and living in other countries, I knew little about Church and this important committee!!! This book should be required reading for all Americans!!!
Remarkable, amazing, fantastic American Hero !!! Perfect title for a moral, principled man with the foresight to be concerned about our democracy becoming imperialistic !!!! This happened during my lifetime, but partly due to dislike of politics and living in other countries, I knew little about Church and this important committee!!! This book should be required reading for all Americans!!!
September 23, 2024
Very good narrative about Frank Church. However, real meat of the book is more about the 1975 committee that bore his name and its investigation of intelligence agency abuses. Also worth mentioning, you’ll see many reviled contemporary political figures make appearances - Cheney, George Bush Sr, Biden - it’s a reminder that people who define the decades before us don’t just “go away” after taking a loss.
May 21, 2023
Thank you to Novel Suspects Insiders Club for an arc of this book that is now available as of May 9, 2023. I received this book in exchange for my honest review.
I don’t normally read nonfiction books but I really enjoyed this book. I took breaks in reading it but I found it very informative and interesting. I have always loved history and took Honors History, AP History, and AP Government. This book is very descriptive. James Risen includes interviews, recently declassified documents, and reams of unpublished letters, notes, and memoirs.
I don’t normally read nonfiction books but I really enjoyed this book. I took breaks in reading it but I found it very informative and interesting. I have always loved history and took Honors History, AP History, and AP Government. This book is very descriptive. James Risen includes interviews, recently declassified documents, and reams of unpublished letters, notes, and memoirs.
Read
August 29, 2024DNF. Not sure why, but this book didn't grab me the way that The Watchdog: How the Truman Committee Battled Corruption and Helped Win World War Two did.
Alternatively: Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA
Alternatively: Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA
February 14, 2024
Interesting subject. I had heard about Frank Church for many years, but did not know much about him.
Very liberal senator from a quite conservative state. His work investigating the CIA, FBI, and NSA was enlightening and necessary.
Very liberal senator from a quite conservative state. His work investigating the CIA, FBI, and NSA was enlightening and necessary.
July 5, 2024
We need another Church Commission . . .
p-s, s-n, v-n, a-n
p-s, s-n, v-n, a-n
November 16, 2024
Idaho Represent
September 4, 2023
The Last Honest Man by James Risen is biography of Frank Church that wrestles with being a summary of the Church Committee. The issue is that it proves hard to accurately stretch to both these goals even with the lengthy page count. There is no shortage of information. The book spends a lot of time summarizing Frank Church’s life proceeding the committee. There is a certain air of pretentiousness presented by the title. What made Risen decide to bestow this title onto Frank Church? The answer is not in the book. Although, maybe it can be found in the skirting of almost any meaningful criticism of Church’s work. History is very great full to Church for his contributions to reigning in the renegade intelligences community. But, one could say that his enemies came to have the last laugh through the Patriot Act. I think the main gripe with the book is it’s avoidance of this as well as the other things like the full scope of the committee. The book focuses very heavily on the CIA section of the committee, and hurriedly summarizes the NSA and FBI components. I was personally more interested in delving into those parts, so I was disappointed by how fast the book ran through it. I think the ending of the book felt very rushed. It almost felt like he died right after the church committee, and losing the 1980 election. I don’t know if I would’ve advocated for a longer book, or just rearranged the way the story is told, but it took a bit too long to get to the good part, and ended to abrupt. Although, I was engaged the whole time, so I can see why other people who know less going in might really enjoy it.
February 1, 2023
I don't know a lot about politics, I also wasn't interested enough to read about it. I was originally intrigued by this book because it talks about Johnny Roselli and his hiring by the CIA to assassinate Fidel Castro. The inner workings of the government always seemed beyond my ability to comprehend, but Risen really changed my view on that. The book is jammed pack with history and politics, but is written so clearly that you don't find yourself stopping to understand what's happening. No matter your political opinion, I think this book is an incredibly written account of American History.
February 18, 2024
This was one of those books that i choose on impulse. Right headspace. Right advertisement. In learning about the man, I learned a lot about the time he was active in American government. Frank Church saw the danger in the unchecked intelligence agencies under presidents and sought to hold them accountable. After reading the book, I looked up the Church Committee report. The entire document is in a pdf form online. I plan to read it.
March 17, 2024
We need another Church Committee!!!
April 17, 2023
My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Little, Brown and Company for an advanced copy of this look at a Senator and his attempt to hold members of America's national security accountable for its actions during the Cold War.
Political parties love to attack each other, weak on this, weak on that, too much spending on this, much too much on that. Once a party gets a majority in the House or Senate in the United States hearings are called, members of the government are made to come down and perform a bit of theater, where voices are loud, news bits are made, and nothing really changes. This is standard. No one really wants to be against the troops, so no need for the Pentagon to explain where trillions go. For all their fury currently parties will not go after the FBI or thought to be for defunding the police, and the CIA gets a past because who wants to be known for coddling terrorists. Being on the committees that let these group do whatever they want that is power in Washington DC. Going after them is political suicide. Frank Church though, was a man who seemed to thrive on conflict with these sacred beasts. A man with plenty of aspirations, but a man who believed that America was it's own worst enemy in the world, Church and his Church Committee looked at the actions of the CIA, FBI and the unknown at the time NSA, and what he found still have reverberations that effect us all today. The Last Honest Man: The CIA, the FBI, the Mafia, and the Kennedys—and One Senator's Fight to Save Democracy by journalist James Risen is both a biography of this unique Senator, and the hidden history of America he brought to life.
Frank Forrester Church was born in Idaho with a love of language a gift for debating and a lot of dreams for the future. Church served in the Second World War in China as a military Intelligence officer which gave him in insight into the thinking of both the military and the intelligence world, and how information could be misinterpreted. Also working with the Chinese forces, Church was able to see the corruption and ineptitude that can come from poorly run governments, especially dictatorships. After becoming a lawyer and learning politics both by running for office and his socially contacted wife, Church ran for the Senate, and won. Church was first a friend to the Master of the the Senate, Lyndon Johnson, but later turned on him for his stance on Vietnam. Church could see the South Vietnamese government was inept, and not worth America's intervention. With Church's committees gaining both publicity, and the enmity of other Senators, Church began to look at the nation's intelligence services. And history wouldn't be the same.
James Risen has a real gift for capturing the politics of the era, and what America was doing behind to scenes to both our friends, enemies, and even worse perceived enemies. The Church Committee was responsible for bringing the CIA assassination program to light, the MK-Ultra program, various propaganda efforts and a lot more. Most of this has become grist for the mill of conspiracy theories, but the sad thing is the truth is way worse than fiction. The book serves as a biography of Church who comes across as a man with a lot of good intentions, but a single mindedness that probably gave him more problems than helped. However, Church's political aspirations aside, what Church did was point out that America really is it's own worst enemy. All these efforts, the LSD dosing, the killing of Black Panther and foreign government presidents, really didn't make America safe. The cult of secrecy did more to destroy America's reputation than anything our enemies ever did. The book is very well written and sourced, and really seems like a thriller in many ways. Church is shown to be a very complicated person, but I think a good person, who many politicians should look at and go, hmm. A very good biography on a man whose name I was familiar with, but really knew nothing about.
Recommended for readers who enjoy political biographies and about the machinations that go on in the Senate. This is also a very good look at the antics in some occasions and crimes of both the CIA and the FBI from domestic spying, assassination, even the NSA in spying on American communications before the days of FISA. A very well-written history, as expected from an author as proficient as James Risen.
Political parties love to attack each other, weak on this, weak on that, too much spending on this, much too much on that. Once a party gets a majority in the House or Senate in the United States hearings are called, members of the government are made to come down and perform a bit of theater, where voices are loud, news bits are made, and nothing really changes. This is standard. No one really wants to be against the troops, so no need for the Pentagon to explain where trillions go. For all their fury currently parties will not go after the FBI or thought to be for defunding the police, and the CIA gets a past because who wants to be known for coddling terrorists. Being on the committees that let these group do whatever they want that is power in Washington DC. Going after them is political suicide. Frank Church though, was a man who seemed to thrive on conflict with these sacred beasts. A man with plenty of aspirations, but a man who believed that America was it's own worst enemy in the world, Church and his Church Committee looked at the actions of the CIA, FBI and the unknown at the time NSA, and what he found still have reverberations that effect us all today. The Last Honest Man: The CIA, the FBI, the Mafia, and the Kennedys—and One Senator's Fight to Save Democracy by journalist James Risen is both a biography of this unique Senator, and the hidden history of America he brought to life.
Frank Forrester Church was born in Idaho with a love of language a gift for debating and a lot of dreams for the future. Church served in the Second World War in China as a military Intelligence officer which gave him in insight into the thinking of both the military and the intelligence world, and how information could be misinterpreted. Also working with the Chinese forces, Church was able to see the corruption and ineptitude that can come from poorly run governments, especially dictatorships. After becoming a lawyer and learning politics both by running for office and his socially contacted wife, Church ran for the Senate, and won. Church was first a friend to the Master of the the Senate, Lyndon Johnson, but later turned on him for his stance on Vietnam. Church could see the South Vietnamese government was inept, and not worth America's intervention. With Church's committees gaining both publicity, and the enmity of other Senators, Church began to look at the nation's intelligence services. And history wouldn't be the same.
James Risen has a real gift for capturing the politics of the era, and what America was doing behind to scenes to both our friends, enemies, and even worse perceived enemies. The Church Committee was responsible for bringing the CIA assassination program to light, the MK-Ultra program, various propaganda efforts and a lot more. Most of this has become grist for the mill of conspiracy theories, but the sad thing is the truth is way worse than fiction. The book serves as a biography of Church who comes across as a man with a lot of good intentions, but a single mindedness that probably gave him more problems than helped. However, Church's political aspirations aside, what Church did was point out that America really is it's own worst enemy. All these efforts, the LSD dosing, the killing of Black Panther and foreign government presidents, really didn't make America safe. The cult of secrecy did more to destroy America's reputation than anything our enemies ever did. The book is very well written and sourced, and really seems like a thriller in many ways. Church is shown to be a very complicated person, but I think a good person, who many politicians should look at and go, hmm. A very good biography on a man whose name I was familiar with, but really knew nothing about.
Recommended for readers who enjoy political biographies and about the machinations that go on in the Senate. This is also a very good look at the antics in some occasions and crimes of both the CIA and the FBI from domestic spying, assassination, even the NSA in spying on American communications before the days of FISA. A very well-written history, as expected from an author as proficient as James Risen.
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