Background
Theoharis, Athan George was born on August 3, 1936 in Milwaukee. Son of George A. and Adeline M. (Konop) Theoharis.
(The long history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation u...)
The long history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation under J. Edgar Hoover is studded with serious questions about the Bureau’s professionalism and accountability. Revelations in the recent cases of Wen Ho Lee, Robert Hannsen, and Timothy McVeigh illustrate these misgivings. In Chasing Spies, Athan Theoharis, historian and perhaps the foremost authority on the FBI’s record, raises urgent new uncertainties about the Bureau’s behavior―and about the prospects for giving the FBI expanded powers of surveillance during the current national emergency. Mr. Theoharis here redefines the politics of the World War II and cold war eras, moving the debate beyond the narrow perspective triggered by the release of KGB records and intercepted Soviet consular reports (the Venona messages). The intriguing issue, he argues, is not the effectiveness of Soviet espionage activities as supported by the new evidence. Nor is it the long-standing charges of “softness toward communism” in the Roosevelt and Truman administrations. The real issue, he says, is the failure of the FBI to apprehend and convict Soviet agents. Based on meticulous research in FBI files, Chasing Spies uncovers the FBI’s role in the most important espionage cases of the cold war years. The book shows how secrecy immunized FBI operations from critical scrutiny and enabled FBI officials to mask their counterintelligence failures while promoting a politics of McCarthyism.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1566634202/?tag=2022091-20
( In its 9/11 report, the Kean Commission criticized U.S....)
In its 9/11 report, the Kean Commission criticized U.S. intelligence for having failed to anticipate the terrorist attacks, basing its findings on the premise of absolute security. But, says Athan Theoharis, absolute security is an illusory quest. His compelling analysis traces the troubled history of relations among American intelligence agencies. By expanding the authority of the agencies and indeed calling for administrative reforms to ensure greater cooperation and coordination among them, these unilateral efforts, particularly by the CIA and FBI, have led not to enhanced security but to abuses of power and violations of individual liberties.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1566636973/?tag=2022091-20
Theoharis, Athan George was born on August 3, 1936 in Milwaukee. Son of George A. and Adeline M. (Konop) Theoharis.
Bachelor of Arts Chicago, 1956. AM, University Chicago, 1959. Doctor of Philosophy, University Chicago, 1965.
Instructor Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University, College Station, 1962-1964. Assistant professor Wayne State University, Detroit, 1964-1968. Associate professor City University of New York, Staten Island, 1968-1969.
Associate professor history Marquette University, Milwaukee, 1969—1976, professor, 1976—2006, emeritus, since 2006. Consultant select committee on intelligence activities United States Senate, Washington, 1975-1976. Consultant National Archives Federal Bureau of Investigation Records Task Force, Washington, 1980-1981.
(Spying on Americans: Political surveillance from Hoover t...)
(The long history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation u...)
( In its 9/11 report, the Kean Commission criticized U.S....)
(Book by Theoharis, Athan G)
Member board directors American Civil Liberties Union-Wisconsin, MIlw., since 1975. Fellow Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts. and Letters. Member American History Association (national committee 1990-1992), Organization American Historians (chairman national committee 1980-1982, Binkley-Stephenson award 1979), American Political Science Association.
Married Nancy Artinian, August 21, 1966. Children: Jeanne, George, Elizabeth.