Annie Jacobsen

I mean, again, I try to remain agnostic on the policy part of it and just report the operator's perspective, right? Because this is what people do and this is what people are asked to do. And it depends on the individual. I mean, Billy Wah went on a lot of those missions. I mean, the saying is like, oh, Billy Wah, he killed more people than cancer, right?

I mean, again, I try to remain agnostic on the policy part of it and just report the operator's perspective, right? Because this is what people do and this is what people are asked to do. And it depends on the individual. I mean, Billy Wah went on a lot of those missions. I mean, the saying is like, oh, Billy Wah, he killed more people than cancer, right?

Did Billy Wah ever tell me about direct assassinations? No, because they're all classified, right? Did he tell me about some failed ones? Yes. I'll give you an example. It's really interesting. He would show me these PowerPoints that were just fantastic. You know, late in his life, he was constantly being asked to go up to Fort Bragg and lecture to the young soldiers.

Did Billy Wah ever tell me about direct assassinations? No, because they're all classified, right? Did he tell me about some failed ones? Yes. I'll give you an example. It's really interesting. He would show me these PowerPoints that were just fantastic. You know, late in his life, he was constantly being asked to go up to Fort Bragg and lecture to the young soldiers.

Did Billy Wah ever tell me about direct assassinations? No, because they're all classified, right? Did he tell me about some failed ones? Yes. I'll give you an example. It's really interesting. He would show me these PowerPoints that were just fantastic. You know, late in his life, he was constantly being asked to go up to Fort Bragg and lecture to the young soldiers.

Everybody loved him, you know. And he would drive all night to get there and he would create these PowerPoints and then he would show me the PowerPoints and he would all unclassified. But at one point when Hugo Chavez was in power, Billy Waugh was kind of asked, that's how it works, of like, if you had to think about doing something, what would it look like? Let's just say hypothetically.

Everybody loved him, you know. And he would drive all night to get there and he would create these PowerPoints and then he would show me the PowerPoints and he would all unclassified. But at one point when Hugo Chavez was in power, Billy Waugh was kind of asked, that's how it works, of like, if you had to think about doing something, what would it look like? Let's just say hypothetically.

Everybody loved him, you know. And he would drive all night to get there and he would create these PowerPoints and then he would show me the PowerPoints and he would all unclassified. But at one point when Hugo Chavez was in power, Billy Waugh was kind of asked, that's how it works, of like, if you had to think about doing something, what would it look like? Let's just say hypothetically.

So he took me through this PowerPoint that never happened, whereby he and a group of operators, agency operators, were going to halo jump in to the palace and grab Chavez and probably kill him because he wouldn't allow himself to be captured. And by the way, halo jumping, for those of listeners who don't know, high altitude, low opening, right? So you jump out of an aircraft.

So he took me through this PowerPoint that never happened, whereby he and a group of operators, agency operators, were going to halo jump in to the palace and grab Chavez and probably kill him because he wouldn't allow himself to be captured. And by the way, halo jumping, for those of listeners who don't know, high altitude, low opening, right? So you jump out of an aircraft.

So he took me through this PowerPoint that never happened, whereby he and a group of operators, agency operators, were going to halo jump in to the palace and grab Chavez and probably kill him because he wouldn't allow himself to be captured. And by the way, halo jumping, for those of listeners who don't know, high altitude, low opening, right? So you jump out of an aircraft.

And you go down like a pencil until you're really low to the deck, like 1,000 feet. You pull your parachute cord, and that way you're not picked up on radar. And you're also not traceable when you get to the ground because it's so fast. Billy Wah took the second halo jump in history into a war theater in Laos during the Vietnam War, right? So he's like this famous halo jumper, right?

And you go down like a pencil until you're really low to the deck, like 1,000 feet. You pull your parachute cord, and that way you're not picked up on radar. And you're also not traceable when you get to the ground because it's so fast. Billy Wah took the second halo jump in history into a war theater in Laos during the Vietnam War, right? So he's like this famous halo jumper, right?

And you go down like a pencil until you're really low to the deck, like 1,000 feet. You pull your parachute cord, and that way you're not picked up on radar. And you're also not traceable when you get to the ground because it's so fast. Billy Wah took the second halo jump in history into a war theater in Laos during the Vietnam War, right? So he's like this famous halo jumper, right?

So he and the team were going to go in, grab Chavez, and he said to me a very interesting – thing that was kind of a one moment in time where I saw a different side of Billy Wah, where he said, I'm so glad we didn't do that, even though I really wanted to at the time. Because can you imagine that country's problems where it is now? Can you imagine how we would have been blamed?

So he and the team were going to go in, grab Chavez, and he said to me a very interesting – thing that was kind of a one moment in time where I saw a different side of Billy Wah, where he said, I'm so glad we didn't do that, even though I really wanted to at the time. Because can you imagine that country's problems where it is now? Can you imagine how we would have been blamed?

So he and the team were going to go in, grab Chavez, and he said to me a very interesting – thing that was kind of a one moment in time where I saw a different side of Billy Wah, where he said, I'm so glad we didn't do that, even though I really wanted to at the time. Because can you imagine that country's problems where it is now? Can you imagine how we would have been blamed?

And it was an interesting, rare moment for Billy Wah to comment on the bigger picture that you're asking me about, right? I think pretty much the operators I know, they just stick to the mission.

And it was an interesting, rare moment for Billy Wah to comment on the bigger picture that you're asking me about, right? I think pretty much the operators I know, they just stick to the mission.

And it was an interesting, rare moment for Billy Wah to comment on the bigger picture that you're asking me about, right? I think pretty much the operators I know, they just stick to the mission.