John T. Downey

But prior to the Korean War, and this is what we really need to talk about, is the loss of China to communist forces led by Mao Zedong. Can you take us through American thinking at the time, the strategy of that time, how espionage would emerge as a major factor?

We've done shows on the CIA, on the birth of the CIA, all of that that goes into it. One forgets these days that Taiwan goes all the way back to that period. How much was the CIA a result of the China-Taiwan situation?

We've done shows on the CIA, on the birth of the CIA, all of that that goes into it. One forgets these days that Taiwan goes all the way back to that period. How much was the CIA a result of the China-Taiwan situation?

We've done shows on the CIA, on the birth of the CIA, all of that that goes into it. One forgets these days that Taiwan goes all the way back to that period. How much was the CIA a result of the China-Taiwan situation?

Yeah. It's this can-do attitude of that OSS crowd that was really appropriate for the time, you know, fighting a war in real time with that. That then sort of transfers to a more thoughtful period, which requires a broader strategy. And that can-do turns into can't-do sometimes. Yeah. They also are in the strange position of having to recruit people, you know, out of wartime.

Yeah. It's this can-do attitude of that OSS crowd that was really appropriate for the time, you know, fighting a war in real time with that. That then sort of transfers to a more thoughtful period, which requires a broader strategy. And that can-do turns into can't-do sometimes. Yeah. They also are in the strange position of having to recruit people, you know, out of wartime.

Yeah. It's this can-do attitude of that OSS crowd that was really appropriate for the time, you know, fighting a war in real time with that. That then sort of transfers to a more thoughtful period, which requires a broader strategy. And that can-do turns into can't-do sometimes. Yeah. They also are in the strange position of having to recruit people, you know, out of wartime.

They're having to go look for the right kind of man, probably white man, who fits the bill. And along comes Jack Downey, John T. Downey. How do they find the likes of him, and why there, and what are they looking for?

They're having to go look for the right kind of man, probably white man, who fits the bill. And along comes Jack Downey, John T. Downey. How do they find the likes of him, and why there, and what are they looking for?

They're having to go look for the right kind of man, probably white man, who fits the bill. And along comes Jack Downey, John T. Downey. How do they find the likes of him, and why there, and what are they looking for?

Yeah, he becomes a kind of an archetype of that era of the CIA. He's an extraordinary student, this guy. He goes to Choate, class president, then to Yale and so forth. He's really right out of the gate, isn't he? When you're recruited for this, he's a 22-year-old who goes into action.

Yeah, he becomes a kind of an archetype of that era of the CIA. He's an extraordinary student, this guy. He goes to Choate, class president, then to Yale and so forth. He's really right out of the gate, isn't he? When you're recruited for this, he's a 22-year-old who goes into action.

Yeah, he becomes a kind of an archetype of that era of the CIA. He's an extraordinary student, this guy. He goes to Choate, class president, then to Yale and so forth. He's really right out of the gate, isn't he? When you're recruited for this, he's a 22-year-old who goes into action.

Tell me about the operations that he gets involved in. He's sent to Japan. For what reason?

Tell me about the operations that he gets involved in. He's sent to Japan. For what reason?

Tell me about the operations that he gets involved in. He's sent to Japan. For what reason?

So he was finding his recruits in Taiwan, right?

So he was finding his recruits in Taiwan, right?

So he was finding his recruits in Taiwan, right?

And so what was the objective to drop these recruits into China and do what?