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Confessions of a Spy: The Real Story of Aldrich Ames

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Having borrowed a copy from a colleague, whose book contained signatures of all those who took part in this long-lasting investigation on behalf of the CIA, I wrote to a friend, who some thirty years ago occupied the same position as Rick Ames, i.e. he was a CI chief at the SE Division. His answer may be interesting not only to Mr Earley but to many readers of this well written and useful book. My friend permitted me to quote him and I do it with pleasure.
'Hard to know where to begin to comment on the despicable Aldrich Ames. First, his actions. His was the particularly venemous form of treason that doesn't just expose hidden details of science or industry or political planning--which some rationalize as spreading necessary knowledge or
improving the prospects of peace. What he was doing, instead, was destroying the day to day work of his own colleagues and friends, murdering individuals as selectively as if he were aiming a gun at each of their heads, and clearly and directly diminishing the security of his own country (moreover, a democracy no more imperfect than any other). That he did such
a colossal thing simply for money suggests not just disloyalty but an extraordinary, almost inhuman, lack of conscience, decency or morals. In other words, a monster.
By the way, I don't accept justification by comparison with similar revelations from the other side in the Cold War. There was not only the difference in regimes east and west, but especially in punishments. Certain execution (and punishment of families) cannot be compared with a few years in a Western prison.
I suppose one could also comment on the degree of Ames's access. His job was somewhat similar to one I held a generation earlier, and I can testify that he knew, or could find out, just about everything we were doing clandestinely against our principal adversary. Seen from the point of view of the KGB as a counterintelligence organism, he was prettty close to perfectly placed.
A fascinating aspect of the case is the blindness of CIA to this menace despite blatant signs. "No man so blind as him who doesn't want to see"--but in this case, "seeing" was the paid responsibility of many within CIA and the prime mission of some. That they failed, almost willfully, tells you all you need to know about the capacity of Americans in the field of counterintelligence. One old vet told a reporter, "This
couldn't have happened in Bagley's time." Indeed, I would have forced their goddam noses down into the smell of treason that filled the air for nine years before Ames was finally caught--though maybe I wouldn't have succeeded any better than I did under somewhat similar circumstances in my own time (...)."
To this honest and professional comment, which I fully support, I'd only like to add that one crucial element is missing in Mr Earley's narration, and that is the fact, that Ames would probably be never identified as a spy if it were not for a Russian defector, who brought the final evidence to the otherwise dying investigation. So a proud CIA team featured on the photo should not actually be proud, but ashamed.

I cannot add very much that hasn't already been stated in these spaces. The reader, however, must remain aware that this book is very self-serving to Mr. Ames. Like John Walker, he finds excuses for his abominable actions by blaming others: the CIA, the federal bureaucracy, our "consuming society," his wife, his mother-in-law, etc. The book, however, is very well written and informative. It is well worth reading.

Confessions of a Spy captured every aspect of the spy life of Aldrich Ames. It was fantastic. Even reading this in 7th grade, I had no problems understanding it. The book showed exactly what both sides were up to, and kept the pages turning. Outstanding.

This is a great book if you want to know virually everything about Aldrich Ames and his vision of himself but BETRAYAL is an easier read. CONFESSIONS OF A SPY is something that you study. It seems to go on forever and Ames really enjoys having someone who hangs on his every word. Ames becomes the teacher and the author is the pupil. Ames really enjoys the dialogue but you may grow tired of it after a while.

Aldrich Ames' met with the author for several sittings after he was jailed and without the government's permission. That was just one more offense in a career of treason, drunkenness, slough and almost revolting passivity. Yet this man not only sent as many as 25 agents to their execution, he also spared no information to his KGB handlers. At times, he would be rooting for our side by day and by night he would have reversed and treacherously divulged everything he had previously learned.

Of course the answer is how? Despite the agency's superiority in resources and technology, they retain a dangerous and imbecilic "he's one of us" mentality. Ames repeatedly failed to follow protocol. He was spending money like a madman and while there were a few who were convinced of his guilt, the amount of time and the ultimate leakage that occured with every day was shameful.

Interestingly or not, the CIA has satellites that could zero in on Brezhnev as his dacha while he was being detained-but when it came down to getting the goods on Ames, they were more like the Keystone cops. Stealing trashcans, going door to door as salesmen, til someone called the cops and all of the vaudeville that one associates with those types of blunders. The book is far more flattering to the 'bureau,' who took full honors for the arrest even though there had been an agency team that had first fingered Ames and his wife.

The underlying issue for me was a) how the nature of espionage seems to be more about getting moles than about truly gathering intelligence and b) the astonishing lack of effective ways to figure out if someone is working for the other side. All of which, indicts or acquits the nature of being human in a world of frightening homeland security and total information awareness. Getting the info is apparently easier than managing it and logically acting on behalf of the constitution- not an ideology. There has been nothing discovered that has solved that problem. I really enjoyed reading this book and having some insight into diplomacy and superpowers and flawed characters all over.

I was reading "See No Evil" by Robert Baer and he briefly mentioned Aldrich Ames and decided to read a book on him. While looking for books, I was pleasantly surprised to find one written by Pete Earley. I had read "The Hot House" a couple of years ago and found Earley to be a very clear and detailed writer. I really could not wait to receive the book. My expectations were high and they were met and exceeded. The book details Ames' life from birth, it details his parents, his entry into the CIA, and ultimately his betrayal of the country. The thing I love about Earley is that he leaves no loose ends. You're never left saying, "but what ever happened to..." or "I wonder who that is...". He's a very clear writer who introduces every subject in the book. He explains the facts sharply and thoroughly, and the pacing is perfect. Earley not only gives you the details, but draws you in with a story line that adds suspense. Earley is similar to other great non-fiction writers such as Stephen Ambrose, Jon Krakauer, Simon Winchester, Mark Bowden, or Kurt Eichenwald in that he takes a real event and tells it gripping way.

On the negatives, there was not an index in my book which made it difficult at times. Also, Earley was not able to get interviews with everyone involved, in particular Ames' first wife, but at the time I'm sure not everyone wanted to participate with the media.

The most important aspect of the book is that Aldrich Ames cooperated with Earley with face to face interviews while awaiting trial and later through letters. But Earley did not take everything Ames told him at face value, he is not lazy or sloppy, he fact checked and questioned everything. He even fact checked with Russian KGB which demonstrates how dedicated he was to the subject. Is it definitive? Definitely not because it came out so quickly after Ames arrest (before revelations of Robert Hanssen) but it is an excellent book.

Apparently this book by Pete Earley is the best of those written on Aldrich Ames because he had access to Ames while in prison, spoke to Ames' handlers, and the family members of the Russians who were executed due to Ames exposing their working for the United States. Greed is always there to raise its ugly head as Ames admits he betrayed America for the money. Ten Russian individuals were recalled to Russia and executed with a bullet to the back of the head due to their exposure by Aldrich Ames. After divorcing his first wife Ames married a materialistic foreigner from Colombia named Rosario who indulged herself in clothing, expensive dining, and an otherwise extravagant lifestyle. To me Ames' wife Rosario paints herself as a victim while previously enjoying the high-living lifestyle her husband's treachery made possible.

Throughout the book author Earley provides the verbatim words of Ames regarding his treachery along with the views of former colleagues, high school students, and friends of Ames. Ames, himself, counters with the logic by asking how the Russians spying for the United States were any different than him spying for Russia.

After spying for Russia for a period of nine years Ames had to realize his deception couldn't go on much longer. He began to entertain thoughts as to how he could terminate his relationship with the Russians and still maintain the monetary promises previously made to him without upsetting the Russians.

Laxity in security makes it possible for men like Aldrich Ames, Jonathan Pollard, John Walker, and Robert Hanssen to get away with their illicit activities over long periods of time. Hopefully the lessons learned from these individuals can lead to a reduction in spying against the United States.

At the time of this book's publication (1997), Earley was the only writer to interview Aldrich Ames, the CIA agent and KGB spy. Earley did more than 50 hours of interviews with Ames before the CIA got wind of things and whisked Ames off to federal prison. When I first started the book, I had barely heard of Aldrich Ames, so I suppose I was as open-minded as one can get. The results are less than revelatory--but that's not due to Pete Earley's writing.

It's natural to want to know why someone would commit treason. Did Ames compromise more than 100 operations and turn over to the KGB twenty to twenty-five names of KGB agents who were working for the CIA and FBI because he no longer believed in the principles for which the CIA fought? Or, more accurately, because he believed the CIA no longer believed in them? He cites this in his interviews, but it feels perfunctory. Really, he did it for money. Initially he convinced himself he was desperate for cash due to his divorce from his first wife. He waltzed into the Soviet Embassy in Washington, D.C.--without even being recruited!--and started turning over information.

Besides the damage he did to CIA operations, he was responsible for the executions of no less than ten Soviet men who were helping the CIA. (One other committed suicide.) Most often noted is General Dmitri Polyakov, who was a CIA spy for 18 years. He was already retired when Ames gave the KGB his name.

Though hindsight is always 20/20 in these situations, it's hard to fathom how the CIA could have missed a mole in their ranks when twenty to twenty-five Soviet agents went missing in 1985 over a period of just a few months. Ames turned over the names of virtually every spy he knew about (he was rather high-ranking himself in the CIA, and had access to everything the CIA was running on the Soviets) and by the end of fall they had all disappeared. Only a few people in the CIA suspected Ames was the mole.

Why? Though Ames (called "Rick" throughout most of the book) was a known lush, drinking in the CIA was part of its culture. In itself getting drunk at gatherings was not enough to point the finger at him. Additionally, a list of people who knew of at least one of the spies Ames had named was a total of 198 people. Mountains of paper had to be sifted through, financials had to be checked, and the team had to interview people on the list without raising suspicions they were looking for a mole.

Mistakes were made, most notably by the FBI, who later took the vast majority of the credit for their role in catching Ames. Ames made no less than four drops right under the FBI's nose. It defies explanation.

Yet Earley manages to play fair to all parties involved. As already pointed out, Ames's drinking was not enough for people to point the finger at him as the mole. And the CIA team was misled by an informant to believe that Rosario's (Ames's second wife) family was stinking rich, which explained the $540,000 house and a succession of three Jaguars, as well as $30,000 monthly credit card payments. But the mole hunting team kept digging, and eventually Sandy Grimes (one member of the team and the only one convinced Ames was the mole they were looking for) made the connection that he was working for the KGB. Reading the book, it's easy to see how they could miss this until she logged his deposits into her already-existing time table of his meetings with Soviet officials. Many of the deposits were made the day of the meetings or the day after.

The book drags when Ames is quoted extensively, as he is in nearly every chapter. Giving every appearance of enjoying himself, he gives winding and self-serving explanations about why he turned over the names of the men who were later executed. He notes that these men were "not innocent" bystanders, but knew how the game was played. Jeanne Vertefuille--the lead investigator on the mole hunting team--counters this, saying, "Traitors are not all the same. Sure, some of the Russians we recruited were doing it for the money. Some of them were despicable characters. But others were not. We in the United States have so many outlets if we don't like what our government is doing . . . They didn't have these outlets, particularly Eastern Europeans who didn't like what the Soviets were doing to their countries. For many of them, espionage became a way of protesting the injustices they saw."

If you're looking for insight into why Ames did what he did, you'll find it here. But that is not the most enlightening part of this book. What is enlightening is the somewhat inside view you get into a pair of organizations that are imperfect and yet functional.

I have read everything I could in this genre on Ames, Hanssen, Walker, etc. The insider access to Ames provided some interesting insights, but what I enjoyed most was the author's use of counterbalancing quotes from various other characters (CIA colleagues, KGB handlers, friends, surviving family members of those whose deaths he caused). These help the reader stay focused on the actual damage Ames did, since he himself exhibits not one bit of remorse for sending 20+ people spying for the U.S. to their deaths. His rationale was if he hadn't exposed them, they could have exposed him. Although this was potentially true for a few of them, most would not have been in that position, and all Ames was gambling with was a prison sentence, while they were executed and dumped in an unmarked grave.

Like all books of this era, some additional information has emerged in the almost 15 years since it was written, but this one holds up well.

This review isn't at arm's length since I am mentioned in the book. Aldrich (we called him 'Rick') Ames and I grew up together and have been lifelong friends. I have read almost all the biographies of Ames and this is the ONLY one I know to be accurate. Pete Early is also the only one to actually interview Ames personally. This book avoids speculation and gets down to the true story. In addition to the 'what' it also explores the 'why'.