Customer Reviews

Hoover's FBI

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Cartha DeLoach isn't an iconoclast or a sycophant; he simply writes through a spirit of determination to give credit when credit's due. As WASHINGTON POST columnist Jack Anderson has admitted, no-one alive today has DeLoach's knowledge of the FBI's workings during the Hoover era. After reading DeLoach it becomes increasingly hard to believe (a) that Hoover was a practising homosexual, (b) that he indulged in transvestitism (that particular allegation derives from the unsupported testimony of a convicted perjuror), (c) that Martin Luther King was the spotless saint in which America has increasingly come to believe, (d) that the CPUSA consisted of fey intellectuals concerned primarily with the Bill of Rights.

In a way, the very unpretentiousness of DeLoach's account is its strength. You come away from it, not liking Hoover, but respecting him.

This book is by far the most accurate account of the Hoover years at the FBI. Mr. DeLoach not only gives the most accurate information on some of the most famous cases, but also gives the reader an inside account of the thinking behind some of Hoover's most important decisions of the time - Mississippi Burning, Monroe, LBJ, Nixon, etc. If you actually want to know the truth and not some plagerous expose with 1/2 truths, take a look at this book.

The story being told by the author is fairly obvious (especially to those of us who were adults during much of that time and realized the truth), but it's one that must be told.

It's hard to believe that this book was published over 10 years ago, and still the media and the entertainment industry insist on portraying Hoover as a cross-dresser and one who spied capriciously on "law-abiding US citizens."

The violence inherent in the policies of the protestors of the 60s and 70s warranted keeping an eye on them ("burn down the cities; kill members of the establishment, etc." As I said, we who remember those things being advocated saw no reason why such violence-prone organizations should have went unwatched.)


And the fact that the Attornet General has to approve of wiretaps is something that Hoover's detractors always overlook. Especially since the Attorney General that approved the wire tap on Martin Luther King's phone was none other than Bobby Kennedy.


Nor is DeLoach afraid to show Hoover's warts along with his dedication. He points out his egocentric nature, his petty grudges and his biases. Sometimes the truth hurts, and the many truths contained in this book, though painful to some cultural icons, needed to see the light of day.

For those interested in the history of the Bureau this book is certainly a must read. There is no doubt that DeLoach's professional relationship with Hoover and his first-hand knowledge of some of the major cases the FBI dealth with during his career is worth consideration.

Bear in mind however that DeLoach was also a loyal lieutenant to the Director and make no mistake that in this account of Bureau history, the author does attempt to wax eloquent Hoover and his achievements while passing over much of the damage and subsersive activity the FBI engaged in, notably with the civil rights movement as well as COINTELPRO initiatives. I'd recommend this book for those looking for some inside perspective and rationale behind Bureau activities during the Hoover era, but I'd look elsewhere for alternate viewpoints that have been long substantiated and buttress the claim that Hoover was indeed an individual who exercised more power than any bureaucrat is entitled to, before or since, and that in the process of building a first rate investigative agency many lives and reputations were destroyed.

Mr. DeLoach has been my personal hero since I was in grammar school. For that reason I am sure that my review of this book is prejudiced.

Mr. DeLoach does two major things. First, he gives a spellbinding account of the life and career of J. Edgar Hoover. Secondly, he defends Mr. Hoover from the many critics who were springing up during the time Hoover's FBI was written.

Because of Mr. DeLoach's close association with Mr. Hoover and his staff -- C. D. DeLoach was third in command -- it is not intended to be sensational, like the other books that have been written to apparently just make money for their authors. I believe that this book is a more accurate account of Mr. Hoover and his FBI.

Hoover's FBI clarifies many aspects of the FBI and gives the reader a more intimate understanding of its history and day by day mission.

While telling the facts about Mr. Hoover and his associates, Mr. DeLoach brings the reader into a more accurate understanding of his own life, as well as the lives of other key people in the service of our nation.

I recommend this book to anybody who wants the facts and for all who want the thrill of the FBI's role in protecting America. If you think that the FBI is a national police force, you definitely need to read Hoover's FBI.

"Deke" DeLoach was the number three man in the F.B.I. after J. Edgar Hoover and Clyde Tolson, and the most authoritative source for the history of the Bureau in its most turbulent era.
The F.B.I.'s mystique and secrecy have encouraged a number of myths to grow around it, ranging from Hoover's putative sexuality (he seems to have had none), to wild rumors around the assassination of John F. Kennedy. DeLoach sets the record straight on these and other matters, such as the dispute between Hoover and Martin Luther King, "Mississippi Burning", Russian spies, and Hoover's slow recognition of the existence of the Mafia: "...no such complex national criminal organization could exist without him knowing about it. He didn't know about it; ergo, it did not exist".
DeLoach admirable narrative skills are most unusual and make the book a pleasure to read as well as informative. Photos, index.
(The numerical rating above is a default setting within Amazon's format. This reviewer does not employ numerical ratimngs.)

It is surprising that such a distorted view of the FBI's role in the Civil Rights Movement could still be published and taken seriously today. I guess this is not surprising since the book is written by Hoover's right hand man. The book is a total defence of Hoover and his policies. Deloach can see no wrong in anything Hoover did. Deloach is completely wrong headed when it comes to his description of the FBI's role in the Civil Rights Movement. The FBI worked against the Civil Rights Movement and saw it as a threat to the USA. There is no doubt that Hoover was a racist and unfairly targeted Dr. King for espionage and harrassment. That Deloach would still defend the FBI's harrassment of King and still cast doubt on King's honor is a shame to both his legacy and the FBI.

If you are a right-wing, ultra conservative member of the Christian Coalition then you will love this book.

According to DeLoach the FBI has never done anything wrong, Hoover never kept any secret files, and the sexual innuendos surrounding Hoover were unfounded. This may all be true as I am sure that the tales we hear of Hoover are exaggerated in order to generate interest in the man but it is other comments throughout the book that strike me as proof that the FBI can't and shouldn't police itself.

DeLoach discredits anyone who suggests that Hoover was gay but yet uses the same type of proof when detailing Martin Luther King's sexual escapades (why was the FBI investigating and wire-tapping is the better question?), that students in the 60's were wrong in their protest of the US Gov't because it could lead to communism or that homosexualtiy is thrust upon us by the media. He believes in the American way so long as its his American way.