How the CIA Played the Senate

And boosted George H. Bush toward the presidency.

George H. Bush, CIA director in 1976 (Credit: National Archives)

In the Intercept, James and Thomas Risen tell the story of a turning point in the fortunes of the CIA: the 1975 assassination of station chief Richard Welch, a blow that proved a boon to clandestine service.

WELCH’S ASSASSINATION WAS huge news and struck a painful political nerve in Washing…