In the aftermath of the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in 1961, a prominent adviser cautioned President John F. Kennedy about the excessive power of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The proposal suggested reallocating the responsibility of “all clandestine activities” to the State Department and dismantling the CIA. This suggestion was highlighted in a memo from Special Assistant Arthur Schlesinger Jr. that has recently been made public by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, in conjunction with other documents related to Kennedy’s assassination.
Within Schlesinger’s memo, it was revealed that a significant portion, 47%, of political officers in American embassies were under CIA control. These details add fuel to a longstanding theory that posits tension between Kennedy and the CIA, potentially affecting their vigilance over his security prior to his assassination in Dallas on November 22, 1963. This release has rekindled speculations that the CIA could have been involved in Kennedy’s murder.
While historians and writers who scrutinized the newly accessible 63,000 pages of documents—released following an order from President Donald Trump—have found no evidence to challenge the conclusion that Lee Harvey Oswald, a former Marine and Soviet defector, acted alone, they recognize why some are inclined to believe otherwise. As Gerald Posner, author of “Case Closed,” articulated, there’s a desire to provide more substantial opposition to the narrative of a promising president being felled by someone as seemingly insignificant as Oswald.
Critics of the single-gunman theory expected that the unreleased documents might support their interpretations. Jefferson Morley, who edits the JFK Facts blog, insists that recent material is crucial for understanding the JFK case. Morley, associated with the Mary Ferrell Foundation, points to more withheld documents, including 2,400 files the FBI reportedly discovered post-Trump’s directive and items held by the Kennedy family.
Kennedy’s assassination transpired in Dallas while his motorcade traversed its downtown route, and shots were fired from the Texas School Book Depository, where Oswald was situated on the sixth floor. Oswald was later apprehended but was killed by nightclub owner Jack Ruby during a jail transfer aired live on television. Larry Sabato, from the University of Virginia Center for Politics, remarked that this incident was pivotal in generating numerous conspiracy theories, reinforcing distrust in government narratives.
Schlesinger’s memo also addresses the origins of the distrust between Kennedy and the CIA. Kennedy, having taken over the Bay of Pigs strategy from former President Dwight Eisenhower, experienced its failure shortly into his term in April 1961. Schlesinger, proposing on June 30, 1961, that covert operations require State Department approval, highlighted how in some countries, embassy political officers were overwhelmingly controlled by the CIA.
Former ambassador Ronald Neumann addressed the present where the majority of American diplomats are not CIA operatives, although CIA station chiefs still play a crucial intelligence role for ambassadors. The involvement of station chiefs is particularly significant in regions engaged in covert operations, adding a distinct layer of complexity compared to standard diplomatic settings.
The memo concluded with a proposal—previously concealed—to split the CIA and delegate control over covert operations to the State Department, something viewed as Kennedy’s potential consideration due to his frustration with the agency post-Bay of Pigs. However, this proposal never materialized, largely due to the necessity of the CIA during the Cold War against Soviet forces, as elaborated by Sabato. Moreover, the Kennedy administration focused heavily on Fidel Castro’s removal prior to the 1964 election campaign, underscoring the need for the CIA’s capabilities.
Columbia University’s Timothy Naftali, who is working on a book about JFK’s presidency, questioned the idea that hostility between Kennedy and the CIA persisted until his death. Instead, he argued that evidence shows the Kennedy brothers adeptly steering the intelligence community, showcasing a coherent system of guidance despite indirect interactions.
This intelligence saga, amid its complexity, continues to captivate and provoke reassessments of that era’s historical narratives.