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A Gathering of Spies in the Desert

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A Gathering of Spies in the Desert

A Tucson resort hosted a conference of top former CIA officers

Jeff Stein
May 4, 2022
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A Gathering of Spies in the Desert

www.spytalk.co

Greetings from Tucson, where I’ve been attending the “Spies, Lies & Nukes” conference hosted by celebrated former CIA officer Valerie Plame and featuring presentations by other senior former agency officers on their craft and threats by foreign adversaries.

L to R: Mary Beth Long, Valerie Plame, Jonna Mendez, Lucy Kirk (Jeff Stein photo)

Russia, Russia, Russia was on our minds, of course, but the talks also included a fascinating discussion on the activities of “rogue” CIA agents surrounding the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy, presented jointly by investigative journalist Jefferson Morley and former senior CIA officer Rolf Mowatt- Larssen.

The audience at the Hacienda del Sol, a hillside luxury resort that once hosted John Wayne, Spencer Tracy. Katharine Hepburn and other Hollywood stars filming Westerns nearby, was also treated to presentations by former female CIA operatives Mary Beth Long, Plame, Jonna Mendez and Lucy Kirk (left to right, above).

I’ll have more on th…

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