Introduction Employed as a “tool of governance” since the days of the Revolution (Daugherty, 2004, p. 1), covert action has long been used as an to achieve a number of United States objectives. Foreign policy objectives of states. These clandestine activities aimed at influencing economic, political, or military conditions in foreign states have been widely viewed as an attractive third option by many presidential administrations, as a cost-effective intermediary measure between diplomacy and open warfare. When integrated as part of an overall plan and for specific, achievable goals, success often results. However, there are other cases where this tool has been used incorrectly and/or for the wrong reasons, leading to disastrous consequences. Moreover, even results initially considered positive often subsequently had unintended deleterious repercussions. Despite this spotty record and questions of moral ambiguity, covert operations have been used by every U.S. president since World War II. Whether undertaken as part of a larger campaign or as a measure of last resort, whether directed against a government or an individual, and whether implemented in times of peace or war, Covert operations were executed to achieve a number of stated or veiled foreign policy objectives. Covert Action and Containment of Communism: Defensive Policy After World War II, Stalin launched an aggressive expansionist campaign, and United States security policy was soon dominated by issues related to the Soviet Union. Scholars and advisors surrounding the Truman administration argued that the Soviet republic would collapse or change if it could be geographically contained and thus forced...... middle of paper ...... intelligence. Transaction Editors. New Brunswick, New Jersey. Hill, Cissie Dore. (October 30, 2001). “Voices of Hope: The Story of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty.” Summary Hoover. 2001. No. 4. Retrieved from: http://www.hoover.org/publications/hoover-digest/article/6270Johnson, Loch K. (2009). Handbook of Intelligence Studies. Routledge. Third Avenue, New York, NY.Lowenthal, Mark M. ((2012). Intelligence: From Secrets to Policy. SAGE Publications. Thousand Oaks, CA. McMurdo, Torey L. (2012, June). “The Economics of Overthrow: The United States, Great Britain, and the hidden rationale for Operation TPAJAX » Studies in Intelligence Vol. of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol.-56-no.-2/pdfs. /McMurdo-The%20Economics%20of%20Overthrow.pdf