Book Review: Fair Game by Valerie Plame Wilson

Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House by Valerie Plame Wilson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Valerie Plame Wilson, an undercover operative for the CIA, was "outed" by the Bush White House (a federal crime) in retaliation for her husband's opposition to the President's statement that Iraq had tried to buy yellowcake uranium from Niger--her husband, Joseph Wilson, was a former ambassador sent to investigate the Niger story and had reported to the CIA and the White House that the rumor was false. Nevertheless, the President included the story in his State of the Union address. This was during the time when the Bush administration was trying to make the case that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction as a reason for the United States to invade the country.

The revelation of Wilson's status put an end to her career, undermined some of the intelligence she had worked on and placed other CIA personnel and helpers in jeopardy, and resulted in the waste of thousands of dollars that the CIA had invested in this experienced, talented covert operative. She tells her story with the parts the CIA "redacted"--wouldn't allow her to reveal, including how many years she had worked there--"blacked out," but the story is still a fascinating read. An "afterword" by a journalist tells the full story, all of which was part of the public record anyway, so the CIA had questionable motives for disallowing its publication.

I enjoyed learning about the workings of the CIA and was impressed with the hard work and patriotism of our country's intelligence agents. I was shocked by the illegal revelation of Wilson's status for political and retaliatory motives. Our national security depends on the intelligence services being able to operate free of any political agenda, and that didn't happen in this case. Recommended for those interested in real-life spy stories and in the integrity of government.

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