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Inside the FBI's Hunt for a Russian Mole | Wayne Barnes

The Team House

Hosted by Jack Murphy

2h 24m
Transcript

Original podcast

About this episode

We speak with retired FBI agent Wayne Barnes about his career in counterintelligence, from undercover work with the Black Panthers and a hidden Nixon assassination plot to debriefing Cold War defectors and recruiting Soviet intelligence officers. We also dig into his book A Traitor in the FBI, the hunt for a Russian mole inside the Bureau, and the tradecraft, deception, and lucky breaks that shaped the case. Grab Wayne's book "A Traitor in the FBI: The Hunt for a Russian Mole" https://a.co/d/06ffYkg0 Find Wayne here: https://www.waynebarneswriting.com/ Today's Sponsors: GhostBed ⬇️ https://www.ghostbed.com/house FOR 10% off! Stash ⬇️ https://www.stash.com/HOUSE for 15% off your monthly subscription or 30% off your annual subscription. GLD ⬇️ https://www.gld.com/ code "teamhouse" for 40% your first order Quince⬇️ go to: https://www.quince.com/house for free shipping and 365 day returns For ad free video and audio and access to live streams... JOIN OUR PATREON! https://www.patreon.com/c/TheTeamHouse To help support the show and for all bonus content including: -live shows and asking guest questions -ad free audio and video -early access to shows -Access to ALL bonus segments with our guests Subscribe to our Patreon! ⬇️ https://www.patreon.com/TheTeamHouse ___________________________________________________ GRAB JACK'S NEW BOOK "THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN" ⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️⬇️ https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/803651/the-most-dangerous-man-by-jack-murphy/paperback/ Subscribe to the new EYES ON podcast here:⬇️ https://www.youtube.com/@EyesOnGeopoliticsPod/featured Jack Murphy's book "We Defy: The Lost Chapters of Special Forces History" ⬇️ https://www.amazon.com/We-Defy-Chapters-Special-History-ebook/dp/B0DCGC1N1N/ Or make a one time donation at: ⬇️ https://ko-fi.com/theteamhouse Social Media: ⬇️ The Team House Instagram: https://instagram.com/the.team.house?utm_medium=copy_link The Team House Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheTeamHousePod Jack’s Instagram: https://instagram.com/jackmcmurph?utm_medium=copy_link Jack’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jackmurphyrgr?s=21 Team House Discord: ⬇️ https://discord.gg/wHFHYM6 "Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio" 00:00 — Start 01:16 — Debriefing Cold War Defectors 02:28 — Wayne Barnes’ Origin Story 07:13 — Penn State, Villanova, and the Road to the FBI 14:08 — Early FBI Career Before Quantico 17:39 — The Undercover Black Panther Operation 26:38 — The Compton Vetting Test 29:52 — Bill Cosby, Backstopping, and the Cover Story 31:23 — George H. W. Bush and the UN Recognition Play 35:59 — The Hidden Nixon Assassination Plot 39:22 — Debriefing Defectors and the CIA-FBI Divide 42:49 — Ion Pacepa and the Romanian Intelligence Collapse 45:33 — Courtship: CIA and FBI Working Together 48:08 — Country Music, Cover Legends, and Recruiting Soviets 53:06 — The FBI Mole Hunt Begins 59:21 — The Mission: Get a Russian to Identify the Mole 01:04:25 — Robert Hanssen, Breach, and What the Movie Missed 01:07:03 — Setting the Stage at the Santa Monica Film Festival 01:11:17 — Hollywood Help, Polly Platt, and Backstopping Ivan 01:20:03 — Staging the First Visual Contact 01:25:43 — Who “Ivan” Was and Why He Mattered 01:28:58 — The Poolside Setup That Made Contact Possible 01:35:35 — Why Cold Pitches Don’t Work 01:42:24 — What Happened After Ivan Pointed Out the Photo 01:48:38 — Brian Kelley, False Leads, and Dead Drop Maps 01:52:52 — Why the Case Almost Disappeared 01:58:23 — Robert Redford, Three Days of the Condor, and Real-World Fallout 02:06:37 — What Spy Movies Get Wrong 02:09:01 — A Traitor in the FBI and Final Thoughts Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-team-house--5960890/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss.

Transcript

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2:24:32

33,075 words · 8 speakers

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