1972
The Case-Zablocki Act — Congress passes an act requiring congressional review of executive agreements. In theory, this should make CIA operations more accountable. In fact, it is only marginally effective.
Cambodia — Congress votes to cut off CIA funds for its secret war in Cambodia.
Wagergate Break-in — President Nixon sends in a team of burglars to wiretap Democratic offices at Watergate. The team members have extensive CIA histories, including James McCord, E. Howard Hunt and five of the Cuban burglars. They work for the Committee to Reelect the President (CREEP), which does dirty work like disrupting Democratic campaigns and laundering Nixon’s illegal campaign contributions. CREEP’s activities are funded and organized by another CIA front, the Mullen Company...
A Timeline of CIA Atrocities
I would be wary of laying the atrocities blame on the CIA in Vietnam. Prior to JFK's assassination, we were primarily looking for a non-communist alternative ... whether we would have seen that any western alternative was doomed because the French had been the colonial power, even before Japan, and Ho fought them both ... and won.
LBJ saw Vietnam as a means to be tougher on commies than Goldwater. Towards the end LBJ sought a political rather than military solution .... but Nixon torpedoed it .. which was blatantly illegal and should have seen him impeached in his first term. Nixon used the war as a political tool in his McCarthyesque use of foreign policy to hold onto political power.
The cia did the bidding of four (actually 5) presidential adminsistrations. It's policies varied with the instructions it was given.
Not a hightide of American exceptionalism.