"David Rudgers, a twenty-two-year CIA veteran, has written an account of its creation, revealing how the idea of a centralized intelligence developed within the government and debunking the myth that former OSS chief William J. Donovan was the prime mover behind the agency's founding." "Creating the Secret State locates the CIA's origins in government-wide efforts to reorganize national security during the transition from World War II to the Cold War.".

"Based almost entirely on archival and other primary sources, Rudgers's book describes in detail how the CIA evolved from its original purpose - as a watchdog to guard against a "nuclear Pearl Harbor" - to the role of clandestine warriors countering Soviet subversion, eventually engaging in more forms of intelligence gathering and covert operations than any of its counterparts."--BOOK JACKET.