officials and employees

"[In this] story of a man with a conscience working at the CIA (1966-1990) during the height of the Cold War between Washington and Moscow, Mel Goodman settles old scores as he offers first-hand accounts of the inner workings of the CIA and how high-level officials compromise national security by pressuring those below them to support their career-advancing political agendas"--Provided by publisher.

"The first in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the White House Chiefs of Staff, whose actions--and inactions--have defined the course of our country What do Dick Cheney and Rahm Emanuel have in common? Aside from polarizing personalities, both served as chief of staff to the president of the United States--as did Donald Rumsfeld, Leon Panetta, and a relative handful of others. The chiefs of staff, often referred to as "the gatekeepers," wield tremendous power in Washington and beyond; they decide who is allowed to see the president, negotiate with Congress to push POTUS's agenda, and--most crucially--enjoy unparalleled access to the leader of the free world. Each chief can make or break an administration, and each president reveals himself by the chief he picks. Through extensive, intimate interviews with all seventeen living chiefs and two former presidents, award-winning journalist and producer Chris Whipple pulls back the curtain on this unique fraternity. In doing so, he revises our understanding of presidential history, showing us how James Baker's expert managing of the White House, the press, and Capitol Hill paved the way for the Reagan Revolution--and, conversely, how Watergate, the Iraq War, and even the bungled Obamacare rollout might have been prevented by a more effective chief. Filled with shrewd analysis and never-before-reported details,The Gatekeepers offers an essential portrait of the toughest job in Washington"--.

One of the most authentic and consistently illuminating portraits of police work ever, Blue on Blue describes the fascinating inner workings of the world?s largest police force and Chief Charles Campisi?s unprecedented two decades putting bad cops behind bars.

Explores the true story of four African American female mathematicians recruited by the U.S. government during World War II to work at the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory. Their job involved being "human computers," using pencils, slide rulers, and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would allow rockets and astronauts to be launched out of the atmosphere.

"This little-known WWII story introduces a renegade pilot whose personal mission to rescue his family from a POW camp changed modern air warfare forever. December 1941: Manila is invaded, and US citizen and Philippine Airlines manager, Pappy Gunn, is ordered to fly key military command out of the country, leaving his family at home. So Gunn was miles away when the Japanese captured his wife and children, placing them in an internment camp where they faced disease, abuse, and starvation. Gunn spent three years trying to rescue them. His exploits became legend as he revolutionized the art of air warfare, devising his own weaponry, missions, and combat strategies. By the end of the war, Pappy's ingenuity and flair for innovation helped transform MacArthur's air force into the scourge of the Pacific"--.

Corey Pegues has lived on both sides of the law. At the height of the 1980s crack epidemic, he was a teenager hugging the street corner, selling dope for the notorious Supreme Team gang and watching drugs decimate his stable, working-class neighborhood almost overnight. After a botched murder attempt on a rival gang member, Corey, the only member of his family to graduate from high school, knew he had to get out. Barely eighteen, with two kids by two different women, Corey left under cover of night to enlist in the US Army. After several years in the military, the police academy was a breeze. What is daily life truly like for urban youth in America? What is the one problem endemic in law enforcement that's even more dangerous than rampant racism? There aren't many people who understand both sides of the story. As war rages throughout our nation between police and communities of color, Pegues tears down the blue wall to discuss the discriminatory practices he faced within the NYPD and talks candidly about the distrust between law enforcement and the people.

In 2013, Americans learned that a former FBI agent turned private investigator, who disappeared in Iran in 2007, had been there on a mission for the CIA. Robert Levinson's mission was secret and the hunt to rescue him revealed the shadowlands between crime, business, espionage, and the law, where secrets are currency and betrayal is commonplace.

"Before John Glenn orbited the earth, or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as -human computers- used pencils, slide rules, and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space. This book brings to life the stories of Dorothy Vaughan, Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, and Christine Darden, four African-American women who lived through the civil rights era, the Space Race, the Cold War, and the movement for gender equality, and whose work forever changed the face of NASA and the country"--Amazon.com.

"Before John Glenn orbited Earth, or Neil Armstrong walked on the Moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as 'human computers' used pencils, slide rules and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets, and astronauts, into space. Among these problem-solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation."--Dust jacket.

"Some said it was too dangerous to fly. Others insisted the shuttle must take off. Lies, pressure, and faulty parts all played a terrible part in the explosion of the Challenger space shuttle in 1986. Through powerful narrative storytelling, follow the tales of people who experienced the tragedy firsthand. Meets Common Core standards for narrative nonfiction and exploring multiple accounts of an event"--Provided by the publisher.