Ex-CIA Agent on Capturing Che Guevara, Who Truly Killed JFK, and Election Predictions

Tucker Carlson
6 May 202449:22

Summary

TLDRThe transcript features an interview with Felix Rodriguez, a former CIA operative, who shares his experiences from a life of espionage and covert operations. Rodriguez discusses his involvement in significant historical events, including the capture of Che Guevara in Bolivia, his work with the CIA in various capacities, and his insights into the Bay of Pigs, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Iran-Contra affair. He also addresses allegations about the CIA's role in the Kennedy assassination and reflects on the impact of socialism in Cuba and the potential risks it poses to the United States. Rodriguez's narrative provides a firsthand account of the CIA's operations and the personal sacrifices made by those involved in clandestine activities, offering a unique perspective on the Cold War era and its aftermath.

Takeaways

  • 📸 The last photograph of Che Guevara was taken in Bolivia in 1967, just before his execution.
  • 🔍 Felix Rodriguez, a former CIA officer, was present at the capture and execution of Che Guevara and shared his firsthand account.
  • 🤝 Rodriguez had a conversation with Guevara before his death, during which he tried to negotiate for Guevara's life.
  • ✈️ Rodriguez was involved in various covert CIA operations, including the Bay of Pigs and the Iran-Contra affair.
  • 🇨🇺 He expressed his belief that socialism has a detrimental impact on countries, citing Cuba and Venezuela as examples.
  • 🚫 Rodriguez criticized President Jimmy Carter for dismantling CIA operations that he believes could have prevented 9/11.
  • 🤔 He shared his concerns about the direction the United States is heading in, particularly regarding socialist policies and open borders.
  • 💣 Rodriguez was part of a team that brought supplies to support resistance within Cuba and was involved in multiple clandestine entries into the country.
  • 👮‍♂️ He mentioned the significant role of trust in the success of covert operations, as well as the risks faced by those who aided the CIA.
  • 🌟 Rodriguez received multiple military honors for his service, including from the Vietnamese armed forces and the CIA.
  • 👨‍👧‍👦 Despite the dangerous nature of his work, Rodriguez expressed gratitude for his life and the opportunity to contribute to a better world.

Q & A

  • Who is Felix Rodriguez and what is his connection to the photograph of Che Guevara?

    -Felix Rodriguez is a former CIA officer who was present during the capture and execution of Che Guevara in Bolivia in 1967. He is featured in the photograph taken just before Guevara's death, and he provides a first-hand account of the events leading up to the iconic image.

  • What role did Felix Rodriguez play in the events surrounding Che Guevara's capture in Bolivia?

    -Felix Rodriguez was part of the CIA team providing intelligence to the Bolivian forces that captured Che Guevara. He had a conversation with Guevara after his capture and was present during the moments leading up to his execution.

  • Why was Che Guevara sent to Bolivia and under what circumstances was he captured?

    -Che Guevara was sent to Bolivia to foment revolution, but it is suggested that the conditions were set for his failure and execution due to political tensions between Cuba, the Soviet Union, and China. He was captured by Bolivian soldiers after they received confirmation of his presence from a French intellectual and an Argentine journalist.

  • What was the political backdrop that led to Che Guevara's execution?

    -The political backdrop involved a complex interplay of relationships between Cuba, the Soviet Union, and China. Guevara's pro-China stance was a threat to Cuba's relationship with the Soviet Union, leading to a situation where his success in Bolivia could have led to a shift in power dynamics that were unfavorable to the Soviet-aligned Cuban government.

  • How did Felix Rodriguez become involved in the Bay of Pigs invasion and what was his role?

    -Felix Rodriguez joined the Bay of Pigs invasion as a young man working with the resistance against Castro. He was part of a group that infiltrated Cuba before the invasion to work with the resistance and help with logistics and equipment.

  • What was Felix Rodriguez's involvement in the Iran-Contra affair?

    -Felix Rodriguez was asked by Oliver North to help facilitate the storage of military equipment in El Salvador that was stuck in Portugal due to political issues. This involvement led to his connection with the Iran-Contra affair, which he later testified about in front of Congress.

  • What are Felix Rodriguez's views on the current state of the CIA and its operations?

    -Rodriguez believes that the CIA has changed significantly since his time and is less effective due to increased legal constraints and a shift towards satellite intelligence, which he feels does not provide the same insights as human infiltration.

  • How did Felix Rodriguez's life take a different path than he initially planned?

    -Rodriguez initially wanted to be a civil engineer, but the course of history led him to a life of espionage and covert operations with the CIA. Despite not following his initial career path, he does not regret his life's trajectory.

  • What was the impact of President Jimmy Carter on the CIA, according to Felix Rodriguez?

    -Rodriguez claims that President Carter had a detrimental impact on the CIA by ordering the termination of deep penetration operations in terrorist organizations, which he believes led to a loss of valuable intelligence and contributed to events like the 9/11 attacks.

  • How did Felix Rodriguez's work with the CIA affect his personal life and family?

    -His work with the CIA led to significant personal risk, including death threats, which resulted in security measures such as a bulletproof car and concealed carry license. His family was also affected by false accusations during his testimony regarding the Iran-Contra affair.

  • What are Felix Rodriguez's thoughts on socialism and its impact on countries like Cuba and Venezuela?

    -Rodriguez is critical of socialism, citing the economic decline of countries like Cuba and Venezuela as evidence of its failure. He expresses concern about the rise of socialist ideologies in the United States and the potential long-term effects on the country.

Outlines

00:00

📸 Last Photograph of Che Guevara and Felix Rodriguez's Role

This paragraph introduces the last known photograph of the Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara, taken in Bolivia in 1967. Felix Rodriguez, a CIA officer, is highlighted for his involvement in the events surrounding Guevara's capture and death. Rodriguez discusses how he came to be present during Guevara's final moments, his interactions with Guevara, and the political intricacies that led to Guevara's execution. The summary also touches on Rodriguez's background, his work with the CIA, and the geopolitical tensions of the time.

05:01

🔫 Orders for Execution and the Aftermath

Felix Rodriguez narrates the military codes used for deciding the fate of prisoners, specifically referencing the execution order given for Che Guevara. He describes the emotional exchange between himself and Guevara before the execution, including Guevara's last words and actions. Rodriguez also details the immediate aftermath, including the arrival of a priest for Guevara's last rites, the removal of Guevara's body, and the subsequent burial and disinformation about the location of Guevara's grave.

10:02

🚁 Helicopter Extraction and the Role of the Media

This paragraph focuses on the logistics of moving Guevara's body after his execution, the involvement of the media, and the public's reaction. It describes the process of attaching Guevara's body to a helicopter, the pilot's efforts to balance the aircraft, and the eventual transportation of the body. The narrative also includes the presence of a priest offering a benediction and the chaotic media scene that ensued upon the body's arrival at a hospital. Additionally, it touches on the controversy surrounding the verification of Guevara's identity and the measures taken to provide tangible proof of his death.

15:02

🌴 Early Life, Involvement in the Bay of Pigs, and CIA Operations

Felix Rodriguez recounts his early life, including his immigration to the United States and his eventual involvement in anti-Castro activities. He discusses his participation in the Bay of Pigs invasion, his role in the CIA, and his various missions in Cuba. The summary highlights Rodriguez's multiple clandestine entries into Cuba, the equipment he smuggled for resistance efforts, and the challenges he faced working with the CIA and Cuban exiles.

20:03

🎖️ Military Honors and Involvement in the Vietnam War

Rodriguez speaks about his military honors and his service in the Vietnam War. He explains his role in stopping rocket attacks on Saigon and his work with the provincial reconnaissance unit (PRU), a CIA-managed group. The summary outlines his successful strategy against rocket launchers, which led to a significant reduction in attacks on Saigon, and the recognition he received from the Vietnamese armed forces and the CIA for his service.

25:05

🔍 Allegations of CIA Involvement in the Kennedy Assassination

Felix Rodriguez addresses allegations linking the CIA and Cuban exiles to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He provides his perspective on Kennedy's presidency, the Bay of Pigs, and the potential motivations behind the assassination. Rodriguez also mentions specific individuals, including a retired Cuban General, who he believes were involved. The summary explores Rodriguez's conviction that Kennedy's assassination was not a solo act and his belief in the broader implications of the event on U.S.-Cuba relations.

30:06

🤝 Unexpected Encounters and the CIA's Influence

This paragraph details an unexpected meeting Rodriguez had with Howard Hunt, a former CIA officer, and the subsequent instructions from the CIA to avoid contact with Hunt. Rodriguez discusses his involvement in the Iran-Contra affair, his voluntary work in El Salvador, and the political challenges he faced in implementing military strategies. The summary also touches on Rodriguez's testimony before Congress regarding the Iran-Contra affair and the accusations he faced, highlighting his defense and the ultimate outcome of the hearings.

35:08

🕊️ Faith and Survival in Conflict Zones

Rodriguez reflects on his survival throughout various conflicts and attributes it to his faith in God. He discusses his conviction that he was protected, which allowed him to carry out his duties without fear. The summary covers Rodriguez's experiences in Vietnam, El Salvador, and other conflict zones, emphasizing his belief in divine protection and the absence of personal injury despite dangerous circumstances.

40:09

🕵️‍♂️ CIA Operations and their Impact on Global Events

Felix Rodriguez shares his views on the transformation of the CIA from his time within the agency. He discusses the impact of President Jimmy Carter's policies on CIA operations and the potential consequences for national security. The summary addresses Rodriguez's concerns about the loss of valuable intelligence assets, the rise of socialism, and the importance of the United States maintaining its global influence. It concludes with Rodriguez's hopes for the future of the country and the importance of the upcoming elections.

45:10

🌟 Reflections on Life and Contributions

In the final paragraph, Rodriguez reflects on his life's work and the path that led him to serve in various covert operations. He expresses his initial desire to become a civil engineer and how history steered him toward a different role. The summary captures Rodriguez's pride in his contributions to the world, his lack of regrets, and his belief that he played a part in making the world a better place. It concludes with an appreciation for Rodriguez's fascinating life and service.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Cuban Revolution

The Cuban Revolution refers to the successful armed revolt against the authoritarian government of Cuban President Fulgencio Batista, led by Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. In the video, it's mentioned in the context of Che Guevara's role and his eventual fate, illustrating the backdrop of the political conflict and the ideological struggle of the time.

💡Che Guevara

Che Guevara, also known as 'El Che,' was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary who played a key role in the Cuban Revolution. He is a central figure in the video, discussing his capture in Bolivia, his influence, and the circumstances leading to his death.

💡Felix Rodriguez

Felix Rodriguez is a former CIA operative who is featured in the video, providing first-hand accounts of his interactions with Che Guevara before the latter's execution. Rodriguez's role in the events and his perspective as a CIA officer offer insights into the intelligence operations of the time.

💡Bolivia

Bolivia is the country where Che Guevara was captured and ultimately executed. The video discusses the Bolivian soldiers' involvement in Guevara's capture and the political and military situation in Bolivia at the time, which was influenced by the broader context of the Cold War.

💡CIA

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is the foreign intelligence service of the United States. Felix Rodriguez, as a CIA officer, was involved in operations related to Che Guevara. The video provides a personal account of the CIA's activities during the Cold War era, particularly in Latin America.

💡Cold War

The Cold War was a period of geopolitical tension between the Soviet Union and the United States and their respective allies. The script references the Cold War as it discusses the ideological conflict between pro-Soviet and pro-Chinese factions, which had significant implications for Guevara's mission and fate.

💡Bay of Pigs Invasion

The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful attempt by a CIA-trained force of Cuban exiles to invade Cuba and overthrow the Castro regime. Felix Rodriguez's involvement in this event is mentioned in the video, highlighting his role in anti-Castro operations.

💡Vietnam War

The Vietnam War is discussed in the context of Felix Rodriguez's service and the broader implications of U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War. Rodriguez's experiences in Vietnam and his work with the CIA there are used to illustrate the nature of covert operations and their impact.

💡Iran-Contra Affair

The Iran-Contra Affair was a political scandal in the United States that occurred during the second term of the Reagan Administration. Felix Rodriguez's involvement in this affair is touched upon in the video, providing a personal perspective on the controversial event.

💡Socialism

Socialism is an economic and political system where the means of production are owned and controlled by the state or the community as a whole. The video discusses the impact of socialism on countries like Cuba and Venezuela, with the speaker expressing concern about the rise of socialist ideologies in the United States.

💡John Kerry

John Kerry is an American politician and diplomat who served as the United States Secretary of State. In the video, he is mentioned in a critical context related to his anti-war activities during the Vietnam War, which the speaker believes contributed to a negative perception of the military.

Highlights

The last photograph of Che Guevara alive was taken in Bolivia in 1967.

Felix Rodriguez, a longtime CIA officer, was present at the capture and discussed the circumstances with Guevara.

Guevara was captured by Bolivian soldiers after a French intellectual confirmed his presence.

A Special Forces Unit from Panama was sent to train a battalion to operate against Guevara due to the Bolivian army's inexperience.

Felix Rodriguez and other CIA officers were sent to provide intelligence support, as they were not US citizens at the time.

Guevara's transmitter was not working, and he was sent to Bolivia with the intention of being killed due to his pro-China stance.

Fidel Castro could not stand Guevara, as he was pro-Chinese and a threat to Cuba's dependence on the Soviet Union.

Rodriguez had a conversation with Guevara before his execution and tried to convince the Bolivians to keep him alive.

Guevara was executed by Sergeant Teran with an M2 carbine, and Rodriguez was present during his final moments.

Rodriguez was involved in the Bay of Pigs invasion and worked with the CIA for intelligence purposes.

He infiltrated Cuba multiple times after the Bay of Pigs, bringing in equipment to support resistance.

Rodriguez volunteered to work in El Salvador, implementing a helicopter combat set that was effective against the Viet Cong.

He was involved in the Iran-Contra affair, assisting with the storage and maintenance of aircraft.

Rodriguez testified in front of Congress about his involvement in Iran-Contra without a lawyer or immunity.

He believes that socialism destroys economies, citing the examples of Cuba and Venezuela.

Rodriguez is critical of the changes in the CIA under President Jimmy Carter, which he believes led to a loss of valuable intelligence.

Despite the dangerous nature of his work, Rodriguez never worried about getting killed, attributing his survival to his belief in God.

He expresses concern for the future of the United States, warning against the adoption of socialist policies.

Transcripts

00:00

this is the last photograph of Cuban

00:03

revolutionary CH guara alive it was

00:05

taken in Bolivia in 1967 it's a very

00:08

famous photograph um probably familiar

00:10

to most people watching this this man

00:13

standing right there is not familiar to

00:16

most people watching this he should be

00:17

he's about to be his name is Felix

00:18

Rodriguez he's a longtime CI officer in

00:21

the operations directorate and um and he

00:24

joins us now to explain this picture and

00:26

to tell us about his life Mr Rodriguez

00:28

thank you very much pleasure to be here

00:30

so um it's a it's a remarkable picture

00:32

and the longer I look at it the more I

00:33

think that um can you tell us where this

00:36

was and what was happening well that was

00:39

uh in liera Bolivia that's where he was

00:42

captured and I I came in with the

00:44

helicopter with the colonel in charge of

00:46

the operation and after a while I got to

00:49

talk to him and I even thought about

00:51

taking the picture but while I was

00:52

talking to him the pilot of the

00:54

helicopter came with a camera from the

00:55

head of intelligence who wanted a

00:57

picture with SH so I asked him Commander

00:59

do you mind he say no so we took him out

01:01

of the schoolhouse and gave my camera to

01:03

the pilot and he took that

01:05

picture what so so you talked to guar

01:08

what of course what what were the

01:11

circumstances he' been captured by

01:13

Bolivian soldiers is that right yes Yes

01:15

actually uh they thought that he had

01:17

been killing Africa but then when they

01:20

captured de BR ustu who was a a French U

01:24

intellectual and then a a newspaper guy

01:26

from Argentina they confirmed that Shara

01:29

was was there so as long as they

01:32

understood that he was there they sent a

01:34

Special Forces Unit from Panama to train

01:36

a special Battalion to operate against

01:39

him because the Bolivian didn't have any

01:40

experience and then they sent a couple

01:42

of us from the CIA to provide them with

01:44

intelligence and the reason they s all

01:47

because we were not US citizen at the

01:49

time Vietnam was taking place and there

01:51

were people coming back in plastic back

01:52

from Vietnam and they didn't want any

01:54

American coming back and plastic back

01:56

from the Latin America at the time we

01:58

were not even res residents we were not

02:00

citizens so we didn't fall into the

02:03

Restriction of Ambassador Henderson

02:05

that's why we were able to go there so

02:08

you were working for the CIA full-time

02:09

obviously carrying a weapon obviously

02:11

but not a US citizen yes what was Chay

02:16

like that day when I first a lot of

02:19

people ask me you know what I thought

02:20

about sh sh at the time was nobody she

02:23

became a figure after he was dead Cuba

02:25

made him a figure yes after after War

02:28

even though they were the one who sent

02:30

him to be killed uh Fidel could not

02:33

stand him there because Fidel depended

02:35

on the Soviet Union Shara was

02:37

pro-chinese so when he was in Africa in

02:40

1965

02:41

64 uh all the weapon he received was

02:44

from Red China and then he didn't want

02:46

to go back to Cuba he went to hire in in

02:49

the Czech Republic and they had to send

02:51

people to convince him to go back to

02:52

Cuba and to give him an opportunity in

02:54

another place but when he was sent to

02:56

Bolivia was definitely mind for him to

02:58

be killed because the Soviet didn't want

03:00

him to be any successful because they

03:03

knew that Shay was pro-chinese and if he

03:05

took a revolution in there would be

03:07

toward the Chinese and at the time the

03:08

Chinese and the Soviet hated each other

03:10

very much so when he was sent to Bolivia

03:13

his transmitter was not even working in

03:15

December of 66 when they had a dinner

03:17

with Mario M the head of the Communist

03:19

Party of Bolivia who had been with Fidel

03:21

two months before complet complete prish

03:24

he told the Bolivian uh guerillas that

03:26

were with Shay if they stay with Shay

03:28

they were expelled from the Communist

03:29

Party

03:31

and then they had a a officer in

03:32

intelligence that they had sent to laas

03:34

Rena Monto to help him and as soon as he

03:37

was inen with all 17 people they took

03:39

him out of the the picture and told Shay

03:42

that they had to take him out because

03:43

his Visa had expired and actually he was

03:45

a Bolivian citizen by then so he was

03:47

definitely sent there to be killed by

03:49

Cuba because he could not succeed

03:51

because it will be a revolution that

03:52

will be Pro Chinese and Cuba depended on

03:55

the Soviet

03:56

Union so he's he's obviously he's a

03:59

prisoner in this picture um does he know

04:03

when this was taken that he's about to

04:04

die not at that time no so what happened

04:08

in the moments after this

04:10

picture well in in the sequence first of

04:13

all when we arrived with the helicopter

04:15

on the following date uh which is the

04:17

9th of October in Monday uh we came to

04:20

the room with the officers and he would

04:22

not talk to anybody cor was trying to

04:24

interrogate him he look at him he didn't

04:26

say any word to the point the guy said

04:27

look you invaded my country the least

04:29

you can have the courtesy of answering

04:31

me he didn't say a word so when we

04:34

finished that I came out I asked all his

04:36

documentation to photograph it from my

04:37

government and the col order his back be

04:40

given to me and he had some Chinese code

04:42

books he have some picture of his family

04:45

some medicament for his asthma inside

04:47

and he had a diary it's a German book

04:50

was written in Spanish that's his diary

04:52

so I photographed all of that uh then

04:54

while I was there they came and used

04:56

that the Great telephone call at the

04:58

getas and I was the highest ranking

05:00

officer uh so the there was definitely

05:03

the orders to execute him we had a very

05:05

simple code 500 shed 600 kill him 700

05:10

keep him alive so he came 500 600 which

05:13

Colonel senteno came out I told him I

05:15

said look this order from y High

05:16

Bolivian command to eliminate the

05:18

prisoner the order from my Government

05:20

tried to keep him alive at all cost so

05:22

we have helicopters to take him to

05:24

Panama for interrogation so he look at

05:26

me and say Felix my name was Felix Ramos

05:29

he said uh we you have been very hateful

05:32

to us helpful to us but this is order

05:34

from my president he looked at his watch

05:36

and he said the helicopter is going to

05:37

come several time bringing food and

05:39

ammunition taking our wound and our dead

05:41

but after 2:00 he's going to come up and

05:44

pick up check's dead body you can jti

05:47

shate him any way you want because we

05:48

know how much harm he have done to your

05:50

country so I said M Corell try to make

05:53

the change their mind but it does not

05:54

change in mind I give view my word of

05:56

Honor I will bring you dead body of sh

05:58

so we Embrace and he left and sure

06:01

enough the helicopter came several time

06:02

that's when the major came and asked for

06:04

a for a picture with the prisoner then I

06:06

started waiting and see what happened

06:08

and then there was a a school teacher

06:10

who came to me and said said why are you

06:13

going to kill him I said why do you say

06:15

that I said look we saw saw that you

06:17

took a picture of him outside and look

06:19

the radio is already giving the news so

06:20

at that that point I knew there was

06:22

nothing else to be done uh so I got into

06:25

the room I stood in front of thing and

06:26

said Commander I'm sorry I Tred my best

06:29

he white like a piece of paper and he

06:31

said it's better this way you have never

06:33

been captured alive so you told CH grar

06:35

he was about to be killed yes in a way

06:38

the way I say say I'm sorry I tried my

06:39

best he understood what I was saying

06:42

then he took his pipe out on S to give

06:44

this pipe to a soldo who treated me well

06:46

and at that time major Sergeant Teran

06:49

who he knew was the one executing the

06:51

the life prisoner burst into the

06:53

room I want the pipe and she say no I

06:56

won't give it to you so I ordered him

06:59

three times to leave the room when he

07:00

did I look at she I said would you give

07:02

it to me she see I will give it to you

07:05

so I put my pipe here I say any want

07:07

anything you want for your family then I

07:10

will say in a sarcastic way he say well

07:12

if you can't tell Fidel he will soon see

07:14

a triumphant revolution in America then

07:16

he changed expression and saying if you

07:18

can't tell my wife to Remar and try to

07:20

be happy that was his last word he

07:23

approached me we shook hand we embrace

07:26

it was a very uh strange unique moment

07:29

in my life because we never order

07:31

prisoner to be executed at the time I

07:34

even thought about cutting the telephone

07:35

line and telling the pilot that my

07:37

government was able to convince them to

07:39

bring share life and I remember what

07:41

happened when Batista released Fidel

07:42

Castro and what happened to my country

07:45

so I told myself look this is not your

07:47

word you're here to advise not to

07:48

command this is the Bolivian decision so

07:51

let history wrong itself so I let it go

07:53

the way it was and that was the the end

07:55

of it and what happened to Jay at that

07:57

point well after we embrace uh which was

08:00

like I say very strange moment for me

08:02

because he was My Enemy at the same time

08:05

I I feel sorry for him he conducted

08:06

himself with dignity at the end I left

08:09

the room and there was Sergeant Teran I

08:11

told him that not shoot to from here

08:12

down up shoot from here down because he

08:15

man supposed to die from combat one see

08:17

me capan see me capan and he left so it

08:20

was 1:00 in the afternoon Bolivian time

08:22

when I left there about 1:15 I heard the

08:24

burst and that's the time that he was

08:26

killed executed so they just shot him in

08:29

the room he was shot by M2 carabin that

08:32

was borrowed by this sergeant from

08:34

Lieutenant Paris who had an automatic

08:36

carabin I understand because I was in

08:39

present he came in and said Shar I'd

08:40

like to talk to you and uh he told him

08:43

said look I know you're coming to kill

08:44

me he said no no we are not going to

08:46

kill you you're wor you was more our

08:47

life than that and then he told him I

08:50

know you you want you to know you're

08:51

going to kill a man so he open fire sh

08:54

went like this or is a bullet that hit

08:55

here which is normal reaction to try to

08:57

cover yourself uh so he was shot and

09:00

killed I came back few hours later with

09:04

two of the captains from the operation

09:06

Captain G PR and celo torelli and we got

09:08

into the room his his head was facing

09:11

the the the ceiling he was covered with

09:14

mud uh so there was a dead body of two

09:16

Cuban behind him that have been killing

09:18

operation one was Captain panoan another

09:21

captain from the Cuban Army who died in

09:23

combat so we Embrace him there and and K

09:26

plow semi capan we have finished in the

09:28

gorillas in LA America and I told him

09:31

capan we haven't finished it at least we

09:33

have delayed them for a long time so we

09:35

could hear the helicopter coming and

09:37

they immediately left so I asked for a

09:39

bucket of water I clean his face I took

09:41

all the mud out of his face I tried to

09:43

clo his YW with my handkerchief which I

09:45

lost in the helicopter with the wind and

09:47

then I tried to close his eyes and it

09:49

was impossible they have been open too

09:51

long so I tried to close it pop up again

09:53

several times so I gave up on it so we

09:56

took the body and we tie at the right

09:58

side of the helicopter

09:59

and while we're finishing to do that I

10:01

remember tied it to the struts of the

10:03

helicopter to the to right right pontoon

10:05

of the helicopter on the right side and

10:08

I remember the the the pilot I capan

10:11

moved forward to balance the helicopter

10:13

so I put my hand under him and pulled it

10:15

out when he brought it out was

10:17

completely covered with blood apparently

10:19

it was shot in the aorta and see these

10:22

plastic things are and didn't allow any

10:24

water to go through it was a big pool of

10:26

blood in there I look at it I didn't say

10:29

anything but I thought to myself there

10:30

are people who have blood in their hands

10:32

I have the hell of a lot of here so I

10:34

clean the blood and this right side of

10:35

my pants I came in and then a soldier

10:39

came and said mayor mayor father sheers

10:40

went to see him so we stood with

10:43

helicopter running for maybe a couple of

10:44

minutes and there was a priest who came

10:46

on a on a mule he came around uh he get

10:50

down of the mule and he gave him the

10:52

last benediction which I took picture of

10:53

it with a Mino camera that I have left I

10:57

thought to myself this this guy was an

10:58

at he didn't believe in God nevertheless

11:01

he received the ra Ritual from the

11:03

Catholic church and from there we took

11:06

off and then we landed the inag grand

11:07

there were thousands of people waiting

11:09

at the wrong way there was like 15

11:11

different plane from the Press from the

11:13

military waiting for the for for him to

11:16

arrive so I put my cap and run into the

11:19

people so I my picture was never taken

11:21

and then he was taken into Schoolhouse

11:25

excuse me to a hospital seor de Malta

11:28

then in the evening there was a a a

11:29

meeting and the general was telling a

11:32

colonel if if Fidel deny this is Shara

11:36

we need tangible proof of it cut his

11:37

head and put him for Malahide so I said

11:39

meal you cannot do that I say why not

11:42

say supposedly Fidel Deni this is Shara

11:44

you are ah head of a state you cannot

11:46

show the head of a human being a proof

11:48

said well what do you suggest I said

11:50

well you want some tangible proof of it

11:53

CAU one finger and we have the

11:55

fingerprint from the Argentinian federal

11:57

police and he can be checked so so he

11:59

ordered both hand to be cut so I left

12:02

with all the documentation for Santa

12:04

Cruz and my other friend is staying

12:05

there and then about 3 or 4:00 in the

12:07

morning when the Press was gone uh they

12:09

took his body they cut both hands and

12:11

put him for Malahide and two other

12:13

bodies and they took it to the very end

12:15

of the wrong way and they bury him in

12:17

there with two bodies there was a

12:18

bulldozer there who was uh making longer

12:22

the wrong way than he was buried right

12:24

there now later on years later when

12:26

Fidel said he found the body on the side

12:29

of the wrong way with sving all the body

12:31

I can assure you that was not Shara

12:33

because he wasn't buried there amazing

12:37

and so what did you do it was 1967 it

12:40

was back up really quickly you're you

12:41

born in Cuba right how did when did you

12:44

come to the United States I came in 1954

12:47

for a school I came to perky prep in

12:49

penor Pennsylvania I spent six years in

12:52

there seven and8th grade in my high

12:54

school and I actually uh went off um my

12:57

last year to go to the first person that

12:59

was against Castro was the

13:00

anti-communist Legion of the Caribbean

13:02

the Dominican Republic so I participated

13:05

in that operation when I was 17 18 years

13:07

old and I came back and then after

13:09

graduation I was accepted at the

13:11

University of Miami for civil

13:13

engineering but before I went there I

13:15

learned there was something going on in

13:16

Latin America against Castro I joined

13:19

where later became the Bay of pig

13:20

Invasion I was 19 year old at the time

13:23

what was your role in the Bay of Pigs

13:25

invasion I was part of what they call

13:27

the special forces or INF ation thing so

13:30

I was a group of about 36 people we got

13:33

into Cuba a month and a half before The

13:35

Invasion to work with the resistant I

13:37

Came In clandestinely by boat I start

13:40

working inside the island uh helping

13:43

with them with all kind of equipment and

13:45

trying to do an uising another area then

13:48

actually the Bay of pig surprise us

13:50

because they never told us anything if

13:52

they had being able to tell us that the

13:54

invasion was coming we had enough

13:56

explosive to be able maybe to blow some

13:58

bridges toward the Bay of pig and delay

14:00

the advancement of Castro troop but they

14:03

never told anything we learned through

14:04

the Cuban radio so at that time was lo I

14:07

was able to make it through the

14:09

Venezuelan Embassy where I spent five

14:11

and a half months in Havana in Havana

14:14

and then finally got safe conduct went

14:16

back to Venezuela at the end of

14:18

September how did you get from the Bay

14:21

of Pigs to Havana that's a long way

14:22

isn't it it wasn't in the Bay of pig I

14:24

landed near Havana a month and a half

14:26

before the Bay of Pigs I'm working with

14:28

the resistant you know we had a

14:29

mechanism of the of the internal

14:31

resistant to pick us up near the highway

14:33

and then take off to safe houses in

14:35

Havana then we start working with them

14:37

in there during that time so I wasn't at

14:39

the B of PE at the time and I was lucky

14:42

because I didn't have any idea of any

14:44

Embassy in there but the lady who was

14:45

driving me around was close connected to

14:48

the Espanish Embassy and the

14:50

spaner Alejandro vgar who was in charge

14:53

of they called propaganda actually was

14:55

Intelligence came to pick her up because

14:57

they were surrounding our building

14:59

building Fidel very successfully what he

15:01

did he surrounded every single block in

15:03

Havana and if you wear a male a military

15:07

agan you were not assigned to a military

15:09

unit even though you might have been

15:10

even a communist they will take you and

15:12

put in custody they were baseball field

15:15

with 250,000 Cubans in there a theater

15:19

that capacity for 5,000 people 5,500 so

15:22

they were able to disarticulate internal

15:24

resistance that way even they pick up

15:26

some of my friend that came in and then

15:28

they released them because they had no

15:29

idea who they were but I was lucky to

15:32

make it to the Venezuelan Embassy and

15:33

then back back into um into Miami

15:36

actually I got to Miami on the very

15:38

first of October of 1961 and then by the

15:42

end of October I was back inside Cuba

15:45

went back seven times because I was the

15:47

only one who left the contact open after

15:49

the failure of the Bay of Pi to bring

15:51

people and equipment in and for

15:53

intelligence

15:54

purpos what what kind of equipment were

15:57

you bringing in oh we were bringing

15:58

explosive were bringing in M3 machine

16:01

guns uh all kind hand grenades and all

16:04

those in that they were still bringing

16:06

in to be able to support a future

16:08

resistance but then it didn't work out

16:10

then I decided actually in 1962 I

16:13

decided to marry my present wife for 62

16:15

years and I told her I said look Rosa uh

16:19

I'm going to quit I'm going to go into

16:21

civilian life but I want you to know if

16:22

there is something serious about Cuba I

16:24

will go so she made the mistake of

16:27

agreeing to that because we we got

16:29

married in the 25th of August I start

16:31

working a company for $1 an hour called

16:34

called is letter service propaganda then

16:36

I was improving toing packaging company

16:39

$135 an hour so while I was working

16:42

there and remember I got married 25th of

16:44

August in the in the month of October I

16:46

got a call from a CIA guy and said look

16:48

I need to talk to you after you work at

16:50

that company so I went to see him at the

16:53

parking lot of the uh Howard and Johnson

16:55

across from the University of Miami I

16:57

sit in his car and I say Felix the

16:59

Marines are going to land in Cuba we

17:00

need you I look at him and say Tom if

17:03

the Marine is going to land in Cuba what

17:04

the hell do you need me for good point

17:07

he said well you know how to operate a

17:08

radio Beacon we like you to parachute

17:10

behind a Soviet missile base in Santa

17:12

Clara to set up a radio Beacon so that

17:15

our air force can hit with Precision the

17:17

airbase at the time we didn't have the

17:18

GPS system that we have today so at that

17:21

time I agreed so they took me to a safe

17:23

house and my basic training was romping

17:25

from different altitude uh and the three

17:28

point of contact didn't break a leg I

17:31

couldn't even call my wife my wife went

17:33

back to the to the apartment and and of

17:35

course that night when Kennedy went on

17:37

National Television declared the October

17:39

crisis so she realized was something

17:42

related to that so the day we were going

17:45

to parachute into Cuba the day the Cru

17:46

Chef backed down the operation and then

17:49

you know I after that was had a job so

17:52

then I continued to work with the CIA

17:54

for how long oh until 1976 when they

17:57

retired me for for security

17:59

consideration after Colonel senteno NAA

18:01

who I was his advisor was assassinated

18:04

in Paris uh he was the Bolivian ambassad

18:07

there and he was killed and they left a

18:09

sign saying the sheara Commando then

18:12

they also assassinated major quania was

18:14

the colonel then Roberto kintan in

18:16

Hamburg Germany who was the consul

18:18

General from Bolivia there also left a

18:20

sign saying uh Commando Shara and they

18:23

call my home and say Felix Ramos you're

18:25

next that's the name that I use in

18:26

Bolivia that never came out so the

18:29

agency proposed me one of those program

18:31

to change my name and go to another

18:33

state which I would not accept because

18:34

of my kids so what they did they came to

18:37

my home they did a security evaluation

18:39

they uh actually gave me a bulletproof

18:43

car they bulletproof my car in in

18:45

Langley Virginia I got a license to

18:47

carry concealed weapon that was

18:49

difficult to get at the time and they

18:51

gave me a total disability I didn't have

18:53

to work to have a routine of work and

18:56

put some iron fences in my house some

18:58

security and then I signed a paper for

19:00

them if I got killed related to my job

19:02

my family could not show you know they

19:05

could not sue them in any way of form

19:07

because what they offer me that they

19:08

consider I refuse to but then after that

19:11

I continue independently to do something

19:13

like I went in into El Salvador uh

19:16

flying with Salvadorian guill as a

19:18

volunteer with a concept that I

19:20

developed in Vietnam where I spent two

19:22

and a half years in Vietnam after

19:24

Bolivia and um he was very effective in

19:27

El Salvador when he was there what were

19:29

you doing in Vietnam as a CI officer

19:32

well that my responsibility was to stop

19:34

the rocketing of Saigon and the

19:35

rocketing of the both g into Saigon we

19:38

were advising unit called the pru

19:40

provincial reconnaissant unit a CIA unit

19:43

who was managed paid and controlled by

19:45

the CIA and it was almost impossible to

19:48

stop the rocketing of Saigon and it did

19:50

it for for psychological reason every

19:52

week there will be one or two 122 Point

19:56

uh Soviet missiles going into the city

19:58

at random normally they tried to hit the

20:01

presidential Palace and the US Embassy

20:02

which they never did but it was a

20:04

psychological SC and we start looking in

20:07

area it was impossible to locate these

20:08

people until I was able to capture one

20:11

uh who was The Bodyguard of tutan the

20:13

commander of that unit and he told me

20:15

that they were hiding in an area that we

20:17

never thought of because there was the

20:18

tie of the water will come up like 17 ft

20:21

and what they did he told me they had 55

20:23

gallon drums they solder one on top of

20:25

the other thought they sleeping there

20:27

when the water went up when the water

20:28

went down they run across the river they

20:30

fired the rocket into the area and then

20:32

they came back and hide again then I

20:34

start looking in that area which we

20:36

never did before and actually on the 4th

20:39

of December of 19 70 I was able to

20:42

establish contact with the commander of

20:44

the unit we killed like 18 of them we

20:46

lost three of our pru and from there on

20:49

we continue the pressure and there was

20:50

not a single Rock of fire into sa after

20:53

that and for that I got equal to the the

20:57

Congressional Medal of Honor from the

20:58

Vietnamese his armed forces called the

21:00

the um the cross of gallantry was gold

21:02

star I got one of that two silver star

21:04

and six bronze star during the time that

21:06

I was with the with them then I got the

21:09

intelligence star for from the CIA

21:11

because of the operation in Vietnam I'm

21:13

sure you've been asked us a thousand

21:14

times but since you worked there you

21:18

worked for President Kennedy yes and he

21:21

was of course killed in November of 1963

21:24

and countless books have been written

21:26

blaming Cuban Exiles people participated

21:29

in the Bay of Pigs for being involved in

21:32

some way with the CIA in that

21:33

assassination what's your assessment of

21:35

that claim well I'll tell you most of

21:37

the Brigade member believes uh president

21:39

Kenn was a traitor and he was the one

21:41

who definitely he had the responsibility

21:44

and he was responsible or was

21:46

failure looking from another point I

21:48

believe he was a young president ill

21:51

advised and we PID the price and I

21:54

believe that actually he was killed

21:55

because he tried to amend that uh after

21:58

he was able to pull the Brigade out of

22:00

prison he opened the Arm Forces of the

22:02

United States for the Brigade members

22:03

out became a second lieutenant in the US

22:05

Army in 196 63 and then he promised us a

22:09

special operation which was started in

22:11

Central America in three different bases

22:13

and not not many many people know about

22:15

it but then he was assassinated and a

22:18

lot of people believe that it was only

22:20

one shooter I believe there were two

22:22

shooter uh we have information that

22:24

there was a Cuban which is now a retired

22:26

General Fabian Escalante who was a

22:28

captain at the time who was in Dallas

22:30

and he was the second shooter in the

22:31

assassination of the president well you

22:33

just okay I'm sorry will you say that

22:35

one more time what's his name Pavan

22:38

Escalante Escalante Pavan ESC and he was

22:40

in Dallas that that day and then he left

22:43

uh it was something that and and Castro

22:45

said that that he knew that cu the

22:49

United State was trying to kill him but

22:51

be very careful because the Cuban also

22:53

had very long hand so it wasn't matter

22:55

either Kennedy or or or or

22:59

I think that that's why he got killed so

23:02

you believe that Kennedy was

23:04

assassinated by Cuban forces Castro

23:06

great yes remember that Oswell was in

23:09

the Cuban Embassy uh for several hours

23:11

before he went to Dallas that day and we

23:14

also have the fact that with no question

23:16

about it that Fabian Escalante was there

23:19

and then CUA deny at the beginning that

23:21

he was ever in the Cuban Embassy later

23:23

on when they learned that we as CIA we

23:25

had pictures a movie of him getting into

23:26

our Embassy then they said that they

23:29

went into a very distinct uh check and

23:32

they found out that indeed yes oswal was

23:34

in the Cuban Embassy and they claimed

23:35

that he came in there to get a Cuban

23:38

visa and he was denied but I do believe

23:41

that it was a participation of Cuban the

23:43

assassination of the president and later

23:44

on one assistant of of President Johnson

23:47

said that they knew about it but for

23:50

security consideration they denied to

23:52

the public the participation of Q and

23:54

the assassination of the president

23:56

because remember at that time they were

23:58

already four offensive missile inside

24:00

Cuba when the October crisis took place

24:02

they were already had been able to bring

24:04

into Cuba four offensive nuclear

24:06

missiles that's why when cruset thought

24:08

and he knew that the US knew that we had

24:10

four offensive they had four offensive

24:12

missile inside the island he could bring

24:14

20 of them that's when the October

24:15

crisis du play but there were still uh

24:18

four missiles inside Cuba that were

24:20

offensive so at the time everybody say

24:23

well they cannot attack Cuba because

24:25

Kennedy CRF treaty it was never

24:27

implemented because the important part

24:29

of that treat was that it would be a

24:31

personal ocular inspection by American

24:33

Personnel in Cuba to make sure that they

24:35

had taken out those four missiles and

24:37

CUA never allowed them to be able to

24:39

come in to check for that so that the

24:41

compromise was never the Kennedy crew

24:44

was never implemented at all do you

24:46

believe the CIA had any role in

24:49

Kennedy's assassination no I don't think

24:51

so I don't believe so I know there's a

24:53

lot of allegation to that effect but I

24:55

don't think so I don't believe so at all

24:57

I am convinced did you ever come across

24:59

Howard hunt during your yes I met him

25:01

after he came out of prison uh actually

25:05

he was coming for Christmas out of

25:07

prison and I have met his daughter with

25:09

our team is home Kevin and we we run to

25:13

each other into a Sears so I invited him

25:15

to come to my home you ran into him in

25:17

Sears yeah in Miami and I invited him to

25:20

go into my home while I'm sitting there

25:22

I get a call from the chief of station

25:23

from Miami say Felix by the way uh how H

25:26

home will be in town make sure that you

25:28

don't meet him the guy was sitting right

25:29

in front of me I already had given him

25:31

my car to use for the three days he was

25:33

in in Miami so later on I called my boy

25:35

and say you should have called me later

25:38

sooner I said what he said well I had

25:41

power hun in front of my house no I said

25:43

yes you didn't tell me and and I drawn

25:45

him into sier I brought him to my home

25:47

it's first time I ever met him amazing

25:50

why did the CIA not want you to see

25:52

Howard hunt because they don't want to

25:53

see make they believe there is a

25:55

connection between the CIA and then even

25:57

though I were h was working for the CIA

25:59

but he was head of the task force for

26:01

the White House with Nixon yes so there

26:03

was a connection there yes there was um

26:06

interesting how did you get involved in

26:09

the Iran Contra story well when I was in

26:12

in Miami I thought uh I thought the war

26:15

was going on in El Salvador I had

26:17

implemented a helicopter come set in

26:19

Vietnam that was extremely effective

26:21

against the the Viet Kong in there of

26:23

with intelligence going to the area with

26:25

gunships and then spotting then was

26:28

flying on the low helicopter spotting

26:30

then then coming back with troop and get

26:33

the the the result so I volunteered to

26:35

go to a Salvador in ' 85 early ' 85

26:38

that's where I went to El Salvador then

26:40

as a volunteer nobody was paying me

26:42

anything who did you volunteer to H who

26:45

who did you to the Salvadorian Air Force

26:48

yes but it wasn't easy it was very

26:50

difficult because you have the US

26:51

military commander General Gorman

26:54

forestar General who command all the

26:55

military assistant to the area and here

26:57

is a Cuban retired from the CIA trying

27:00

to implement a military conet in his

27:01

area but I was lucky that the the vice

27:04

president of the United States had Don

27:06

Greg who was my boss from Vietnam as his

27:08

National Security advisor and he knew

27:11

how effective my concept was so he

27:12

helped me uh to be able to get the

27:14

clearance from the state department and

27:16

other people for me to go down there so

27:18

I start working with the with the

27:19

concept down in El Salvador was

27:22

extremely successful at one point in

27:25

time Oliver nors had a problem with a

27:27

plane

27:29

uh that was stuck in in in Portugal that

27:32

he could not bring in because of of

27:33

Honduran closed the entrance of his

27:36

planing there because of an incident

27:37

they had with a plane with the resistant

27:40

and he knew that I had an excellent

27:41

relationship with the Salvadorian so he

27:43

sent knows to me that if I could get the

27:45

Salvadorian to hold all of this military

27:48

equipment from Portugal until he was

27:51

able to solve the problem with Honduras

27:53

so I talked to the uh to the head of the

27:54

Air Force I mean to the minister of

27:56

defense and they agree that's how I got

27:58

involved in the into ran Contra thing

28:00

they brought the plane was storage in

28:02

there for for a while and when they saw

28:04

that they asked me if I could ask the

28:06

Salvador they could do the maintenance

28:07

of their aircraft from the Nicaraguan

28:09

resistant operation in El Salvador and

28:11

that was how we got started in that

28:14

operation in there but really uh the

28:17

vice president have very little to do in

28:18

this operation of course when the Iran

28:20

Contra broke they blame that they they

28:23

actually they came out to say that I was

28:25

sent to El Salvador to B the Bing

28:29

amendment to support the Nicaraguan

28:30

resistance and my helicopter con concept

28:33

was a a cover up which wasn't true that

28:36

wasn't the case at all and then they

28:38

they Suba me to testify in front of

28:40

Congress and I was the only one who went

28:43

to Congress without a lawyer and without

28:45

immunity everybody else went with lawyer

28:47

immunity and they try even the White

28:49

House called me and said the boy don't

28:51

Gray from the white house uh they wanted

28:53

me to bring a lawyer that the why I was

28:54

going to pay for I say look uh I have

28:57

done nothing wrong if I have to bring a

28:59

lawyer for what I did I am in the wrong

29:01

country and I don't believe I am in the

29:03

wrong country so they told me no you

29:05

don't understand you know you know how

29:06

these Congressman are they might ask you

29:08

to push you into saying something that

29:11

might heard the vice president and I

29:13

refused so I was the only one who went

29:14

without lawyer and without immunity and

29:17

uh he came out find and the only guy

29:19

that I really don't like at all because

29:22

after that he he asked me to testify in

29:24

his committee was John KY why didn't you

29:26

like John KY he a

29:29

funny uh he was no war hero to be honest

29:32

with you I I I was invited when when he

29:35

run for president the Vietnam veteran

29:37

for the truth make a big rally in the

29:39

west wing of the capital and at that

29:42

time they asked me to be one of the

29:43

speaker against him because what he did

29:45

to me you know he accused me of

29:46

receiving $10 million from the Milan

29:48

cartel for the contract which wasn't

29:50

true you know I was it was a pain it was

29:53

very hard for my family cuz I was flying

29:56

El Salvador and my wife called me said

29:58

look it's from PTI in the Miami Herald

30:00

your picture when you were in the army

30:02

that you received $10 million from the

30:03

Medan cartel I said you know that's not

30:06

TR she said I know but here is SOA from

30:08

Senator Curry's committee so I called

30:10

from El Salvador Senator Curry's and I

30:12

asked them I said look uh you don't need

30:14

a soena with me but send the ticket in

30:16

Easter because I doing mileage which

30:18

they did so I flew to Washington we

30:20

spent four hours in in a deposition with

30:22

him uh he was represented by by um by a

30:27

man there was a u uh M McConnell was the

30:32

minority so there was Robinette

30:34

representing M McConnell and another guy

30:36

who represented him after we finished

30:38

the testimony they wanted a close

30:40

hearing we wanted an open hearing there

30:42

was nothing classified about it I had

30:43

retire in 76 we are talking something

30:45

that happened 1985 but carry didn't want

30:48

the truth to come out so he refused to

30:51

have an open hearing we have to go into

30:53

a close here when I had the opportunity

30:55

at the time when I first came in they

30:57

asked me if I wanted to something there

30:58

was all the senator and they asked me

31:01

and say you want to say something I say

31:02

yes I look at him and say senator this

31:04

will be the hardest testimony of my life

31:06

say why do you say that Mr Rodriguez I

31:08

said Senator it's very hard to have to

31:10

ask a question for somebody that you do

31:12

not respect I don't respect you what you

31:14

are doing here Mr Rodriguez because we

31:16

disagree with you we are no less

31:18

patriotic than you are I Senator you

31:20

didn't even have the gut throw your own

31:22

medal when you were protesting the

31:23

Vietnam War don't believe everything you

31:25

see in the Press I know that the hell of

31:27

a lot of better that you do Senator he

31:29

said that was a veteran who asked me to

31:31

throw his medal I said it was

31:32

everybody perception was your medal you

31:34

were throwing over the White House fans

31:35

so really didn't hit very well during

31:38

that hitting at all and uh then I talked

31:42

to a lot of people who work with him do

31:43

you know that he was never ever wounded

31:45

in combat he doesn't have one bullet

31:47

hole in his body and he claimed three

31:50

three uh P hard to be able to leave

31:53

Vietnam he knew that there was an

31:55

unwritten law that if you get wounded

31:57

three times in one tour you could

31:59

request to leave Vietnam yes and that's

32:02

exactly what he did what he did he

32:03

scratched himself he claim it was from a

32:05

from a h grenade he never got a bullet

32:07

hole he got scratches I always claimed

32:10

that he had been wounded that time get a

32:12

get a a Purple Heart the third one they

32:14

he was denied the guy didn't say was he

32:16

was worth it he had to wait until they

32:18

change that guy to be able to convince

32:20

the other guy to give him the third uh

32:22

purple heart and that's why he left

32:24

Vietnam and then he went with Jane Fonda

32:27

uh talking about the our people in there

32:30

uh was a shame because today I see how

32:33

our people treat the military with

32:34

respect in the plane at the time when I

32:37

came back they would not even wear their

32:38

uniform because they were all war

32:40

criminals and all of that because of JN

32:42

Kerry and Jame

32:44

Fondo

32:46

cowards so what was the resolution of

32:50

Iran country you

32:51

testified well at at the end really uh

32:55

actually when you look at it uh it was

32:58

they they didn't have a case at all

33:01

because the only reason they brought the

33:03

Iran Contra hearing was because the

33:05

violation of the B amendment of using US

33:08

money to support Nar resistance so what

33:11

happened is when General Secor did some

33:14

transaction uh with the Iran remember uh

33:17

with Israel uh he got the millions of

33:19

dollars from that transaction the

33:21

Congress determined that that money that

33:24

he had belonged to the US government not

33:26

to C court it's still in court today

33:28

he still in court today he over $8

33:30

million and he used a million and a half

33:32

to help the Naran resistant with that

33:34

money so because of that since the

33:36

Congress determined that was money that

33:37

belonged to the US government they

33:39

violated the Bing Amendment that's how

33:41

he came together and put up the uh the

33:44

the Iran Contra hearings and committees

33:46

and all of that that I went through let

33:48

me tell you it wasn't it was uh it

33:50

wasn't easy because um after so many

33:53

question I I was tired and before that

33:57

my son my daughter went to see I had an

33:59

FBI agent that always I been in contact

34:02

with them for my security I learned

34:04

recently he already died from his widow

34:06

that my son my daughter went to see him

34:08

before I testify in Congress and they

34:10

told him L Carlos uh everybody's telling

34:12

us if my father doesn't bring a lawyer

34:14

he will go to prison please convince him

34:18

to bring a lawyer with him so he he

34:20

didn't tell me that he came to see me

34:22

and say look Felix you're going to

34:24

testify in Congress and you're going to

34:26

be on the rose you cannot lie no matter

34:29

what happen you cannot lie because if

34:31

you do uh they would ask the same

34:33

question in 15 different way and they

34:35

they would know now there is some sense

34:37

you are not very happy with it or you

34:39

are not very content with it you don't

34:41

remember you don't remember they going

34:43

to do anything but don't lie and I never

34:45

lie so I came out fine how did you have

34:48

you ever wondered how you live so long

34:51

having been through all these

34:53

conflicts I believe honestly I believe

34:56

in God for example when I was in Vietnam

34:59

my boss Ted shakley who was a legend

35:01

with the CIA used to tell people that I

35:03

had a death wish that I wanted to get

35:05

killed which was not at all I was so

35:08

convinced toer that no Bulet was going

35:11

to hit me God gave me that conviction so

35:13

I could sit in the helicopter sit there

35:15

shooting may come out and shoot at them

35:16

because I knew he wasn't going to touch

35:18

me and I never did so it wasn't not

35:20

bravery it was my conviction that I knew

35:22

he wasn't going to to and you were a

35:23

married man at that point I had two kids

35:26

already

35:28

and you were never worried about getting

35:29

killed I knew I wasn't going to get

35:32

killed not even wounded I didn't I had

35:35

people wounded next to me my helicopter

35:37

took 30 different occasion to fire took

35:39

hits in the helicopter body but I was

35:41

shut down five times Vietnam One

35:43

Salvador for never you were shot down

35:45

five times yeah but you know my back is

35:49

in bad shape but U prob still alive and

35:52

I believe it was God who definitely was

35:55

his hand on me that's why I didn't worry

35:56

about it not that I was Brave I was

35:59

convinced nothing was going to happen to

36:00

me you were right it turned out oh yeah

36:02

absolutely what was Ted shackley like oh

36:05

he was was the most uh intelligent man

36:09

that I have ever met in my life he was

36:11

the one responsive for the Berlin tunnel

36:14

yeah he was station in Miami and we

36:16

became close friends until the day he

36:19

died uh and we were close we used to

36:21

meet he was the head of a station in

36:24

Saigon and uh we we had we developed a

36:27

personal uh friendship uh he's the one

36:30

who one time told me not to fly and they

36:32

had a a Defector in Paris who have said

36:35

that they were hijack we're going to

36:37

hijack the plane of the Cuban involved

36:38

in the assassination of Shara so chle

36:41

called me at the station and say we are

36:42

going to Miami bacation don't fly into

36:44

Miami so what I did I flew into Atlanta

36:47

rent a car went back spending Christmas

36:49

with my family and back then I went back

36:52

to Atlanta on the 6th of January of 1971

36:56

and I had a c in there so she was at the

36:58

airport I had a fight who leave Atlanta

37:01

Houston Houston San Francisco had like 4

37:03

hours overlay in San Francisco and then

37:05

I found out there was another plane

37:07

stopping in Dallas one hour later so I

37:08

changed that to stay with my cin one

37:10

more hour so when I got to Vietnam

37:12

nobody was waiting for me so when I got

37:15

in there I went to the EM to Dog Hotel

37:17

our hotel changed when I got to the

37:19

Embassy they told me and said what are

37:20

you doing here I said what do you mean I

37:21

supposed to arrive today nobody was

37:23

waiting for me I said no no no your

37:25

plane was hijacked to Cuba we're trying

37:27

to find out how the hell we can get you

37:28

out of there that's why when we went uh

37:31

the agency sent me and my family to

37:33

Argentina in 1970 in

37:36

1973 they got our passport I'm our

37:39

passport of my wife and I said place of

37:41

birst Colorado in stad of Cuba for that

37:44

trip so in case I Got Hijacked they

37:46

could claim me as a US citizen that was

37:48

the only time I was a US citizen by

37:50

birth for about a year I have copy of

37:53

the passport amazing did you ever meet

37:55

Fidel Castro no

37:57

I wish I had because he would not be

37:59

there long time ago what what do you

38:03

think of Cuban

38:05

now uh it's a disaster uh I don't know

38:08

how they are still be able to stand the

38:10

way it is the economy is completely on

38:13

the

38:14

ground I I can understand the people who

38:16

talk about socialism who talk about

38:19

Progressive uh look whatever socialism

38:22

touch completely destroyed look what

38:24

happened to CU was was one of the most

38:27

prosper Island in in

38:29

1958 you know the dollar if you know it

38:31

was the Q PES was higher 3 Cent than the

38:34

dollar you wanted to buy Cuban PES you

38:36

have to pay $13 for the Cuban dollar the

38:39

same that Dominican Republic it

38:41

destroyed the economy look at Venezuela

38:44

the richest country in in in America

38:47

with reserving oil unbelievable and look

38:49

how it is whatever they touch they

38:51

destroy that what have been very

38:53

concerned in this country of all of

38:54

these people talking about socialism all

38:56

of that they have no no idea what it is

38:58

unfortunately we have a lot of Professor

39:00

in the University that inculcate this

39:02

idea that they have never lived through

39:04

that's what I tell people when I talk

39:05

today people can tell you what socialism

39:08

is when they had never leave it when you

39:09

leave in there you see what happened to

39:11

you you understand what socialism is and

39:14

we know because we suffered that in our

39:16

own flesh have you ever been back no I

39:19

can't I have three death sentencing

39:20

Absentia well I was back the last time I

39:23

was in 1965 but I was uh with a team to

39:26

photograph a Soviet the submarine base

39:28

in laua in the a of pine but that's the

39:32

only time that I touched Gan soil but I

39:34

never I how did you you said you you

39:36

went back a number of times yes on in a

39:39

clandestine way how did you get in by

39:42

both clandestinely and we had people

39:44

working for us in the inside who will

39:46

contact us at the the at the co and you

39:47

trusted them you were never worried

39:49

about being betrayed or executed we had

39:51

to trust them we had no choice there

39:53

were there were people that were

39:54

betrayed later on but I was lucky as

39:55

hell really I was very very look did

39:58

they get out the people who helped you

40:00

uh some of them they some of them are

40:02

still living in there but they have been

40:04

but nobody knew that they work help us

40:08

you just go from Key West or how did you

40:12

well it was in between Key West we West

40:14

and and and Islam they will both will

40:18

pick us up in there take off to the

40:19

mother boat and then we'll take off for

40:21

for Cuba from there for the operation

40:23

inside Cuba in and out only one thing

40:27

from the Bay of pig people who enter

40:29

Cuba only one team made it by air they

40:31

were parachuted in only five people most

40:34

of us entered by boat clandestinely and

40:37

there was a group of about five or six

40:39

who came in through the airport with the

40:42

real names with cover story that they

40:44

were coming back from American

40:46

universities but most of us came in

40:48

clandestinely by Bo and the mechanism

40:50

was we will go to the coastline there

40:51

was a reception team there uh with

40:54

lights we disembark then there was a guy

40:56

who take off maybe four five kilometer

40:58

into the main Highway where a car from

41:00

the movement will pick us up and take us

41:02

to a safe house in Havana we had to

41:04

trust them we had no idea who they were

41:06

but we were lucky was anyone from the

41:09

CIA any of these teams ever caught no P

41:12

personal from the CIA itself they never

41:14

participated in inside Cuba they didn't

41:16

allow them to do that were only Cubans

41:18

involved in that operation with CIA case

41:22

officer we don't call it the controller

41:25

we call it case officer were any of them

41:27

ever caught though by the Cuban

41:29

government no no not our people did yes

41:33

yeah from my infiltration team uh four

41:36

of them were executed by firing a squad

41:38

uh one of them uh was killed defending a

41:41

safe house and there were 17 of them who

41:43

spent uh 20 years in Cuban prison

41:46

because when the treaty became to

41:48

release the Brigade from prison our

41:50

people even though we were Brigade

41:52

member were not considered who landed

41:54

military they consider us a spy because

41:56

we G Des so we were not part of that

41:59

exchange of prisoner so my people from

42:01

my infiltration team has spent 18 20

42:04

years in prison before they were

42:06

released did they come to the US when

42:08

they got

42:09

out amazing so a lot of people got

42:12

caught and kill oh

42:13

yes it was a

42:17

disaster what do you think of the CIA

42:20

now it's not what we used to be uh I

42:23

recall in my time we were given a task

42:26

we would run up operation if there is

42:28

any problem then we went to our legal

42:30

service you know the the the the council

42:33

to ask you know how we solve the problem

42:36

because of the situation that happened

42:37

in the past that a lot of agent have

42:39

lost their retirement all of that

42:40

because of operation now they go when

42:44

they are giving a mission they go to the

42:45

lawyer first and find out what they can

42:47

do and what they cannot do and they put

42:49

a tremendous disadvantage on us uh in my

42:53

in my time you could do a hell of a lot

42:54

of more thing than they can do right now

42:56

they tried their best

42:58

anyway but um and and the guy who really

43:02

destroyed the CIA was Jimmy Carter how

43:06

well I I talked to Shak he told me about

43:08

it we had very high penetration for

43:11

example in alqaeda and in Sendero

43:13

luminoso if we had those people 911

43:16

would have never happened when Jimmy

43:18

Carter became president he asked for a

43:20

briefing from the CIA he wanted to know

43:22

how those penetration were handled so

43:25

chakle was the one in charge because he

43:27

told me personally he was going in

43:28

charge to brief the President Carter on

43:30

that so he told the president that you

43:32

have a guy who infiltrated into a cell

43:35

the guy was becoming to more and more

43:37

access higher in the

43:39

organization he will come up for example

43:42

with an operation that we're going to do

43:43

a terrorist operation so there is a very

43:45

pragmatic group who will study the

43:47

operation it was a very minimal uh

43:50

damages they will allow the operation to

43:52

go through because if every time you

43:54

have a guy inside and the operation fail

43:56

they know some body's infiltrated in

43:58

there so there you have to allow some

44:00

operation to go through with minimal

44:02

casualties G car say it was immoral to

44:05

do that so he actually ordered all of

44:08

those penetration to be terminated so

44:10

people that took years to be able to be

44:12

able to get them and set them in inside

44:14

the Nets like in alqaeda or cero

44:16

luminoso they had to be told sorry we

44:19

cannot support you anymore we recommend

44:20

that you leave the cell we cannot pay

44:22

you anymore and terminate so we lost all

44:24

of our eyes and ears inside the

44:26

terrorist group when you Carter and he

44:28

put a lot of emphasis on satellite

44:30

satellite doesn't get inside the the

44:31

head of people so we lost that that's

44:34

why we had 911 we had the Certo luminoso

44:36

take over the embassy of Japan in in

44:39

Peru at that time if we had what we had

44:41

before that would have never happened

44:43

then it was authorized but it take a

44:44

long time to rebuild that type of

44:48

situation did the CIA um it seems more a

44:52

military force now than it once did do

44:54

you think that's accurate No we have we

44:57

have always we have the CLA and the CIA

44:59

military branch we have our own for

45:01

example Air Force we have our own Navy

45:03

with different specific equipment that

45:06

nobody else has that have been developed

45:08

for a special operation with us and

45:10

there is a paramilitary appar that which

45:12

I did belong to the spe we used to call

45:14

a special operation division now they

45:16

call a special activity division that

45:19

operates a paramilitary operation in

45:21

areas that uh and they do a tremendous

45:23

job that's that's the the the thing that

45:26

that we never get Rec for it uh people

45:29

are blamed CIA is blamed for many things

45:31

that happen but there is a lot of

45:32

success that can never be told we have

45:35

saved a lot of life in the process that

45:36

nobody knows about it and nobody can

45:38

take credit for the situation we have in

45:41

our world several star with more than

45:44

100 people had died within the CIA most

45:47

of them doesn't even have the name in

45:49

their only one star because they were so

45:52

classified that the name never appear so

45:55

you have to be dedicated to that because

45:57

you is one of the organization that

45:59

receive very little credit and do a lot

46:03

of what do where do you think this

46:05

country is going right

46:07

now well I hope it changed uh a lot of

46:10

people used to say in qba it could not

46:12

happen here a lot of people say it

46:14

couldn't happen in the United States

46:16

after what happened in Cuba what I have

46:18

seen other places I am concerned about

46:20

this country I hope that we can regain

46:23

the presidency because uh this thing

46:26

goes to what they call socialism of uh

46:29

it will be a disaster we will never know

46:31

United State the way it is I am

46:32

concerned because I know what happened

46:34

in Cuba and unfortunately we have a lot

46:37

of Professor high level University who

46:40

are leftist who brainwash in the head of

46:44

a lot of our bright student and that's a

46:47

very concern to me have you seen that in

46:49

other

46:51

countries but more in the United States

46:53

than any place else they have

46:54

concentrated in state because they know

46:56

the importance of the United States and

46:58

and that's what I really concern me this

47:00

this country here I think this coming

47:02

election is very important I don't know

47:03

who the hell is going to be the

47:04

president but if the Democrat get the

47:07

power in there and they continue the way

47:09

they are with the open border and all of

47:11

that uh in a few years we will know know

47:14

the United States the way it is now

47:16

today we can lost the United State I I

47:19

never thought I could say that but now I

47:20

can say that I'm very

47:23

concerned how can it be stopped well I

47:26

hope that people realize what's going on

47:28

in the world what's going on in the

47:29

United States and people realize and and

47:31

vote intelligently this time see the

47:34

reality of what's going on I don't want

47:37

to say more I think people in tell will

47:38

be able to understand

47:41

that looking back my last question if

47:43

you

47:45

could do something different with your

47:47

life would you have I mean it seems like

47:50

you got into this kind of

47:53

amazing line of work almost accident

47:57

entally I always wanted to be a civil

48:01

engineer really really uh my grandson

48:04

now is in the third year of civil

48:06

engineering at the University of

48:07

Washington and George Washington

48:09

University but that's what I wanted to

48:11

be and look uh history took me to a

48:14

different place I was never able to

48:16

graduate from high I graduated from high

48:18

school from never from University my my

48:21

son my daughter did my wife did when she

48:23

was at bar University but I didn't but I

48:25

don't complain I think that I had a a

48:28

life that I can see myself and and think

48:31

that I contributed a little bit to have

48:33

a better world that we have today then I

48:36

I don't regret what I did not one bit of

48:38

it Well you certainly had the most

48:40

interesting life almost anyone I've ever

48:42

talked to so that's thank you sir worth

48:44

a lot Mr Rodriguez thank you very much

48:46

for telling us all that

48:51

bless free speech is bigger than any one

48:54

person or any one organization societies

48:56

are by what they will not permit what

48:58

we're watching is the total inversion of

49:01

virtue hey it's Tucker Carlson the

49:03

internet is crowded with interesting

49:05

things that don't really matter on TCN

49:07

we attempt to bring you interesting

49:09

things that actually do matter and a lot

49:11

of them interviews long form and short

49:15

videos documentaries you can find all of

49:18

it on

49:19

tuckercarlson.com and we hope you will

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