Today’s guest is Ric Prado. Ric is a paramilitary, counter-terrorism, and clandestine operations specialist, with a focus on international training operations and programs. He is a twenty-four year veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) where he served as an Operations Officer in six overseas posts. He was Deputy Chief of Station and "Plank Owner" of the original Bin Ladin Task Force/Issues Station as well as Chief of Station in a hostile Muslim country. Ric also served as Chief of Operations in the CIA's Counterterrorist Center (CTC) during the September 11th attacks, where he helped coordinate the CTC’s special operations (SPECOPS) activities with the National Security Council and FBI, as well as with elite U.S. military representatives from Delta Force and SEAL-Team Six, then detailed to CTC. He retired as Senior Intel Service-2 (SIS-2, Major General equivalent at CIA). Ric’s new book Black Ops: The Life of a CIA Shadow Warrior hits bookstores on March 1st and details his life and career conducting some of the most important covert wars that America has fought since Vietnam. In this interview, we’ll dive deep into the contents of the book.
Timestamps
00:02:33 His reasons for writing the book
00:10:11 Difference between CIA officers and agents
00:11:02 The subtlety of CIA work
00:11:44 Enhanced interrogation techniques
00:15:47 Growing up in Cuba
00:20:54 The sacrifice his parents made to give him a better life
00:24:32 Getting in trouble in Miami
00:27:16 The impact that martial arts has had throughout his life
00:29:36 His time in Air Force Pararescue
00:35:16 Transition into the CIA
00:39:00 His relationship with his wife Carmen while working in the CIA
00:41:02 Helping train the Contras in Honduras
00:50:28 Lessons learned about gaining trust
00:53:38 His perspective on high performing teams
00:57:56 America's engrained sense of fair play
01:02:01 Recruiting agents in the field
01:06:39 Cooper's Colors
01:10:06 What he could share and not share with loved ones while working in the CIA
01:12:05 CIA vs. Washington DC politics
01:15:16 His perspective on the current Russia-Ukraine situation
01:19:15 What he wants to accomplish 10 years from now
01:22:06 His daily routine
01:23:40 His driving force
01:27:56 Parting words for the listeners
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