Logo - Feel The Words

CIA Quotes

Secrets, suspicion, and the mystique of the agency.

These quotes move between conspiracy-tinged jokes about CIA operations and firsthand reflections from someone who actually held a top-secret clearance and served.

It had all the earmarks of a CIA operation; the bomb killed everybody in the room except the intended target!

Quotes by William F. Buckley, Jr.

I have always been appalled by the depiction of female CIA operatives.

Quotes by Valerie Plame

I got a top-secret security clearance and served in the CIA.

Quotes by Todd Wilcox

The Panetta/Petraeus combo is a powerful tandem. I've seen both of them up close and personal at the CIA and in Iraq.

Quotes by Pete Hoekstra

After Quotes

The fact is, psychiatric help is not widely available to CIA agents - and as in the military, there is a stigma attached to admitting post-traumatic stress.

Quotes by Michael Hastings

When I was younger, I actually wanted to be a CIA agent. Really. I even did the online questionnaire.

Quotes by Lizzy Caplan

The CIA's research program is described in a book called The Search for the Manchurian Candidate.

Quotes by Ken Follett

The CIA's drone campaign is extraordinarily effective, and the agency is getting progressively better at targeting senior leaders and disrupting their networks.

Quotes by Joby Warrick

Breaking a cardinal rule of spy craft, I actually let it be known that I wanted to work for the CIA.

Quotes by James Luceno

Ale Quotes

Internal fights between various agencies, i.e. between the CIA and FBI, are highly counterproductive.

Quotes by James G. Stavridis

In the 1960s, after the Cuban Revolution, CIA and FBI agents often coordinated their activities with anti-Castro Cuban exiles.

Quotes by Greg Grandin

Just this week, Syria broke off all relations with the United States military and the CIA.

Quotes by Ed Markey

I play DEA, CIA, FBI, LAPD; I got 'em all.

Quotes by Dean Norris

The activities that went on at Camp King between 1946 and the late 1950s have never been fully accounted for by either the Department of Defense or the CIA.

Quotes by Annie Jacobsen

You may also like

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of CIA quotes are in this collection?
A mix of dark humor about botched black-ops and firsthand reflections from someone who actually held a top-secret clearance and served in the agency. There's also commentary on how the CIA's history has been documented, like research tied to MKUltra-era programs.
Why do people search for CIA quotes?
The CIA sits at the intersection of real history and pop-culture intrigue, so people look for quotes to caption spy-thriller content, discuss conspiracy theories, or simply share sharp one-liners about secrecy.
Is there a quote about how the CIA is portrayed in media?
Yes — one quote expresses being appalled by how female CIA operatives are depicted on screen, a common complaint about the gap between Hollywood spies and real intelligence work.
Do any quotes reference real CIA history or books?
One references the book 'The Search for the Manchurian Candidate,' which documents the CIA's real mind-control research program — a reminder that some of the agency's stranger history isn't fiction at all.
Are these quotes serious or more tongue-in-cheek?
It's a mix — a joke about a bomb missing its intended target sits after more sober lines about clearance and service, so the tone shifts between dark comedy and genuine reflection.

One line even admits being appalled at how female operatives get portrayed on screen — proof fiction and the real CIA rarely match. Check back always for more sharp lines.