In Search of Enemies - A CIA Story - John Stockwell

The Economy-Size War [175]
out that the Soviets' national sport is chess and their foreign policy
reflects an effort at long-range planning of coordinated, integrated
moves, although they often play the game badly and are given to
serious blunders. The Chinese are notorious for planning their foreign
policy carefully, with moves designed to reach fruition even
years beyond the lifetimes of present leaders. By contrast, Ambassador
Black observed, the United States-is a poker player. It looks the
world over, picks up whatever cards it is dealt, and plays, raising the
stakes as more cards are dealt, until the hand is won or lost. Then,
after a drag on the cigarette and another sip of whiskey, it looks
around for the next hand to be played.
Still, if survival was the name of the game, the CIA was not doing
badly in the fall of 1975. Not even the Pike Committee had much
effect, as Potts enjoyed reporting after accompanying Colby to a
committee hearing. Congressman Pike had proposed to open an
investigation of IAFEATURE, only to relent when they told him it
would be disastrous to have hearings during an ongoing operation
-better not jiggle the hand of the surgeon during an operation, they
had said. Potts and Colby had been pleased with themselves, and
with the metaphor, "jiggle the hand of the surgeon." Potts went
about repeating it for several days.