The Company (Ehrlichman novel)

The Company is a political fiction roman à clef novel written by John Ehrlichman, a former close aide to President Richard Nixon and a figure in the Watergate scandal, first published in 1976 by Simon & Schuster. The title is an insider nickname for the Central Intelligence Agency. The plot is loosely based on events leading up to the Watergate coverup, centered on Nixon administration attempts to cover up its own illegal activity and that of the CIA dating back to the Kennedy administration. Although all characters are fictional, most are based on real-life political figures, and journalists such as columnist Jack Anderson.

The protagonist is Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) William "Bill" Martin, a longtime CIA agent who was appointed DCI by Democratic President Esker Scott Anderson. Anderson, as Vice President, succeeded William Curry, who was killed in a crash of Air Force One in the early 1960s. Martin's friendship with Anderson dates from the 1950s, when he was a lower-level agent and Anderson held a great deal of power as Senate Majority Leader.

As Deputy CIA Director, Martin was responsible for planning an undercover invasion of the Dominican Republic by emmigres trained and supported by the U.S. However, President Curry, worried about negative repercussions from the invasion, ordered the murder of a priest who led the rebel movement, in order to ensure the invasion's failure. CIA Inspector General, Major-General Antonio Primula, wrote a report blaming Martin, then-DCI Horace McFall and, in part, President Curry for the invasion's failure, and recommending the firing of McFall and Martin. After Curry's death, Anderson appointed Martin as DCI and promised to keep the Primula report secret, in return for Martin's loyalty.