◆ SpookStack

mentioned, it is hard to imagine that it could have been in any context other than that it was to be carried out by the CIA trained, anti-Castro Cubans. Thus, presumably, any references that Stevenson picked up about the 15 April 1961 air strike against Castro should have alerted him to the probability that this was what he had, in fact, been briefed about. More- over, as previously discussed, the D-2 date had been firmly set at the time that Barnes and Schlesinger were in New York to do the Stevenson briefing.* There are other witnesses, however, who were closer than Schlesinger to Stevenson during the course of the activity beginning on 8 April and continuing through the D-2 strike. One of them in particular seems to have recalled, in precise detail, the course of events and actions taken by Ambassador Stevenson during this period. Richard F. Pedersen, then Chief of the Political Section ~f USUN operation, has re- ported the following details: I was present with Amb. Stevenson and Amb. [Francis T. P.] Plimpton in the .brief- ings by Tracy Baines [sic] (and Arthur * See page 245. - 255 -