For one thing, he said, the U.S. government is seeking contractors to train bodyguards for Iraqi officials. "I know a lot of people and companies who can do that sort of business, and I've been trying to get a few together to bid jointly instead of against each other," he said.
Clarridge said he would get a small finder's fee if a deal came through.
Two years ago, Clarridge set up two U.S.-based consulting firms that offer advice to companies doing business in global hot spots such as Iraq -- Dax Resources Corp., based outside Washington near CIA headquarters, and Dax & Associates, based in San Diego, where Clarridge lives. "Dax P. LeBaron" was an alias Clarridge used at the CIA.
Milt Bearden, a retired senior CIA officer who knows Clarridge, described him as "an unrepentant cold warrior."
"Anything he's doing wouldn't be motivated by trying to turn a buck, but because he believes it's the right thing to do," Bearden said.
Clarridge, 72, was chief of the CIA's Latin America division in 1981, when President Reagan began stepping up U.S. involvement in the region. Clarridge became a favorite of CIA Director William J. Casey, who "loved his flamboyance in everything from his dress to his approach to tough problems," Bearden said.
With his taste for white trousers and blue blazers with gold buttons, "he always looked like he was heading off to a yacht outing," Bearden said.
Clarridge also served as chief of the CIA's Europe division and created and led the agency's Counterterrorism Center.
"No one does everything right, but I admire his aggressive stance," said former CIA Director R. James Woolsey, who, like Clarridge, was in favor of the Iraq war. "He has an appetite for creativity and the offense that is badly needed at the CIA."
Former CIA officer Vincent Cannistraro, on the other hand, said, "He was very effective as an operations officer, but he cut corners and skirted the law."
