John McCone served as Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) during the Eisenhower administration from 1958-1960 and Director of Central Intelligence from 1961-1965. In the interview he focuses on the earlier period, discussing his responsibilities as AEC Chairman, which included fulfilling certain of the weapons and production requirements of the Department of Defense, but not establishing those requirements or deciding how to use the materiel. He also comments on the faulty missile gap estimate in the late 1950s, which became a major issue during the 1960 presidential election campaign, and which he says the Pentagon used for political purposes. He expresses complete confidence in the manner in which Eisenhower approached the Soviet threat, denying any naiveté on the presidents part, and explains why he (McCone) opposed a test ban treaty that did not include a method of verification of the Soviet nuclear program.