ixon ▁" f elt ▁ill ▁at ▁ease ▁with ▁Hel ms ▁personally ." ▁ ▁Dom estic ▁Cha os ▁ ▁Under ▁both ▁the ▁Johnson ▁and ▁N ixon ▁administr ations , ▁the ▁C IA ▁was ▁task ed ▁with ▁domestic ▁surve ill ance ▁of ▁protest ▁movements , ▁particularly ▁anti - war ▁activities , ▁which ▁efforts ▁later ▁became ▁called ▁Operation ▁CH A OS . ▁Investig ations ▁were ▁opened ▁on ▁various ▁Americans ▁and ▁their ▁organizations ▁based ▁on ▁the ▁theory ▁that ▁they ▁were ▁fund ed ▁and / or ▁influenced ▁by ▁foreign ▁actors , ▁especially ▁the ▁Soviet ▁Union ▁and ▁other ▁commun ist ▁states . ▁The ▁C IA ▁c land est in ely ▁gathered ▁information ▁on ▁R amp arts ▁magazine , ▁many ▁anti - war ▁groups , ▁and ▁others , ▁eventually ▁building ▁thousands ▁of ▁c land est ine ▁files ▁on ▁American ▁citizens . ▁These ▁C IA ▁activities , ▁if ▁not ▁out right ▁illegal ▁( the ▁declared ▁opinion ▁of ▁critics ), ▁were ▁at ▁the ▁margin ▁of ▁leg ality ▁as ▁the ▁C IA ▁was ▁ost ens ibly ▁forb idden ▁from ▁domestic ▁sp ying . ▁Later ▁in ▁ 1 9 7 4 , ▁the ▁Cha os ▁operation ▁became ▁national ▁news , ▁which ▁created ▁a ▁storm ▁of ▁media ▁attention . ▁ ▁With ▁the ▁sudden ▁rise ▁in ▁America ▁during ▁the ▁mid - 1 9 6 0 s ▁of ▁the ▁opposition ▁to ▁the ▁Vietnam ▁War , ▁President ▁Johnson ▁had ▁become ▁susp icious , ▁sur m ising ▁that ▁foreign ▁commun ists ▁must ▁be ▁supp lying ▁various ▁protest ▁groups ▁with ▁both ▁money ▁and ▁organization ▁skills . ▁Johnson ▁figured ▁an ▁investigation