[1] Previous to masterminding the public perception of the agency, Lauder was the Deputy Inspector General, the acting Chief of Latin American Division, and held a number of classified posts before then.

Lauders college education was interrupted by the advent of World War II, when he joined the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant and was a navigator for seaplanes and aircraft carriers in the South Pacific.

At the direction of E. Henry Knoche, Lauder, while with the Latin American Division, lead a team in a comprehensive investigation into Cuban complicity into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

In one of the final nails in the coffin of JFK conspiracy theories, the report found no clear links between the Cuban government and the killing.

Soon after this report was filed by Lauder, he left covert operations on an unconfirmed date to become the Deputy Inspector General for the CIA.