CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair
Unexpected, there were some other noted cabinet positions that would be opening up due to people resigning. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geitner are two examples that will have to be filled once Obama provides a candidate for Congress to approve.
I did not expect though that Petraeus would resign. At first it was merely said to be "personal reasons" which is usually a byword for personal frustrations with the government, but later is clarified about an affair. Petraeus has been CIA director since September of 2011, so this is barely over a year in the position.
Petraeus Steps Down as C.I.A. Chief, Saying He Had Affair
By MICHAEL D. SHEAR
WASHINGTON — David H. Petraeus, the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, resigned on Friday after issuing a statement saying that he had engaged in an extramarital affair.
The sudden development came just days after President Obama won re-election to a second term. Mr. Petraeus, a highly decorated general who had led the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, had been expected to remain in the president’s administration.
Instead, Mr. Petraeus said in the statement that the president accepted his resignation on Friday after he had informed him of his indiscretion a day earlier.
“After being married for over 37 years, I showed extremely poor judgment by engaging in an extramarital affair,” Mr. Petraeus wrote. “Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours. This afternoon, the president graciously accepted my resignation.”
Mr. Obama released a statement praising Mr. Petraeus for his “extraordinary service” to the country and saying that Michael J. Morell, the deputy director of the C.I.A., would take over once again as acting director. He served in that position briefly after Leon E. Panetta left the agency last year.
“By any measure, through his lifetime of service, David Petraeus has made our country safer and stronger,” the president said. Without directly addressing the affair, Mr. Obama added: “Going forward, my thoughts and prayers are with Dave and Holly Petraeus, who has done so much to help military families through her own work. I wish them the very best at this difficult time.” Ms. Petraeus is the assistant director of the Office of Servicemember Affairs at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
The development came as a shock to the national security establishment. In a statement, James R. Clapper, the director of national intelligence, called the decision “a loss” to the country.
“Dave’s decision to step down represents the loss of one of our nation’s most respected public servants.” Mr. Clapper wrote. “From his long, illustrious Army career to his leadership at the helm of C.I.A., Dave has redefined what it means to serve and sacrifice for one’s country.”
By acknowleding an extramarital affair, Mr. Petraeus, 60, was confronting a sensitive issue for a spy chief. Intelligence agencies are often concerned about the possibility that agents who engage in such behavior could be blackmailed for information.
In his statement, Mr. Petraeus did not provide any details about his behavior, saying that he asked the president to be allowed “for personal reasons” to resign.
Mr. Petraeus praised his colleagues at the C.I.A.’s headquarters in Langley, Va., calling them “truly exceptional in every regard” and thanking them for their service to the country. He made it clear that his departure was not how he had envisioned ending a storied career in the military and in intelligence.
“Teddy Roosevelt once observed that life’s greatest gift is the opportunity to work hard at work worth doing,” he said. “I will always treasure my opportunity to have done that with you, and I will always regret the circumstances that brought that work with you to an end.”
Over the last several years, Mr. Petraeus had become one of the most recognizable military officials, serving as the public face of the war effort in Congress and on television.
Under President George W. Bush, Mr. Petraeus was credited for helping to develop and put in place the “surge” in troops in Iraq that helped wind down the war in that country. Mr. Petraeus was moved to Afghanistan in 2010 after Mr. Obama fired General Stanley H. McChrystal over comments he made to a magazine reporter.
In Afghanistan, Mr. Petraeus led the push for a similar increase in troops ordered by Mr. Obama, but he was unable to replicate the success he had in the Iraq conflict.
Last year, Mr. Obama persuaded Mr. Petraeus to leave the Army after 37 years to lead the C.I.A., succeeding Mr. Panetta, who moved to the Defense Department.
This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:
Correction: November 9, 2012
An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that David H. Petraeus was expected to remain in President Obama’s cabinet. The C.I.A. director is not a cabinet member in the Obama administration.
Last edited by Commissar MercZ; November 9th, 2012 at 03:07 PM.
Reason: Petraeus, not Petreaus
Re: CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair
Holder is also apparently considering an exit.
Right-wing pundits are already conspiracy theorizing. "Just days after the election? Coincidence? I think not!" I didn't stick around long enough to hear why, but I imagine they think Obama threw him under the bus for Benghazi or had to get rid of him so he has a freehand to kowtow to the Russians or the UN or something.
I, on the other hand, subscribe to Occam's razor and say the White House probably knew about this, wanted to keep it under wraps until after the election and then told him he had to go.
Re: CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair
Quote:
Originally Posted by Adrian Ţepeş
The former. Well, I didn't know, but no I'm not too surprised that he did.
He never really gave off signals of doing that. I had a bunch of other guys in my head who might not be around in the next cabinet, but didn't think of those that exist outside of the cabinet like the CIA.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Red Menace
I, on the other hand, subscribe to Occam's razor and say the White House probably knew about this, wanted to keep it under wraps until after the election and then told him he had to go.
Now they are saying this came up in an FBI probe into something unrelated to this at first, somehow ended up involving whether or not his computer was compromised, where then the investigators found these emails.
Government officials said that the F.B.I. began an investigation into a “potential criminal matter” several months ago that was not focused on Mr. Petraeus. In the course of their inquiry into whether a computer used by Mr. Petraeus had been compromised, agents discovered evidence of the relationship as well as other security concerns. About two weeks ago, F.B.I. agents met with Mr. Petraeus to discuss the investigation.
The individual that he had an affair with is someone who he had consulted with to write a biography about him. I guess though like the article mentions too the House and Senate committees will probably want to know when this investigation uncovered this and why they held off on informing them until later.
Re: CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair
This is likely a setup by the CIA to remove a non-CIA member from the seat of director is my guess, him being a military man and not a intelligence operative didn't "gel" well for them thus they either bullshitted the "affair" or under covered it on the purpose of having him removed.
Re: CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mihail
This is likely a setup by the CIA to remove a non-CIA member from the seat of director is my guess, him being a military man and not a intelligence operative didn't "gel" well for them thus they either bullshitted the "affair" or under covered it on the purpose of having him removed.
DCI is an appointed political position and often not a member of the intelligence community. The DCI is more of the administrative face of the Agency. They are selected more for managerial experience than knowledge of clandestine operations, which are handled elsewhere within the Agency. If the CIA were removing Directors for being military men, or non-CIA they would have had to remove like half of them.
Re: CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair
Quote:
If the CIA were removing Directors for being military men, or non-CIA they would have had to remove like half of them.
You make it sound like that would be alot, but it's only two, Petraeus being one of them and Leon Panetta being the other, the other two, one being a outright CIA agent and the other was already working for a agency. Remove Petraeus, place some blame on him for some failures during his reign then move on.
This site is part of the Defy Media Gaming network
The best serving of video game culture, since 2001. Whether you're looking for news, reviews, walkthroughs, or the biggest collection of PC gaming files on the planet, Game Front has you covered. We also make no illusions about gaming: it's supposed to be fun. Browse gaming galleries, humor lists, and honest, short-form reporting. Game on!
The Pub 
CIA Director David Petraeus resigns, cites extra-marital affair 
Linear Mode
