Petraeus Agonistes

OK.  Open for business on this until tomorrow when I will have worked up enough bile over this to write a piece in this post.    pl

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/11/09/covert_affairs

 

 

 

Comments

[Fred]

I respectfully suggest Pat Lang as a successor; as long as he has carte blanche to fire at will and is willing to undertake a task equal to one of the labors of Hercules.

[Tigershark]

One comment. How stupid.

One question. Where does he get his Viagra? VA? CIA Medic? Only asking since I am paying for it.

[blowback]

Couldn't have happened to a nicer bloke.

[Lars]

He can run for Congress now.

[Cal]

According to CBS....

A Justice Department official tells CBS News that Petraeus' name surfaced while the FBI was undertaking a separate investigation into whether Petraeus' computer might have been compromised.

In explaining why the FBI would be investigating the communications of the CIA director, CBS News' John Miller reported that what is more likely is that that the communications of someone else-- possibly in a foreign country that are now touching the C.I.A. director's communications-- would rise to their attention. What happens here is they're looking at these messages that seem to be cryptic in nature and raises the question, "Who is this person?" "What are these communications about?" "Why are they cryptic?"

[Dongo]

This man has deserved to get fired for so many things. It's simultaneously sad and revolting that cheating on his wife does the trick, as opposed to his horrific record of failure and deceit.

[jake]

I guess he got COINed......

[The Moar You Know]

"All In: The Education of General Petraeus"

OMFG. If it stopped there it would be hilarious.

It didn't. She had access to his email. Including the classified and CIA, if what I'm reading is true (I reserve a lot of judgment on that at the moment)

She's a Major in the reserves.

This just got about as ugly as it could possibly get.

[Mark Erickson]

Where is everybody?

[turcopolier]

mark erickson

I was taking a nap. Sorry. pl

[The Beaver]

check her Tweeter a/c:

Paula Broadwell ‏@paulabroadwell (16 March )
Congrats to "Sir" David Petraeus for being knighted in Holland today!

https://twitter.com/paulabroadwell

[fanto]

wonderful bid

[fanto]

on second thought - NO - we would lose this blog

[fanto]

It is a speculation - but it is possible that the info was there before the elections, but had to be suppressed by the Govt. in order not to give the appearance that it is influencing the election in favor of Obama?

[agin' cajun]

What ever happened to Gen. Kevin P. Byrnes? The entire story surrounding his forced retirement never rang true. Not making any comparisons, the breaking story today jogged my memory. Visited a few far right web sites earlier, it's all an Obama plot to cover up the Benghazi hearings don't ya know. Think I'll do something constructive and bake a few Holiday fruit cakes,with plenty of fresh pecans and a good shot of black Strap rum to sweeten the fruit.

[turcopolier]

All

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/11/09/covert_affairs

pl

[FB Ali]

The media all over the place on this. Piers Morgan on CNN made a complete ass of himself (not surprising considering he's a Rupert Murdoch protege). His degree of 'assininity' can be gauged from the fact that Paul Bremer (!) had to set him straight (on the fact that the WH could not make public an ongoing FBI investigation -- fanto, please note).

[C L]

Does the FBI investigation tie in to the removal of the new head of Lockheed martin?

Lockheed’s Incoming Chief Forced Out Over Ethics Violation
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/10/business/lockheed-citing-ethics-violation-says-incoming-chief-has-quit.html?hp

It seems amusing that two captains of the military industrial complex fall from power and grace through the same 'moral' failure on the same post election Friday-bad-news-dump

[JimR]

The rather impressive resume of Paula Broadwell:

http://www.porcelainonsteel.com/2010/03/honored-role-part-15-paula-broadwell-arc-of-a-driver/

[mbrenner]

I'd like to suggest a somewhat different angle on all this. It has to do with the behavior and personalities rather than the implications.

1)I find dismaying the casualness with which the two parties partook of a very odd situation. From where comes the license for the general in command of a singulalry delicate, multi-dimensional operation directed at matters of great national consequence to invite an outsider (non-assigned even if reserve officer) to follow him around for the better part of a year? Is there a legitimate purpose? Doesn't it create a ubiquitous risk of classified matters being compromised? Is it a matter of each of them being driven by self-promotion? Does the setting of a war and the larger national mission not count? Is everything okay just because it advances one's career?

2) The immaturity and insecurity of David Petraeus to ignore that setting, and to risk so much, is stunning. Even without the erotic element, why can't he let his performkance speak for itself rather than swallow the lure of n envisgaed hagiography that will paint him in heroic colors.

3) This is the celebrity culture run amok. It infects and degrades most public people - including Barack Obama. European monarchs of old had court portraitists. American leaders have their selected Boswells. The purpose is similar: to immortalize the ruler at the height of his powers. To show a forceful leader mastering a daunting problem with resolve, sobriety and dedication to the interests of his fellow citizens. This being America, the occasion has to be one of action and suspense. Of course, with homey touches of human interest - deep down he's the boy next door.

Publicity is what it is all about – and a Ms cum Major Broadwell assures that it will be favorable publicity, on the whole.

Imkmaturity I believe is the word.

[turcopolier]

mbrenner

Although I am not disposed to strike a moralistic pose about the affair itself, I agree altogether with your verdict on these two people. Their behavior was both immature and lacking in integrity. Petraeus has long been thought in Army circles to be a more than average egomaniacal man whose cleverness served himself and not the larger whole. pl

[Brad Ruble]

Do you mean like someone dropped a dime on him?

[turcopolier]

Brad Ruble

IMO someone or something in the Army "dropped the dime on him." pl

[Alba Etie]

On what basis are we to conclude that President Obama is also a 'celebrity culture figure run amuck " ?

[Fred]

This story isn't about a mid-life crisis in a middle manager in middle America. Didn't we just witness a multi-decade long coverup at Penn State? There's a BG under charges at Fort Bragg for rape, amongst other things. Wasn't he one of Patraeus's subordinates? What did Patraeus know about that and when did he know it? What did he do about it?

I can only imagine what kind of damage this conduct might have done to the intelligence community. God forbid anyone give him immunity. Bring him up on charges, put him under oath and get the facts and be damn sure to hold him accountable. It's obvious there's rot in parts of the countries leadership, whining about it and covering it up won't clean it up.