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You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / An Interesting Development

An Interesting Development

by | 125 Comments

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This caught me off guard:

The F.B.I. and Justice Department prosecutors have recommended bringing felony charges against retired Gen. David H. Petraeus for providing classified information to his former mistress while he was director of the C.I.A., officials said, leaving Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. to decide whether to seek an indictment that could send the pre-eminent military officer of his generation to prison.

The Justice Department investigation stems from an affair Mr. Petraeus had with Paula Broadwell, an Army Reserve officer who was writing his biography, and focuses on whether he gave her access to his C.I.A. email account and other highly classified information. F.B.I. agents discovered classified documents on her computer after Mr. Petraeus resigned from the C.I.A. in 2012 when the affair became public.

Mr. Petraeus, a retired four star-general who served as commander of American forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan, has said he never provided classified information to Ms. Broadwell, and has indicated to the Justice Department that he has no interest in a plea deal that would spare him an embarrassing trial. A lawyer for Mr. Petraeus, Robert B. Barnett, said Friday he had no comment.

Mr. Holder was expected to decide by the end of last year whether to bring charges against Mr. Petraeus, but he has not indicated how he plans to proceed. The delay has frustrated some Justice Department and F.B.I officials and investigators who have questioned whether Mr. Petraeus has received special treatment at a time Mr. Holder has led an unprecedented crackdown on government officials who reveal secrets to journalists.

Given how this administration has reacted with a very heavy hand to all leakers to date, it seems to me it would be the height of hypocrisy if charges are not brought, especially since Petraeus is basically thumbing his nose at them by refusing to even consider a plea deal.

Reader Interactions

125Comments

  1. 1.

    Zandar

    Dammit Cole I was in there writing about this and you went all ROCKS FALL EVERYBODY DIES on me.

    Also, Loretta Lynch’s confirmation hearings are scheduled at the end of the month, so it may not be Holder directing this after all.

    Yes, it’s Obama’s decision anyway, but I would have to think that this would be Lynch’s first big case as AG then.

  2. 2.

    Howard Beale IV

    As I said in the previous thread, I expect him to skate-he’s too high up and too well connected.

    To paraphrase Leona Helmsley: “Only the little people get indicted”.

  5. 5.

    Howard Beale IV

    @Zandar: Yer assuming that Lynch gets confirmed and that the batshit GOP whcakjobs don’t try to impeach Holder as a warmup to go after Obama.

  7. 7.

    Baud

    @Zandar:

    Yes, it’s Obama’s decision anyway

    It would be highly unusual for the White House to weigh in on this decision. I suspect the delay is because Holder was hoping to punt this to Lynch, since it would be her Justice Department that would have to handle the prosecution.

  8. 8.

    Elizabelle

    I feel kind of badly for Petraeus. Although he does deserve the charges, and a trial. Innocent until proven guilty.

    Do you think he was a good guy who got corrupted by the GWOT crap and careerism? Didn’t do well exposed to the Beltway; felt a little too bulletproof?

    Just poor, poor judgment?

  10. 10.

    burnspbesq

    If he’s convicted, they can put Petraeus in the same cell that once housed Bob Moffat. Fellas, never let your little head do the thinking.

  11. 11.

    Elizabelle

    ABC news on in background; I don’t think they mentioned the Petraeus news, although could have missed it ….

  13. 13.

    Howard Beale IV

    @burnspbesq: Nope. The fact that they haven’t pulled the trigger when they could have is evidence enough. And since it appears he’s digging in his heels, I expect that he can spill enough serious shit across two administrations that no amount of ass-covering will be able to clean up.

    Now we’ll really see what the whole state secrets edifice is really built on.

  17. 17.

    Howard Beale IV

    @burnspbesq: Thank You. Just remember, it ain’t over ’till its over. And I expect that the US vs. Petraeus (if it happens) will run probably about 5-7 years, +/- 2. So lets revisit it then, mmkay?

  18. 18.

    David Koch

    This has happened (in a way) before.

    When Clinton was president one of his DCIs john deutch took home a laptop that had classified material.

    the then republican congress made a big deal about it and held an investigation and demanded DOJ pursue charges.

    The Justice Department, which earlier had declined to bring criminal charges against former CIA Director John Deutch for home computer security breaches, is taking a new look “to see whether there is any basis for further action,” Atty. Gen. Janet Reno said Thursday.

    Leading members of the Senate Intelligence Committee welcomed Reno’s new interest but said they would move ahead with their own inquiry.

    “It’s sad that she didn’t take a closer look at it earlier, because something is wrong and we’re going to get to the bottom of it,” said the committee chairman, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.).

    He said the committee, which heard from Deutch early this week, is turning more attention to why it took the CIA 18 months to notify congressional oversight committees after the agency discovered in December 1996 that Deutch had mishandled classified

    I doubt this republican congress will act in the same way because this time it’s Petraeus and IOKIYAR.

    What’s hilarious is Shelby would later be found to be breaking the law by leaking classified material. Of course no charges were filed on Shelby.

  19. 19.

    trollhattan

    If this prevents the Republicans for drafting him as their fifteenth or sixteenth presidential candidate, I’ll take some comfort in the development. “He seems so dreamy and normal compared to those others….”

  22. 22.

    Keith G

    @Elizabelle: Some in our society (media/politicians & others) recently have created an artificial and very un-American category in which we have placed cops and the military. One of the results of this is that discretion, let alone common sense, is becoming a rarer commodity among their ranks.

    We saw that with McCrystal and we are seeing it inNew York.

  24. 24.

    Keith G

    I am noting this news breaking this afternoon.

    Two time presidential candidate Mitt Romney told donors in New York he might run again

    If indeed Romney is considering this (wow what a egoistical fuckhead) it might be in part due to a growing idea that Christie is too damaged to mount a credible run for the nomination.

  26. 26.

    Barry

    @Elizabelle: “Do you think he was a good guy who got corrupted by the GWOT crap and careerism? Didn’t do well exposed to the Beltway; felt a little too bulletproof?”

    Remember, he was a four-star general. I’m not saying that they are all corrupt, but if I had to bet the rent money…

  30. 30.

    Corner Stone

    Given how this administration has reacted with a very heavy hand to all leakers to date, it seems to me it would be the height of hypocrisy if charges are not brought, especially since Petraeus is basically thumbing his nose at them by refusing to even consider a plea deal.

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

  31. 31.

    different-church-lady

    @burnspbesq: Oh you silly naif… don’t you know by now the purpose of impeachment is not to convict? The purpose of impeachment is to create a non-stop circus of accusation.

  34. 34.

    Corner Stone

    @Keith G:

    If indeed Romney is considering this (wow what a egoistical fuckhead) it might be in part due to a growing idea that Christie is too damaged to mount a credible run for the nomination.

    What kind of nonsense is this BS? Romney’s going to run and it has nothing to do with Christie.
    Christie is a bloated dead duck slowly floating down some polluted Jersey river somewhere.

  35. 35.

    Tree With Water

    I wonder what today’s prosecutors would make of the Eisenhower-Kay Summersby (poignant) relationship during WW2, if those two were held to account by today’s standards..

  36. 36.

    Corner Stone

    @burnspbesq:

    Tell us where the 67 votes in the Senate to convict Holder are going to come from. You can count that high, can’t you?

    How about you learn to read closely, dbag.

  37. 37.

    Howard Beale IV

    @David Koch: Unless she had an identical security clearance to Petreaus, there is no muddying the waters at all. And I seriously doubt that is the case here. Quite frankly, I’m surprised Broadwell wasn’t arrested and indicted.

  38. 38.

    Corner Stone

    Petraeus is doing exactly what Brennan has done. Saying to the whole establishment, “Fuck you. Come at me, bro.”

  41. 41.

    Corner Stone

    @burnspbesq:

    Equal justice under law. Nobody gets to fuck with classified information.

    You are fucking hilarious. Spectacularly ignorant about how things work, but fucking hilarious nevertheless.

  44. 44.

    Howard Beale IV

    @Corner Stone: You have to forgive Burnsie, for he has a problem-he has a small particle of brain lodged in his head. Once the surgeons remove it, he’ll be perfectly normal.

  45. 45.

    patrick II

    He could try the Cheney/Bush gambit and say “I’m the head of the CIA, if I say it isn’t classified it becomes unclassified.”

  47. 47.

    Corner Stone

    Mr. Holder has said little publicly about the investigation. the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, asked by reporters in December why it was taking so long, said: “I can’t say. I mean, I guess I could say, but I won’t say.”

    Hey, James Comey everyone. Obama’s pick to head the FBI. Yay!

  51. 51.

    Corner Stone

    “All In: The Education of General David Petraeus.”

    That never ceases to be outright fucking hilarious.

  52. 52.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @patrick II: That only works if you’re the head of the Executive and whatever they call the forth branch of government that Cheney was the head of.

  53. 53.

    cmorenc

    @Elizabelle:

    Do you think he was a good guy who got corrupted by the GWOT crap and careerism? Didn’t do well exposed to the Beltway; felt a little too bulletproof?

    He went astray the same way lots of other men from all walks of life do: he let his little head do too much of the thinking about a woman (Paula Broadwell) and his big head too little. Let the little head get in charge, and it will create one irresistible reason to do something that overcomes all the strong reasons the big head has for not doing it.

  54. 54.

    another Holocene human

    @Corner Stone: The subtitle is weird. Like an early 90s rap album. Who does he think he is, Candide?

    Plenty of pensters would love to be Rousseau or Voltaire.

  56. 56.

    another Holocene human

    @BillinGlendaleCA: Did you see that movie about Iraq I, Three Kings, I think? Either opening scene or within first ten minutes.

    Of course in the movie it was a metaphor or satire, lol.

  57. 57.

    Mandalay

    @another Holocene human:

    He fell in with broadwell precisely bc he wanted a publicist for his greatness.

    I suppose you might be right, but there is an alternative explanation which is more obvious, and more plausible.

  60. 60.

    Roger Moore

    @Mandalay:

    I suppose you might be right, but there is an alternative explanation which is more obvious, and more plausible.

    I don’t think those explanations are mutually exclusive.

  61. 61.

    Sloegin

    I vaguely remember details about this, about Petraeus being a bit too clever for his own good and getting caught at it…

    Rather than sending email he would compose a draft in his web account but wouldn’t send it, his arm candy would login to the same account, read the draft email, and would delete it and compose a draft in reply.

    Probably would have been safer to just send the damn email.

  66. 66.

    raven

    @Sloegin: Did you see that deal Rachel had on about Vitter last night? He was bangin his buddies ol’ lady. He and the guy were in Iraq together and the cuck asked to use Vitter’s phone. His wife’s phone number was in there under “Aunt” someone’s name!

  71. 71.

    Citizen_X

    @Corner Stone:

    “All In: The Education of General David Petraeus.”

    You don’t even have to change the name for the pr0n parody. How often do you get that?

  72. 72.

    Mandalay

    @Howard Beale IV:

    I expect him to skate-he’s too high up and too well connected.

    What Sandy Berger did was so egregious that simply being high up and well connected does not explain why he got away with his crimes. And the answer has to be that he had dirt on other people who were higher up the food chain than himself.

    I think that is why Petraeus will also get away with it. Not because he is high up and well connected – those days are gone forever – but because he knows too much about others.

  73. 73.

    Howard Beale IV

    Speaking of assholes:

    WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal grand jury is looking into loans made to Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback’s re-election campaign and has ordered the state’s ethics chief to testify next week as part of its investigation, according to a subpoena obtained by The Associated Press.

    Carol Williams, the executive director of the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission, was summoned to appear before the grand jury Wednesday in Topeka, according to documents the AP obtained through an open records request. She also was ordered to provide documents pertaining to loans Brownback’s campaign received in 2013 and 2014.

    The subpoena doesn’t say which loans are being investigated, but the only loans listed on campaign disclosure reports for those years are one from Brownback and others from Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer. Colyer loaned Brownback’s campaign $500,000 in August — the third such loan the governor’s running mate made to their re-election bid — according to a disclosure report filed days before the November election.

    The loans, the first of which was made in December 2013, raised eyebrows on the campaign trail because loans in such large amounts are rare in Kansas political races and because the money was repaid within days.

  75. 75.

    Corner Stone

    @burnspbesq: Nice. As should be obvious to even a 4th Grade Black Belt Smug Asshole such as yourself, he never said, “convict”. He said, “try”. Which as any sentient being knows is worlds away from “convict”.

    “Number 44! Woooo! Yeah! Give me some! Get some cold cuts! Get some cold cuts!”

  76. 76.

    JPL

    @burnspbesq: hmmmm… Maybe someone should ask Senator Shelby about that. iokiyr

    now that I’m reading the comments, I see the Shelby leak has been mentioned

  80. 80.

    Corner Stone

    Yikes, by way of GG, here’s a snip from BillMoyers site:
    “The AP reports that CIA Director David Petraeus applauded Kiriakou’s conviction. In an email to agency staff, he wrote:

    “It marks an important victory for our agency, for our intelligence community, and for our country. Oaths do matter, and there are indeed consequences for those who believe they are above the laws that protect our fellow officers and enable American intelligence agencies to operate with the requisite degree of secrecy.”

    I’m sure that’s not a problem, in any way.

  82. 82.

    Caprice

    In the movie, Rashida Jones can play Paula Broadwell. Who can play Petraeus?

    Lately, I’ve been reading Tom Degan’s blog

    http://tomdegan.blogspot.com

    There is a persistent troll commenting there; he calls himself “sore loser” …. Today he referred to Rachel Maddow as “it” (“is it a boy or a girl?” he asked). His comments are always offensive, insulting and bigoted, but this latest remark was just so disgusting.

  83. 83.

    Howard Beale IV

    @Mandalay: Especially since he crosses two administrations (Bush II/Obama).

    The fact that this has been strung out so long is prima facie evidence no one wants to have any part of this come into the light.

  86. 86.

    max

    @burnspbesq: Equal justice under law. Nobody gets to fuck with classified information.

    Unless they get to officially unofficially fuck with classified info.

    @burnspbesq: Wanna put a Benjamin on that proposition?

    Since I personally no longer have any faith in the proposition ‘equal justice in the law’, I’ll put down 5 against Petraeus being indicted before the end of 2015. Simply put, any prosecution will be a immense political headache and Petraeus will have more lawyers than God and they will try and run out the clock on the Obama administration. Holder’s a rationalist and won’t want to waste resources on a failed prosecution.

    max
    [‘The rule is, the little people get the hammer because it looks good on TV, and the elite weep bitter tears anytime one of theirs gets in trouble.’]

  87. 87.

    drkrick

    @David Koch:

    Part of the problem is Broadwell had a security clearance. That muddies the waters.

    Not really. A security clearance doesn’t give the bearer the right to access to all classified information, only specific items and levels. If she was authorized to see the things they found, this would never have been an issue.

  88. 88.

    CONGRATULATIONS!

    Equal justice under law. Nobody gets to fuck with classified information.

    @burnspbesq: It’s always cute when people who don’t know what the fuck they’re talking about talk about things.

    I’m sure that you’re good at your specialty, counselor, but this has nothing to do with taxes or with the court system as you understand it.

    Part of the problem is Broadwell had a security clearance. That muddies the waters.

    @David Koch: Means less than nothing.

  89. 89.

    drkrick

    @David Koch:

    When Clinton was president one of his DCIs john deutch took home a laptop that had classified material.

    The difference is that while Deutch committed an significant security violation, as far as was known there was no unauthorized access. Petraeus actually gave Broadwell classified material, which is a much bigger deal, especially since it was probably transmitted and stored on insufficiently secured networks and systems.

  90. 90.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    @drkrick:

    A security clearance doesn’t give the bearer the right to access to all classified information, only specific items and levels.

    More than that – one has to have a “need to know” to be able to access classified information, even if one has the relevant clearance.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  91. 91.

    Elizabelle

    Blurb on the front page of the NYTimes:

    Targeting Obama’s Immigration Policy, House Bows to Right

    House Republicans on Friday unveiled a plan that went further than expected, not only trying to block President Obama’s recent executive actions, but also seeking to undo a protected status for young immigrants.

    There’s your GOP outreach program.

  92. 92.

    Corner Stone

    @CONGRATULATIONS!:

    I’m sure that you’re good at your specialty, counselor, but this has nothing to do with taxes or with the court system as you understand it.

    It’s funny when he strays away from helping moochers avoid their due to the commonweal, or slurping on the genitals of Coach Cutcliffe.
    He’s pretty dedicated to both, dog bless him.

  94. 94.

    bk

    @Corner Stone: You are fucking hilarious. Spectacularly ignorant about how things work, but fucking hilarious nevertheless.

    Tar Heel grad here, and I can tell you that I have never actually met anyone from Duke who had a sense of humor, let alone was fucking hilarious.

  96. 96.

    JPL

    @srv: A commenter on the NYTimes said that the greatest General ever was being charged because he knew the truth about Benghazi.

  99. 99.

    Elizabelle

    @JPL: Good for you. I do think there are flying monkeys who descend on stories like that. You could see it in the comment thread. They were not persuasive, actually kind of pathetic.

    Someone from Texas was promising a citizen’s revolt should Petraeus be charged. Good luck with that.

  100. 100.

    Elie

    I dunno… the beltway loves a good sex scandal. I imagine that they must have some pretty titillating info on him and her. While he may know where some skeletons are buried, most of them are under the Bush watch. Not sure the Bushies want this guy doing sex, lies and videotape as they prepare JEB! for his “turn”. Petraeus may be digging in his heels but he may not know what they have — or what his lady friend is willing to sing to…. Or the lady friend down in FLA who was putting together all these parties and who drew all these threats from the lady friend. I tell ya, nothing beats the entertainment value of a good sex scandal… we have been overdue…

  102. 102.

    Mnemosyne (iPad Mini)

    @Howard Beale IV:

    IIRC, it’s not illegal to view classified material, it’s only illegal for the person with the clearance to show it. That’s why Ed Snowden is stuck in Russia and Glenn Greenwald can travel freely to the US — it was illegal for Snowden to steal it, but it’s not illegal for Greenwald to read and further distribute it.

  103. 103.

    Heliopause

    A lawyer for Mr. Petraeus, Robert B. Barnett, said Friday he had no comment.

    Over-under on Dershowitz joining the defense team?

  104. 104.

    Tree With Water

    @drkrick: Count 1, United States vs Petraeus: That the defendant knowingly engaged in coitus with unauthorized personnel although cognizant of his tendency to blurt out national security secrets when approaching climax..

  106. 106.

    Tenar Darell

    @Caprice: Petraeus could be Bradley Whitford in the right makeup maybe. Right coloring I think. Problem is you need someone who can do total wooden face, I’ve never seen Whitford do that; he always look like he’s smirking to me. Philip Seymour Hoffman could have pulled it off.

    Re: mean troll…. But she’s so awesome as she grins when she’s about to bring her point.

  107. 107.

    David Koch

    @JPL: wow. ur right. i had no idea petreaous had so many wingnut groupies. i thought they were pissed at him for rolling out the red carpet for obama when he toured iraq in 2008.

    but yes, they’re incoherently spouting about lewinsky, garry hart, and one conspiracy theory after another, including, of course, ben gazzra.

  109. 109.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    @Caprice:

    Who can play Petraeus?

    He’s got a bit of that Benedict Cumberbatch look about him…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  114. 114.

    Peale

    @Heliopause: I thought Dershowitz is currently under public humiliation for having sex with under aged girls. Or was that some other fool lawyer.

    I don’t know if a sexually charged case is where he’d step at the moment.

  118. 118.

    Skippy-san

    If DoJ brings criminal charges it will basically be picking a fight that adminstration neither has the time nor the energy to win. Public opinion will rally around Petreaus, outrageous lies will be told about the President and in the end there will be a plea deal. Better to let this die quietly especially in recognition of the General’s record of service.

  119. 119.

    HeartlandLiberal

    The rich and powerful White men who run the world. no longer are held accountable.

    He will not be indicted. This will be swept away and ignored.

    I am honestly surprised I have to explain this to anyone anymore.

    Here is the bottom line for America at this point in its history. The Constitution is Dead. The Rule of Law is Dead. All actions are determined and will be instigated by the State at the whim of whoever is in power, be that torture, or a Ferguson grand jury run by prosecutor acting as defense for the accused. Get over it. it is the failed experiment in Constitutional Republic we have become.

    I remarked just yesterday to a young person in her mid twenties,a staff member for an organization I still do database and IT consulting for even after retirement, that as I close in on age 69 next month, my cynicism has not abated, buy grows exponentially with each passing year. 90% of all those who rise to power are sociopaths and criminals. I base these beliefs on 69 years of solid unrelenting experience of the real world, seen without blinders, but just really seeing what it there to see.

  120. 120.

    wilfred

    No prosecutions for torture, mind, but this threat to the Republic and everything it stands for will be milked for all it’s worth.

  121. 121.

    I'mNotSureWhoIWantToBeYet

    It looks like the choices aren’t indict Petreaus or do nothing. If I’m reading this 1995 LA Times article correctly, retried CIA employees can be reprimanded (and presumably have their pensions cut, etc.). If that is true, then the CIA could knock him down a few pegs.

    We’ll see.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  122. 122.

    Chris

    @David Koch:

    wow. ur right. i had no idea petreaous had so many wingnut groupies.

    I think it’s the fact that Petraeus is reported to have disagreed with Obama on troop withdrawal plus the fact that he’s associated with The Surge. Put them together and in their heads, Petraeus is the great soldier who almost led us to victory in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the Kenyan Usurper stabbed him in the back. (Notice that he’s emerged unscathed from all the things that made them howl at the Obama administration – Susan Rice was “guilty” of reading the talking points the CIA gave her, but Petraeus whose agency actually wrote the talking points wasn’t).

  123. 123.

    T. Hunt

    I think this is really a distraction from anyone who was involved in torture. Big name, associated with the various wars, did bad stuff, must prosecute! Meanwhile everything about the Senate report and black sites and torture gets pushed to the back and forgotten.

    I think President Obama realized the shitstorm that would result from any torture prosecutions and how high they would go and he flinched.

    Major disappointment.

    Tom

  124. 124.

    Cervantes

    @Chris:

    The degree of insight you have into their minds is downright scary, not to say suspicious — but …

    Susan Rice was “guilty” of reading the talking points the CIA gave her, but Petraeus whose agency actually wrote the talking points wasn’t).

    … in this case the explanation is clear: she read them with an accent.

  125. 125.

    Mobile Grumpy Code Monkey

    @David Koch: By itself, a clearance is not enough to grant access. There’s the whole “need to know” thingy, along with a few other criteria.

    This was why the affair was a Big Deal; not that the general was sticking his privates where they didn’t belong, but his position and access made him a major target for blackmail and extortion.

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