David Petraeus resigns as CIA Director over extramarital affair

[The Mikado]

My question: what does David Petraeus having an affair have anything to do with his (by all accounts stellar) career?

America is losing a fine public servant today, it seems.  Maybe in a few years he will be rehabilitated and able to be Defense Secretary or something.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

Damn it Mikado, I was gonna break this   But yeah, this is a shame.

[2952-0-0]

Timing is rather suspicious. Maybe Obama is using this as a pretext to get rid of him?

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Timing is rather suspicious. Maybe Obama is using this as a pretext to get rid of him?

Nonsense.  Petraeus is a great public servant and Obama is losing someone special at the helm over there....this is nothing that benefits the President.

Damn stupid reason to have to resign too.

[The Mikado]

Timing is rather suspicious. Maybe Obama is using this as a pretext to get rid of him?

Nonsense.  Petraeus is a great public servant and Obama is losing someone special at the helm over there....this is nothing that benefits the President.

Damn stupid reason to have to resign too.

It does make sense from the perspective that if Petraeus has been sleeping around, he could be blackmailed, which is dangerous for a CIA Director.  Nevertheless, once you admit you've had the affair, aren't you blackmail-proof over it?

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

DADT, Petraeus!

[Simfan34]

That was completely unexpected. I had heard speculation he was resigning and what I thought was that is was the beginning of a movement towards a possible 2016 candidacy, which I thought very exciting. A great shame

But I do feel that affairs are more than a good reason to disqualify one from service. If one cannot maintain their fidelity and loyalty to the person they swore to "to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health," then how on earth can they be expected to be constant or loyal to anything (which is everything) less?

It's a great shame, but it was the only proper course of action.

[Link]

Timing is rather suspicious. Maybe Obama is using this as a pretext to get rid of him?

Nonsense.  Petraeus is a great public servant and Obama is losing someone special at the helm over there....this is nothing that benefits the President.

Damn stupid reason to have to resign too.

It does make sense from the perspective that if Petraeus has been sleeping around, he could be blackmailed, which is dangerous for a CIA Director.  Nevertheless, once you admit you've had the affair, aren't you blackmail-proof over it?

He's admitted ONE affair.  The guy is the CIA director.  You are assuming that is the only secret he is keeping?

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Timing is rather suspicious. Maybe Obama is using this as a pretext to get rid of him?

Nonsense.  Petraeus is a great public servant and Obama is losing someone special at the helm over there....this is nothing that benefits the President.

Damn stupid reason to have to resign too.

It does make sense from the perspective that if Petraeus has been sleeping around, he could be blackmailed, which is dangerous for a CIA Director.  Nevertheless, once you admit you've had the affair, aren't you blackmail-proof over it?

Attempted blackmail may be why he resigned.  He would never give into a blackmailer.  I guess it's ok to get knob jobs at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, but not in Langley

[Link]

But I do feel that affairs are more than a good reason to disqualify one from service. If one cannot maintain their fidelity and loyalty to the person they swore to "to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health," then how on earth can they be expected to be constant or loyal to anything (which is everything) less?

It's a great shame, but it was the only proper course of action.

The affair was going on for 37 years.  In that time he turned around Iraq and laid the ground work for us getting out of Afghanistan.  What have you been doing with your high horse for the last four decades?

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

But I do feel that affairs are more than a good reason to disqualify one from service. If one cannot maintain their fidelity and loyalty to the person they swore to "to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health," then how on earth can they be expected to be constant or loyal to anything (which is everything) less?

It's a great shame, but it was the only proper course of action.

The affair was going on for 37 years.  In that time he turned around Iraq and laid the ground work for us getting out of Afghanistan.  What have you been doing with your high horse for the last four decades?

Here's the resignation letter  it went on for 37 years?

[Link]

But I do feel that affairs are more than a good reason to disqualify one from service. If one cannot maintain their fidelity and loyalty to the person they swore to "to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health," then how on earth can they be expected to be constant or loyal to anything (which is everything) less?

It's a great shame, but it was the only proper course of action.

The affair was going on for 37 years.  In that time he turned around Iraq and laid the ground work for us getting out of Afghanistan.  What have you been doing with your high horse for the last four decades?

Here's the resignation letter  it went on for 37 years?

My bad.  I read that wrong.  It did NOT go on for 37 years.  I skimmed another report and misread it.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

But I do feel that affairs are more than a good reason to disqualify one from service. If one cannot maintain their fidelity and loyalty to the person they swore to "to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health," then how on earth can they be expected to be constant or loyal to anything (which is everything) less?

It's a great shame, but it was the only proper course of action.

The affair was going on for 37 years.  In that time he turned around Iraq and laid the ground work for us getting out of Afghanistan.  What have you been doing with your high horse for the last four decades?

Here's the resignation letter  it went on for 37 years?

My bad.  I read that wrong.  It did NOT go on for 37 years.  I skipped another report and misread it.

I wasn't trying a "gotcha"    It is a shame to lose a good D/CI

[Bacon King]

Alert for conspiracy theorists: he was supposed to testify to Congress about Benghazi next week

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Alert for conspiracy theorists: he was supposed to testify to Congress about Benghazi next week

They can't still summon him?  I'll bet they can.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Well that's a shame. Both that we're losing him and that he made an inexcusably sh**tty life decision like that.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

He of all people is the last person I would suspect to have an affair.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

He of all people is the last person I would suspect to have an affair.

That's how he got to where he got in the Army and CIA.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

A shame, but it gives new meaning the jibe the Dems used to give him of David Betray-us.

[Link]

But I do feel that affairs are more than a good reason to disqualify one from service. If one cannot maintain their fidelity and loyalty to the person they swore to "to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health," then how on earth can they be expected to be constant or loyal to anything (which is everything) less?

It's a great shame, but it was the only proper course of action.

The affair was going on for 37 years.  In that time he turned around Iraq and laid the ground work for us getting out of Afghanistan.  What have you been doing with your high horse for the last four decades?

Here's the resignation letter  it went on for 37 years?

My bad.  I read that wrong.  It did NOT go on for 37 years.  I skipped another report and misread it.

I wasn't trying a "gotcha"    It is a shame to lose a good D/CI

Oh I know.  I wasn't try to slander him either.  I personally don't care what he did in his personal life.  I mean yes I care from the blackmail perspective but with an affair going on he did his job better than 99% of the people I know who aren't having affairs.  People talk about his political affiliation but I can't imagine anyone being happy about this other than terrorists.  Obama needed this guy.  We all did.  It's too bad.  I wish something could be done.

[Lambsbread]

Yikes.

[badgate]

Drudge is trying to spin this like he's resigning over Benghazi.

I wonder if this is why he wouldn't join the Romney ticket. I mean obviously there would have been blowback for leaving a job to run against his boss...but worry that this could have come out probably crossed his mind as well.

[Lief 🗽]

Drudge is hilarious right now, if the rumors about who the mistress was are true.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

It just got interesting: NBC News: "Law enforcement officials tell NBC News the FBI is investigating Petraeus biographer Paula Broadwell for improperly trying to access his email."

[Lief 🗽]

Looks like MoveOn.org was right all along: