“CIA chief Petraeus resigns, reportedly over affair”

Taken from: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/cia-chief-petraeus-resigns-reportedly-over-affair-201305343–politics.html

 

November 9, 2012

CIA Director David Petraeus resigned his post on Friday, confessing to having shown “extremely poor judgment by engaging in an extramarital affair.” The former Army general rocketed to global prominence as the man in charge of the “surge” in Iraq and later the commander of American forces in Afghanistan.

President Barack Obama said Petraeus had led the Central Intelligence Agency “with characteristic intellectual rigor, dedication, and patriotism. ”I am completely confident that the CIA will continue to thrive and carry out its essential mission, and I have the utmost confidence in Acting Director Michael Morell and the men and women of the CIA who work every day to keep our nation safe,” the president said in a written statement. ”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,” Obama continued.

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper issued a statement that did not specify a reason for Petraeus’s departure but praised his colleague extensively. ”From his long, illustrious Army career to his leadership at the helm of CIA, Dave has redefined what it means to serve and sacrifice for one’s country,” said Clapper.

Petraeus went to work as CIA chief in September 2011 after heading up the war in Afghanistan. He had drawn fire in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attack on the American compound in Benghazi, Libya. His departure comes barely a week before he was scheduled to testify about the assault in closed-door sessions with the intelligence committees of the Senate and House of Representatives. Morell was expected to take his place, congressional aides said.

Petraeus’ resignation letter, quoted by several news outlets, centered on his personal behavior. ”Yesterday afternoon, I went to the White House and asked the President to be allowed, for personal reasons, to resign from my position as D/CIA. After being married for over 37 years, I showed extremely poor judgment by engaging in an extramarital affair. Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours,” he said. “This afternoon, the President graciously accepted my resignation.”

Petraeus, 60, has been described as the father of the military’s counterinsurgency doctrine. The charismatic officer had been cited as a possible future presidential or vice presidential prospect. His wife Holly has worked inside the Obama Administration, serving at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Republican Senator John McCain, his party’s senior member on the Senate Armed Services and one of Petraeus’s most outspoken admirers, said the general “will stand in the ranks of America’s greatest military heroes. ”His inspirational leadership and his genius were directly responsible—after years of failure—for the success of the surge in Iraq,” McCain said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family.”

In a statement, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, a Democrat, said, “I very much regret the resignation of David Petraeus. This is an enormous loss for our nation’s intelligence community and for our country. ”I wish President Obama had not accepted this resignation, but I understand and respect the decision,” Feinstein added.

“NYC Muslim Leaders Encourage Residents to Know Their Rights”

Taken from:  http://colorlines.com/archives/2011/11/nyc_muslims_less_like_to_collaborate_with_police_after_one_too_many_undercover_stings.html 

November 15, 2011

Leaders in New York City’s Muslim community are warning people to be watchful of potential undercover NYPD and FBI informants. So they’re holding teach-in’s to help members of the community diagnose the problem and understand their rights.

Insiders say the government’s surveillance efforts are certain to further strain relations between NYPD and the Muslims in the city. The Associated Press is reporting that Muslim community leaders are openly teaching people how to identify police informants, encouraging them to always talk to a lawyer before speaking with the authorities, and reminding people already working with law enforcement that they have the right to change their minds.

The news comes after the AP released an investigation that revealed the NYPD dispatched plainclothes officers to eavesdrop in Muslim communities. The report found hundreds of mosques and restaurants were infiltrated to build a database on what the department later called “daily life inside Muslim neighborhoods.”

In a story published Monday, the AP describes some methods being used in the teach-in’s:

At a recent “Know Your Rights” session for Brooklyn College students, someone asked why Muslims who don’t have anything to hide should avoid talking to police.“Most of the time it’s a fishing expedition,” answered Ramzi Kassem, a law professor at the City University of New York. “So the safest thing you can do for yourself, your family and for your community, is not to answer.”

…

A recently distributed brochure from the City University of New York Law School warns people to be wary when confronted by someone who advocates violence against the U.S., discusses terror organizations, is overly generous or is aggressive in their interactions. The brochure said that person could be a police informant.“Be very careful about involving the police,” the brochure said. “If the individual is an informant, the police may not do anything … If the individual is not an informant and you report them, the unintended consequences could be devastating.”

Muslim communities nationwide have faced a increased amounts of surveillance since 9/11. In a Colorlines.com story published in September, Asraa Mustufa wrote about Muslims in Irvine, California whose communities were being infiltrated by FBI and CIA informants. The policies that allow the agencies to conduct undercover surveillance in Muslim neighborhoods are sanctioned by the Obama administration. To make matters even worse, the administration strengthened a national security provision that makes it nearly impossible for communities and individuals to protect their rights through lawsuits after they’ve been infiltrated.Mustufa explained on Colorlines:

The provision, known as the state secrets privilege, permits the government to block discovery in a lawsuit of any information that, if disclosed, could adversely affect national security or foreign relations.

During his first presidential campaign, Barack Obama vowed to end the type of undercover surveillance that Muslim communities around the country are now dealing with. Of course, that didn’t happen. But not only did it not happen, government surveillance and the legal mechanisms to protect is has reached nearly unprecedented levels.