Tag Archives: david petraeus

Activism, Civil Liberties, Government Corruption, US

Jeffrey Sterling Gets 3 Years in Prison, David Petraeus No Prison Time For Worse Crime

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Washington D.C.- Critics are voicing concerns over Monday’s ruling on CIA leaker Jeffrey Sterling, questioning how the government can convict Sterling and give him a 3.5-year sentence compared to the light sentence that David Petraeus received for leaking information to his biographer and mistress.

Ben Swann speaks with Norman Solomon from the Institute for Public Accuracy about the case.

Sterling was given an additional two years of supervised release after he finishes his time in jail. The government had sought a prison term of more than 20 years for Sterling, but the judge told prosecutors at the sentencing that was too harsh a punishment.

The former CIA officer, who was fired in the early 2000s, was charged under the Espionage Act for disclosing classified information about a mission meant to slow Iran’s nuclear program to New York Times reporter James Risen, who then wrote about the CIA’s Iranian plot “Operation Merlin” in his 2006 book, ‘State of War’. The plan was designed to project a negative image of Iran’s nuclear program, learn more about it program and impair its progress. Flawed nuclear weapon schematics were reportedly funneled to the Iranians via a Russian scientist with the codename “Merlin.”

 

 

 

Government Accountability, Government Corruption, Politics, US, Videos

David Petraeus Sentenced

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The New York Times is reporting that former CIA director and military commander David Petraeus was sentenced on Thursday after pleading guilty in March to the disclosure of classified information.

Petraeus will serve two years of probation and pay a $100,000 fine. The fine is significantly more than the $40,000 originally recommended by prosecutors.

After an initial denial, the retired four-star general admitted that he had given classified information to his mistress, Paula Broadwell. Broadwell, an Army Reserve officer, was writing a biography of Petraeus.

The FBI and other government officials believed that Patraeus should serve time in prison, arguing that not only did he compromise national security but he also lied to FBI agents about the situation. Attorney General Eric Holder ultimately approved of a plea deal that spared prison time for Patraeus.

Government Corruption, International, Politics, US

David Petraeus Strikes Plea Deal, Expected To Serve Two Years Probation

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Former CIA director and military commander David Petraeus reached a plea deal with the Justice Department Tuesday and has agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of “unauthorized removal and retention of classified material.” That charge can lead to up to one year in prison, but prosecutors are expected to recommend two years of probation and a $40,000 fine.

The Justice Department released a statement following the plea deal:

“Three documents — a criminal information, a plea agreement and a statement of facts — were filed today in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina’s Charlotte Division in the case of United States v. David Howell Petraeus. The criminal information charges the defendant with one count of unauthorized removal and retention of classified material. … The plea agreement and corresponding statement of facts, both signed by the defendant, indicate that he will plead guilty to the one-count criminal information.”

Petraeus admitted that he gave highly classified information- including “identifies of covert officers, war strategy, intelligence capabilities and mechanisms, diplomatic discussions, quotes and deliberative discussions from high-level National Security Council meetings” as well as discussions with President Barack Obama- to his mistress, Paula Broadwell, an Army Reserve officer who was writing a biography about Petraeus. He also gave her “national defense information, including top secret/SCI and code word information.” In 2012, Petraeus had initially denied giving Broadwell the information.

Before the discovery that Petraeus had given information to Broadwell, he had resigned from his position as CIA director after an FBI investigation of Petraeus’s emails revealed a relationship with Broadwell. Petraeus’s emails were monitored because a woman named Jill Kelley told the FBI that she was receiving threatening emails, and the emails traced back to Broadwell.

Officials had originally said in 2012 that Petraeus’s affair with Broadwell had no effect on national security, but evidence was later found that Petraeus gave Broadwell classified information.

 

Featured, Government Accountability, Politics, US

DOUBLE STANDARD: Will Petraeus Face Charges? Senators Say He Has “Suffered Enough”

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Washington DC- Two prosecutors for the Department of Justice have recommended that an indictment be brought against David Petraeus. Petraeus reportedly shared his email account and classified information with a lover who also happened to be his biographer.

As you might remember Petraeus, the four-star general who led the surge in Afghanistan and in Iraq under President’s Bush and Obama also became for a short time the director of the CIA. While head of the Central Intelligence Agency, Petraeus is suspected of illegally sharing classified materials with his biographer, Paula Broadwell, an Army Reserve officer with whom he was having an affair. Federal agents found classified documents on Broadwell’s computer and at her home, raising the question of how she obtained those materials.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder refused to say Sunday whether he would indict Petraeus despite reports saying charges were imminent.

Most interesting, however is the parade of U.S. Senators who have come to the defense of Petraeus including Sen. John McCain and Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Feinstein tells CNN’s State of the Union that she not only supports Petraeus but that she believes he has “suffered enough”. In the video above, Feinstein explains that Petraeus has “lost his job already”.

It is important to note however that Feinstein, believes that Julian Assange, “Should be vigorously prosecuted for espionage”. The Senator also believes that Edward Snowden “violated his oath and violated the law”, calling the exposure of the NSA spying program “treason”.

It is worth nothing that in Snowden’s case he revealed the NSA program to the American public, on whom the program was illegally spying. Snowden’s revelations whether you agree with them or not, was not for personal gain. On the other hand, Petraeus’ sharing of information was not a revelation to the person with whom it was shared. Rather it was allowing classified information to be handed over to a girlfriend for the sake of scoring points.

Even so, Feinstein doesn’t feel that Petraeus needs to suffer anymore.

The Intercept has pointed out that Petraeus isn’t actually suffering at all after having compromised classified information. “David Petraeus, the person who Feinstein said has “suffered enough,” was hired last year by the $73 billion investment fund KKR to be Chairman of its newly created KKR Global Institute, on top of the $220,000/year pension he receives from the U.S. Army and the teaching position he holds at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Let us all pause for a moment to lament the deep suffering of this man, and the grave injustice of inflicting any further deprivation upon him.”