U.S. News: Petraeus Resigns as CIA Director

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Petraeus Resigns as CIA Director

by Jennie Wood

In November 2012, former four-star general David Petraeus resigned as CIA director after the FBI uncovered evidence that he had an extramarital affair with Paula Broadwell. In a statement acknowledging the affair, he said, "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."

Broadwell is the author of "All In: The Education of General David Petraeus", a biography of Petraeus published in 2012. The FBI said that the investigation started when Jill Kelley, a friend of the Petraeus family, reported she had received harassing emails, which turned out to be from Broadwell. Officials said during the investigation they uncovered emails between Broadwell and Petraeus that proved they were having an affair. According to officials, Broadwell saw Kelley as a rival.

A Washington D.C. senior law enforcement official said that the top American and NATO commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John R. Allen, was also being investigated for "inappropriate communication" with Kelley. The FBI reported that during the investigation of the harassing emails to Kelley, they also uncovered an inappropriate email correspondence between Kelley and Allen. Responding to the broadening scandal, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta ordered a review of ethics training programs for all senior military officers.