The Hill
Report: FBI employee told Eric Cantor about Petraeus affair before Obama knew
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) says he was told in late October about allegations that then-CIA Director David Petraeus was having an extramarital affair…
“I was contacted by an F.B.I. employee concerned that sensitive, classified information may have been compromised and made certain [FBI] Director [Robert] Mueller was aware of these serious allegations and the potential risk to our national security,” said Cantor in a statement to the Times.
The report says Cantor spoke to the FBI employee after being told by Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Wash.) that someone at the agency had concerns about national security and wanted to speak to a congressional leader about the allegations.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
And Cantor didn’t leak this to Foxnews before the election? What a freakin idiot.
milemarker2020 on November 11, 2012 at 1:02 PM
Why would they leak it too Cantor before Obama?
the_nile on November 11, 2012 at 1:06 PM
With friends like these…..
jawkneemusic on November 11, 2012 at 1:06 PM
Or, as the media is sure to put it:
“Embattled Rep. Cantor involved in Petraeus affair allegations”
KingGold on November 11, 2012 at 1:07 PM
Awwww. Aren’t these GOP fellas helpful to Barack. Bless their hearts.
Rational Thought on November 11, 2012 at 1:09 PM
FIFY
midgeorgian on November 11, 2012 at 1:09 PM
Wonder if Holder was sitting on it.
crosspatch on November 11, 2012 at 1:10 PM
Yeah, Val, Axe and Dear Leader knew nothing…
d1carter on November 11, 2012 at 1:12 PM
Why would anyone want Rep. Cantor to leak this, when it wasn’t apparent whether security had been breached or not. I’d love to get the drop of the Lefties as much as the next person, but not at the risk of compromising an ongoing investigation.
Cindy Munford on November 11, 2012 at 1:12 PM
I can’t really express how alienated I feel from his country. I feel like a kid with their nose pressed against the window and I will never get beyond the gate. 48% do not matter. At all. At all…
djl130 on November 11, 2012 at 1:12 PM
For crying out loud cantor, why in the world would you bring this up now? It makes you look like a complete fool for not saying something about this, or at least leak it so it could get out? Have you told any of those holding hearings in the next few weeks about this when you found out? If so, why didn’t any you told, leak this to Fox?
This whole thing is getting past the smell test, IMO!
L
letget on November 11, 2012 at 1:12 PM
So we’re to believe the Republican Majority Leader was informed but not the White House, or the Attorney General or the FBI Director?
What am I missing here?
Even the Grey Lady is raising her eyebrows but “useful” clarification is sure to follow:
Drained Brain on November 11, 2012 at 1:14 PM
LMFAO … They should change their abbreviation from “GOP” to “GOS” – Group of Suckers!!
HondaV65 on November 11, 2012 at 1:15 PM
I feel the opposite, I feel like I have been thrown out of my home. And there is no sense in grieving because it isn’t what I thought it was anyway. Just a facade.
Cindy Munford on November 11, 2012 at 1:15 PM
^ s/b This whole thing is NOT getting past the smell test, IMO!
L
letget on November 11, 2012 at 1:16 PM
djl130 on November 11, 2012 at 1:12 PM
I
djl130 on November 11, 2012 at 1:17 PM
It’s surreal.
the_nile on November 11, 2012 at 1:21 PM
This does fit with the story at Powerline about FBI agents concerned about them sitting on the story…read it here.
d1carter on November 11, 2012 at 1:33 PM
If true, speaks volumes about how some view our Dear Liar and his approach to national security
rbj on November 11, 2012 at 1:35 PM
Bringing them in on it was a layer of the plot. Probably to show some deniability later on. I guess the plot was to use Petreaus for their purposes for the time being but have the ability to dispose of him later on. They liked the fact that he was compromised because they can make him play ball, and they can ruin him when it’s convenient for them. That’s precisely why he was promoted to the CIA position.
Buddahpundit on November 11, 2012 at 1:38 PM
I think Cantor did the only thing he could do, which is let the FBI director know that he knew something was going on. He could hardly pop up on TV immediately and start spreading rumors. If the whole thing had been false he would have looked like a fool. Cantor couldn’t know if he was being played in some way. He needed to be cautious.
Bennett on November 11, 2012 at 1:39 PM
Sounds as if the FBI “employee” will be looking for a job since he/she was trying to blow the whistle on the FBI for sitting on this.
d1carter on November 11, 2012 at 1:43 PM
hahahahahaha
The FBI works for Obama.
If anyone thinks the FBI didn’t tell Obama on DAY ONE…
faraway on November 11, 2012 at 1:44 PM
This was probably posted earlier. K.T. McFarland makes interesting points about the affair being rumored in the military when she met with Petraeus in Afghanistan and that when when appointed to the CIA top spot Petraeus would have undergone another investigation and a CIA polygraph:
http://video.foxnews.com/v/1961383175001/suspect-list-in-libya-attack-expands/?playlist_id=163706
Also on Meet the Press today Bob Woodard said that Petraeus personally went to Libya to investigate what occurred in Benghazi.
K.T. McFarland seems to conclude that the affair was known prior to Petraeus being confirmed (known by the WH, that is) and that he may have used this as a reason to step down in order to testify on Benghazi as a private citizen and without the WH’s interference.
Cody1991 on November 11, 2012 at 1:44 PM
They told who was important, first.
I’m not sure where the idea comes from that they should have leaked this before the election comes from. The media would have remembered that Petraeus was probably a Republican and mentioned that in the second paragraph of every report.
In any case, even if the story was about David Axelrod instead of Petraeus, it wouldn’t have mattered to the Free ____ Army.
HitNRun on November 11, 2012 at 1:47 PM
Exit question: The CIA director uses Google to talk to his girlfriend???? This guy’s in charge of our spooks????
DP must be the dumbest man I’ve ever heard of.
faraway on November 11, 2012 at 1:50 PM
You could not be a janitor at the CIA and have an extramarital affair and the agency background check not know it.
And the FBI would tell a member of congress before letting the POTUS know?
BS, the president knew and he knew from the moment the man took the position. The question is how exactly he was using the information.
Hell at this point there are a few Republicans that need to step down along with most of Obama Inc…
Tilly on November 11, 2012 at 2:21 PM
Exactly. This is a joke. He and Valerie decided to bank this one for a while until needed.
slickwillie2001 on November 11, 2012 at 2:42 PM