Brookings places retired general on leave amid FBI probe
Source: AP
By ALAN SUDERMAN and JIM MUSTIAN
The prestigious Brookings Institution placed its president, retired four-star Marine Gen. John Allen, on administrative leave Wednesday amid a federal investigation into his role in an illegal lobbying campaign on behalf of the wealthy Persian Gulf nation of Qatar.
Brookings announcement came a day after The Associated Press reported on new court filings that show the FBI recently seized Allens electronic data as part of the probe and detailed his behind-the scenes efforts to help Qatar influence U.S. policy in 2017 when a diplomatic crisis erupted between the gas-rich monarchy and its neighbors.
Allen, who led U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan before being tapped to lead Brookings in late 2017, has not been charged with any crimes. His spokesman, Beau Phillips, said Wednesday that Allen had done nothing improper or unlawful.
Through decades of public service in combat and diplomacy, General Allen has earned an unmatched, sterling reputation for honor and integrity, Phillips said in a statement. We look forward to correcting the falsehoods about General Allen that have been improperly publicized in this matter.
FILE - In this Feb. 25, 2015, file photo, retired Gen. John Allen testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to examine the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. On Wednesday, June 8, 2022, the prestigious Brookings Institution placed Alllen, its president, Allen, on administrative leave amid a federal investigation into his foreign lobbying. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/qatar-middle-east-persian-gulf-tensions-lobbying-government-and-politics-8c660b2906a0311228c59c4f539fae57
Ford_Prefect
(7,830 posts)that Gen. Allen acted alone.
BumRushDaShow
(127,331 posts)they had quite a bit of liberal think-tank viewpoints as well and were definitely not like a Cato Institute, American Enterprise Institute, or a Hoover Institute, that are known RW-loon organizations.
hlthe2b
(101,730 posts)As for the General, it sounds like the greed of a big payout after decades in the military may have been too tempting. Legal, probably. Ethical? Well, it sounds like a quaint notion of old nowadays.
BumRushDaShow
(127,331 posts)going into "foreign lobbying", I expect for the $$$$$. It's apparently a lucrative career and probably easier to get into than trying to break into the typical, already-jam packed K Street crowd .
COL Mustard
(5,784 posts)Can overwhelm some people's sense of morality, I suppose. We get annual ethics training (I'm a Fed at DOD) and every year they trot out stories of people who violated the code of ethics. Some went to jail, others got fined, others got fired (and made essentially unemployable in our sector). It's a big deal.
BumRushDaShow
(127,331 posts)I remember those annual "Ethics" courses, and then as a supervisor, I had more of that included in my supervisor courses.
The 5USC references were flying fast and furious (gift bans - nothing over $25 value and arguing about "mugs", meals at non-governmental conferences only if "everyone" (non fed) received them too, and on and on)!
The worst were those who misused the government credit card (and I even knew former co-workers who did that and seemed completely clueless about the fact that the agency's Admin officers got the identical copy of the credit card bill as they did so knew exactly what they were doing... ).
LiberalFighter
(50,506 posts)should lose all their military benefits.
BumRushDaShow
(127,331 posts)Hortensis
(58,785 posts)We can't do without lobbying.
We're talking about both experts in alligators come to explain to their legislators what they need to know about issues related to alligators and civilians who've become new "experts" in the issues of homeowners whose back yards border newly designated alligator preserve.
This is true for EVERYTHING else, as well, including foreign affairs.
CORRUPT lobbying is our target. But "they" don't want you to focus on that.