One More REASON Petraeus Might Have Resigned [View all]

[Segami]

Marc Ambinder of the The Week reports on an intriguing and little-known factor that may have contributed to David Petraeus' quick decision to resign: It seems Petraeus was on the list of people who would have access to the nation's nuclear codes should the rest of Washington be wiped out in an attack. And the people on that list are held to ultra-high standards under something called the Personnel Reliability Program. "Adultery is not a minor sin under the PRP rules," writes Ambinder.

It's all part of the nation's secret Continuity of Government plans in the wake of a catastrophe. Petraeus' "exalted" role in those plans might well have led national intelligence chief James Clapper to insist he step down as quickly as he did, writes Ambinder. Read the full post here.

http://www.newser.com/story/157741/one-more-reason-petraeus-might-have-resigned.html

When he admitted having an extramarital affair with Paula Broadwell, CIA Director David Petraeus, as a senior civilian in the presidential chain of command should something go catastrophically wrong in Washington, violated special behavior codes for officials who might one day be forced to execute nuclear strikes. In classified presidential emergency action documents, the CIA director is among the dozens, if not hundreds, of officials who are listed as National Command Authority successors in the event that higher-ranking officials are no longer able to do their jobs.


Because under certain circumstances he'd have ready access to the nuclear satchel, Petraeus was indoctrinated into the Personnel Reliability Program, which evaluates and monitors the lifestyle and behavior of Americans with access to nuclear command and control mechanisms. Adultery is not a minor sin under the PRP rules.


The details of so-called "nuclear pre-delegation" is one of the most tightly held secrets in the U.S. government. The first 18 presidential successors are spelled out by law. But it is not clear whether the pre-delegation lists follow the Constitutional chain of command.





cont'

http://theweek.com/article/index/236521/one-secret-reason-petraeus-had-to-resign