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The Senate parliamentarian has ruled against including the increase in minimum wage in the Covid relief bill, sourctwitter.com/i/web/status/1…dr
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Suspects' father delays trip to U.S.
The parents of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects have left their home in Dagestan for another part of Russia, the suspects' mother Zubeidat Tsarnaev told CNN Friday. She said the suspects' father, Anzor Tsarnaev, is delaying his trip to the United States indefinitely.
He was to fly to the United States as soon as Friday to cooperate in the investigation into the attacks. But his wife called an ambulance for him Thursday.
She told CNN's Nick Paton Walsh that her husband was delaying the trip for health reasons. She wouldn't elaborate.
Anzor Tsarnaev agreed to fly to the United States after FBI agents and Russian officials spoke with them for hours this week at the family's home.
FULL STORY
Former CIA officer gets 30 months in prison
A former CIA officer who pleaded guilty in October to identifying a secret agent was sentenced today to 30 months in prison.
John Kiriakou and prosecutors agreed on the sentence length as part of the plea deal he entered into three months ago. In her Alexandria, Virginia, court, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema said that she rejected the defense's attempts to characterize Kiriakou as a whistle-blower, and she would have sentenced the 48-year-old former agent to more time if he had been convicted at trial.
Read more about the case on CNN's Security Clearance blog.
Petraeus talks ... behind closed doors
Former CIA Director David Petraeus testified on Capitol Hill on Friday that the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, was an act of terrorism committed by al Qaeda-linked militants.
Rep. Peter King told reporters that Petraeus made an opening statement that took about 20 minutes and then answered questions for about an hour and 10 minutes.
King was one of the Republican and Democratic members of the House and Senate intelligence committees who heard from Petraeus about the September 11 attack that left four American dead, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens.
Petraeus: I did not give classified information to Broadwell
Ex-CIA chief David Petraeus told HLN's Kyra Phillips that he did not share classified information with his mistress, Paula Broadwell, nor was his resignation tied to upcoming testimony on the attack in Benghazi that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens.
Here's how Phillips reported her interview on "Morning Express with Robin Meade" on CNN's sister network.
Petraeus to testify on Benghazi in front of House panel this week
Former CIA Director David Petraeus will testify Friday before the House Intelligence Committee about the September attack on a U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, the committee announced Wednesday.
Petraeus had been scheduled to testify before Congress this week, but his testimony was in question after he resigned last week as CIA director over an extramarital affair.
Sources: Broadwell's security clearance suspended
Paula Broadwell, whose affair with CIA Director David Petraeus led to his resignation, has had her government security clearance suspended pending the outcome of ongoing investigations, two U.S. officials with direct knowledge told CNN's Barbara Starr.
A U.S. official previously said that Broadwell, an Army Reserve officer, did have some kind of security clearance.
Petraeus resigned from his CIA director post last week after an FBI investigation revealed he had an extramarital affair, an investigation that also prompted questions about whether his paramour, Broadwell, had inappropriate access to classified information.
Investigators have found classified information on a computer belonging to Broadwell, a law enforcement source told CNN national security contributor Fran Townsend. It was not clear if this was a computer seized at her home Monday night or one she had previously given to authorities when she cooperated back in September.
Earlier, John Nagl, a retired military officer who worked for Petraeus for years, said that Petraeus insists he never shared classified information with Broadwell. He spoke to him via e-mail on Monday and was authorized by Petraeus to talk.
Check out this story for more details on the investigation.
The Petraeus scandal: What we know
Retired Army Gen. David Petraeus resigned from his CIA director post last week after an FBI investigation revealed he had an extramarital affair, an investigation that also prompted questions about whether his paramour had inappropriate access to classified information.
The scandal also has sparked an investigation into whether Marine Corps Gen. John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, sent inappropriate messages to a different woman, leading President Obama to put Allen’s nomination to become NATO’s supreme allied chief on hold.
Spokeswoman: FBI at home of woman who had affair with ex-CIA chief David Petraeus
FBI agents are at the Charlotte, North Carolina, home of Paula Broadwell, the woman who had an affair with then-CIA Director David Petraeus, said FBI spokeswoman Shelley Lynch.
Lynch declined to say what the FBI is doing at the house. Petraeus resigned as CIA Director last Friday, citing an extramarital affair as the reason.
Click here to get the latest on Petraeus' affair and resignation
CIA director David Petraeus resigns over extramarital affair
Editor's note: Retired Gen. David Petraeus stepped down Friday as head of the Central Intelligence Agency - 14 months after taking the job, days after the presidential election and days before he was to testify before Congress about an attack on a U.S. consulate in Libya that left four Americans dead.
[Updated at 7:59 p.m.] Speaking on CNN's "Erin Burnett OutFront," Rep. Peter King (R-New York) called Petraeus' resignation "a real loss for the country, a real loss for the CIA."
"We're going to lose the best man for the job, but again America is adaptable," said the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee. "Put it this way, anytime you lose a David Petraeus, the country is not as safe as it could be."
[Updated at 7:11 p.m.] The FBI investigated a tip that the woman Petraeus was involved in an extramarital affair with was Paula Broadwell, who co-wrote a biography about him, a U.S. official said.
Broadwell spent a year with Petraeus in Afghanistan, interviewing him for the book "All In: The Education of General David Petraeus."
CNN has not been been able to reach Broadwell for comment. It is not clear if Broadwell is the woman with whom Petraeus had admitting having an affair, leading to his resignation Friday as the head of the CIA.
Petraeus letter: I showed extremely poor judgment
Here is the full text of a letter ex-CIA Director David Petraeus sent to colleagues after he submitted his resignation to President Obama:
HEADQUARTERS
Central Intelligence Agency
9 November 2012
Yesterday afternoon, I went to the White House and asked the President to be allowed, for personal reasons, to resign from my position as D/CIA. 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. This afternoon, the President graciously accepted my resignation.
As I depart Langley, I want you to know that it has been the greatest of privileges to have served with you, the officers of our Nation’s Silent Service, a work force that is truly exceptional in every regard. Indeed, you did extraordinary work on a host of critical missions during my time as director, and I am deeply grateful to you for that.
Teddy Roosevelt once observed that life’s greatest gift is the opportunity to work hard at work worth doing. I will always treasure my opportunity to have done that with you and I will always regret the circumstances that brought that work with you to an end.
Thank you for your extraordinary service to our country, and best wishes for continued success in the important endeavors that lie ahead for our country and our Agency.
With admiration and appreciation,
David H. Petraeus
Ex-CIA officer pleads guilty to one charge in leak case
[Updated at 2:20 p.m. ET] A former CIA officer accused of revealing classified information to reporters has pleaded guilty to one of the allegations - that he illegally revealed the identity of a covert intelligence officer.
John Kiriakou, 48, also admitted to other allegations, including that he illegally told reporters the name of a different CIA employee involved in a 2002 operation to capture alleged al Qaeda terrorist Abu Zubaydah, and that he lied to a review board about a book he was writing, the Justice Department said.
Ex-CIA officer charged with giving journalists classified information
A former CIA officer, John Kiriakou, was charged Monday with repeatedly disclosing classified information to journalists, including the name of a covert CIA officer and information revealing the role of another CIA employee in classified activities, Justice Department officials announced.
“Safeguarding classified information, including the identities of CIA officers involved in sensitive operations, is critical to keeping our intelligence officers safe and protecting our national security,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in a press release. “Today’s charges reinforce the Justice Department’s commitment to hold accountable anyone who would violate the solemn duty not to disclose such sensitive information.”
Watch CNN's interview with Kiriakou about his career from March 2010.
READ FULL SECURITY CLEARANCE POST
Petraeus sworn in as CIA director
Retired U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus, who served as the top U.S. commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, was sworn in Tuesday as the new director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Petraeus - sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden at the White House - succeeds Leon Panetta, who is now the secretary of defense.
At a ceremony marking his retirement from the military last week, Petraeus said his journey with the military was not coming to an end, even though he and his wife were "about to begin an exciting new journey with another extraordinary organization."
FULL STORY
On the Radar: New CIA chief, alleged hate crime, UK hacking
Three things you need to know today.
Petraeus at CIA: Retired U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus, who served as the top U.S. commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, assumes his new role Tuesday: director of the CIA.
Petraeus succeeds Leon Panetta, who is now the U.S. secretary of defense.
At a ceremony marking his retirement from the military last week, Petraeus said his journey with the military was not coming to an end, even though he and his wife were "about to begin an exciting new journey with another extraordinary organization."
President Barack Obama has cited Petraeus' experience in working with the CIA on counterinsurgency efforts in the field as a reason for his nomination as the agency's director.
Alleged hate crime: The family of James Craig Anderson, a man who was beaten and then run over in a Jackson, Mississippi, motel parking lot, will hold a news conference Tuesday morning.
The family's announcement will come the same day that a pre-trial hearing is scheduled for one of the teens accused in Anderson's death.
Prosecutors have said the killing of Anderson, who was a black man, was racially motivated.
The killing - which sparked national attention after CNN obtained and aired exclusive surveillance video that shows the attack as it took place - is also being investigated by the U.S. Justice Department.
Anderson, 49, was first beaten by the group of teens as he stood in a motel parking lot early on the morning of June 26, according to some of the teens who were interviewed by police.
After the beating, a group of teens drove a large Ford pickup truck over Anderson, according to witnesses and officials. Anderson died from his injuries later the same day.
UK phone hacking: British lawmakers will grill former newspaper executives Tuesday as they try to determine whether top News Corp. executive James Murdoch misled them about the scale of illegal eavesdropping at News of the World.
Murdoch, the son of News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch, has repeatedly told lawmakers that an investigation showed no evidence of widespread phone hacking at News of the World.
But the former editor of the paper has disputed James Murdoch's account, and will testify before the Culture, Media and Sport Committee. Colin Myler will be joined by Tom Crone, a former top lawyer for the paper.
Former top human resources officer Daniel Cloke and ex-legal affairs director Jonathan Chapman are also due to testify.
Petraeus confirmed as new CIA director
Gen. David Petraeus won unanimous Senate confirmation Thursday to succeed Leon Panetta as director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
The 58-year-old commanding general of U.S. forces in Afghanistan has said he will retire from the military before assuming his new post later this year.
Petraeus received strong support at his confirmation hearing by the Senate Intelligence Committee. He told the panel he would lead the nation's largest intelligence agency fully independent of his ties to the military.
Asked about enhanced interrogation techniques widely considered to be torture, Petraeus reiterated his past opposition to them, saying methods permitted in the military interrogation manual he helped oversee have proven effective.
However, Petraeus said enhanced techniques could be considered in a so-called "ticking bomb" scenario - such as questioning someone who planted a nuclear device in New York set to go off in 30 minutes.
"I do think there is a need at the very least to address the possibility," Petraeus said of such a scenario. He called for discussing and working out a process ahead of time that would enable authorization from top leadership in order to prevent lower-level officials from being forced to consider the matter while "reacting under extreme pressure."
Pakistani official denies leak of CIA agent's name
News outlets in Pakistan have made public the name of an American they identified as the CIA station chief, but a senior Pakistani intelligence official said Monday the person named is not the station chief.
Referring to a name cited in the Pakistani newspaper The Nation, the intelligence official said, "If we were going to release the name, we would release the right one." The official said he did not know where the name came from.
A U.S. official said there is "no current plan to bring home the current chief of station" in Pakistan.
The remarks came amid reports suggesting Pakistani officials may have leaked the name of a CIA official in the country.
Tensions between the United States and Pakistan have been growing since U.S. forces found and killed Osama bin Laden in the city of Abbottabad a week ago. U.S. officials have been publicly questioning whether Pakistan did all it could to track down the world's most wanted terrorist.
CIA responds to WikiLeaks: WTF
It's no secret that WikiLeaks' cable document dumps have caused ripples of concerns and speculation about how well the United States can keep secrets - its own and those of other countries.
It's been embarrassing to both U.S. diplomats and foreign leaders mentioned in the cables, but there haven't been any bombshells from the small percentage of documents released so far. The CIA, known for its ability to keep secrets, is taking no chances of being pulled further into the fray. The CIA has only been mentioned a few times in the cables, and has not been hit nearly as hard as other agencies and diplomats, but it does not appear willing to wait on the sidelines.
And it has an answer for WikiLeaks: WTF. Seriously.
Former spy sued by CIA for publishing without permission
The CIA has filed a civil suit against a former spy who published a book critical of the agency without the necessary review of the material by the agency, in violation of a secrecy agreement.
The legal action is being taken against Ishmael Jones, the pen name for a nearly 20-year veteran of the CIA who, he says, worked deep undercover overseas, mostly in Arabic-speaking nations. In 2008, he published "The Human Factor: Inside the CIA's Dysfunctional Intelligence Culture," under his pseudonym.
In a statement released Tuesday, the CIA said "Jones" violated the secrecy agreement he voluntarily signed as a condition of employment.
"Although Jones submitted his manuscript to the Agency's Publications Review Board (PRB) as his secrecy agreement requires, he did not let that review process run its course and instead published in defiance of the Board's initial disapproval," said the CIA statement.
Jones' real identity remains classified, mainly to protect the sources he worked with as a covert officer overseas.
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