General David Petraeus' surprise resignation from the CIA in light of an extra-marital affair sent shockwaves through Washington as details were still emerging this Sunday morning on Meet the Press.
The Washington Post's Bob Woodward reported that Petraeus had just gotten back from Benghazi, Libya where he was personally looking in to the situation that lead to four American deaths there.
Woodward said Petraeus "knows the full story" of what happened during the attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission and, if he were allowed, his testimony "would essentially back up the White House."
More news this morning came from Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) who announced that he, along with South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, have put together "a comprehensive, detailed blueprint for immigration reform."
Schumer said the two senators have been talking to their colleagues and believes the Senate has "a darn good chance, using this blueprint, to get something done this year."
You can watch the entire program on our website including our roundtable for more on the Petraeus news as well as the pending fiscal cliff deadline set for the end of the year. The question is whether or not both sides can come to an agreement on a grand bargain in time to avert economic calamity.
Both sides have signaled this week that they are ready and willing to come to the negotiating table and, thanks to documents obtained by Bob Woodward, we can have a clearer idea of the kind of proposal the White House may make.
This morning was also significant for everyone here at Meet the Press; we celebrated our 65th anniversary and continue to be the world's longest running television program.
We'll be back next week. If it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press.
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Liked the show as usual! The new Lincoln Movie segment was great and still timely 150 years later.
if the general does have important information regarding the benghazi attack and it matches what the obama administration is saying, i wonder if the conservatives will believe it. they are so convinced that there is a huge coverup regarding this. it will be very interesting.
But as a non-party affiliate, If it was the other way around, everybody will be screaming covert up!!! Some type of neglect did occurred, we just have to find out how severe, so it doesn't happen again.
They didn't care with Clinton, why this guy? Ms Goodwin was all distraught over idea of Roosevelt leaving early and "Monica" distracting Bill. So what, FDR leaves earlier? And, where was that concern back then.
Bigger questions to get at: Who released info on cyber techniques (iran)? Who compromised confidential informant in Yemen?
David, glad you guys are looking hard at this, at last. Perhaps just do what Mitt said. Absent a "growth" recipe, how does one sustain revenues to get to balance? A OMB estimated 1.3% growth projection is "loosing" to demographics, yes? Need 3% growth or more, yes?
Putting his military accomplishments aside for a moment, it should be remembered that General Petreaus had to do the "honorable thing" because he did a dishonorable thing. He did not resign because he had an epiphony about the error of his affair but because he got caught. When an average citizen has an affair, it is a personal issue. When it is the director of the CIA, it is a breach of national security. In addition, the director must set the standard for the rest of the organization. There were no eulogies for the eleven secret service agents who were ousted for spending one night with prostitutes in Colombia. There should be no hero worship for someone who endangered the security of the nation continuously for months. One of the secret service agents was criticized for leaving his laptop accessable while he slept with a prostitute in his room. Mrs. Broadwell had access to Petraeus's Gmail account and used it. It is time to simply thank the general for his years of service, and determine whether he lied during his confirmation hearings.
Putting his military accomplishments aside for a moment, it should be remembered that General Petreaus had to do the "honorable thing" because he did a dishonorable thing. He did not resign because he had an epiphony about the error of his affair but because he got caught. When an average citizen has an affair, it is a personal issue. When it is the director of the CIA, it is a breach of national security. In addition, the director must set the standard for the rest of the organization. There were no eulogies for the eleven secret service agents who were ousted for spending one night with prostitutes in Colombia. There should be no hero worship for someone who endangered the security of the nation continuously for months. One of the secret service agents was criticized for leaving his laptop accessable while he slept with a prostitute in his room. Mrs. Broadwell had access to Petraeus's Gmail account and used it. It is time to simply thank the general for his years of service, and determine whether he lied during his confirmation hearings.
Did David Betray-us ?
As a loyal viewer of MTP every Sunday, I was disappointed that Mr. Gregory and staff did not take any time to acknowledge Veterans Day, it's purpose or the brave men and women that served our great country through their military service.
The misguided hero-worship of all things military by MSM pundits (especially, it seems, by those at NBC) is twisted and sick. It says a lot that what brought Petraeus down was not the CIA's increased use of drones which kill civilians, including women and children, as often if not more so than their intended targets, or his doubling down with a surge in Afghanistan that only succeeded in more American deaths and increased tensions in the area, but an extramarital affair. That's the one thing that our "adversarial" watchdog press can't tolerate. David Gregory and his ilk should be cast out as pariahs and shamed for their uncritical "reporting" regarding those in positions of power (except when they cheat on their spouses, of course). We, as U.S. citizens, need to display more empathy toward those in the Middle East region who currently suffer under the actions of our government and military that act in our name, and reject the continuing march toward empire that is being pursued.
Also, I'm sick to death of pundits constantly focusing on the horse race aspect of political campaigns, while ignoring actual issues (they're already speculating on who's running in 2016- disgusting!). It might be great for advertising revenue for the networks to present the "news" as melodrama, but it does no service to viewers seeking actual information on which to form rational opinions.
It is a tragedy that our fellow Americans were killed in Benghazi. My heart goes out to their families, however I would like someone to ask Senator McCain why is he more upset about the Americans that were killed in Benghazi than all the Americans that were killed and injured in Iraq & Afghanistan?? Why is he wanting to prolong the wars, why does he look for new wars? Does he not care about the innocent people of other countries that are killed or injured? Remember his "bomb bomb" song? Are the American lives that are lost through senseless wars not important to him? He and the rest of those who believe that we should go all around the world laying down American lives should send themselves over to the front lines. Why is he not being asked these questions?