Obama to nominate General John Allen to head NATO
The White House announced on Wednesday that President Barack Obama will proceed with General John Allen's nomination as NATO's supreme allied commander in Europe.
The Pentagon cleared General John Allen of any wrongdoing in email exchanges with a Florida socialite. “The investigation is now complete,” said White House spokesman Jay Carney on Wednesday. “We welcome its findings. And, therefore, we intend for the nomination to proceed. We hope the Senate will consider it in a timely manner. And, you know, we will press the Senate to do just that,” Carney added.
Allen was trapped in a scandal that prompted retired General David Petraeus to resign as CIA director last year. General Petraeus had an extramarital affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. Their affair was exposed when FBI launched an investigation after Jill Kelley’s allegations, one of the women at the center of the Petraeus scandal, of receiving anonymous, harassing emails against Petraus. The inquiry showed that Kelley had also exchanged emails with Allen. According to Reuters, Kelley, a Tampa woman knew Allen when he served as the No. 2 officer at the U.S. military's Tampa-based Central Command from July 2008 to June 2011. In addition, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta ordered an investigation over Kelley-Allen’s relationship.
"He is grateful for the support he received throughout this process from his chain of command, friends, family and colleagues," an Allen spokesman, Major David Nevers, said. A Senate Armed Services Committee spokeswoman stated that Allen’s nomination must be resubmitted to Congress because his original nomination expired at the end of the last congressional term.
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