The Senate unanimously voted 94-0 on Thursday to appoint Gen. David Petraeus GS ’87 as the 20th director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Currently the commanding general of the U.S. forces in Afghanistan and the International Security Assistance Force, Petraeus was nominated by President Obama in April and will replace outgoing Leon Panetta.
A four-star general and Army veteran of 37 years, Petraeus is expected to retire from the military this July before undertaking his new role with the CIA. Until then, he will continue to lead troops in Afghanistan as they head into the first phase of withdrawals.
At his confirmation hearing, he said that serving as director of the nation’s most important intelligence agency "would be a tremendous honor and a tremendous privilege."
Petraeus has been noted for playing a pivotal role in Middle Eastern involvement while previously commanding multinational forces in Iraq and for advocating increased counterinsurgency efforts in Afghanistan. He also headed the United States Central Command from 2008 to 2010.
Petraeus faces difficult challenges in his new post, as ongoing counterterrorism efforts on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border have been heavily unpopular with Pakistan, which recently closed one of the bases from which the CIA operated unmanned drones.
Other pressing priorities include Yemen, China, the recent revolutions in the Arab world, cybersecurity and weapons proliferation.
An alumnus of the Wilson School, Petraeus received his MPA and a Ph.D. from the University in 1985 and 1987, respectively. In 2010, he was awarded the James Madison Medal, the University’s top honor for an alumnus.
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Blackburn was found deceased by authorities on April 25, several days after he was reported missing. He was 23 years old at the time of his death and is remembered by friends and mentors as a brilliant writer, voracious learner, and loving friend. A family obituary said he passed away after a “courageous battle with bipolar disorder.”
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Effort to restore chapel’s pews slowly progresses
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Head carpenter Jim Sullivan has been restoring the Chapel pews over the last year. The dry atmosphere of the Chapel has warped the wooden pews over the years.