‘Obama’s favorite general’ targeted in cyber-war leak probe

Retired Marine Gen. James Cartwright, whom Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward once called “Obama’s favorite general,” is the target of an investigation into leaks about a U.S.-Israelis cyber attack on Iran’s nuclear program, NBC reported Thursday.

Citing “legal sources,” the network said the Justice Department is investigating whether the former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was behind information about the Stuxnet computer virus obtained by New York Times reporter David Sanger. Its code name was “Olympic Games.”

jamescartwrightThe Stuxnet virus, which attacked Iran’s nuclear program in 2010, was described in Sanger’s 2012 book “Confront and Conceal.”

The Stuxnet leak was ammunition for Republicans, who attacked the Obama administration for being willing to leak information to friendly news outlets if it improved the president’s “tough guy” image, even at the risk of endangering national security.

Cartwright, who was once considered a possible chairman of the Joint Chiefs, now holds a research chair with the Washington, D.C., think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The center declined to comment for the NBC report. Cartwright’s attorney, Greg Craig, the former White House Counsel, declined to comment.

According to aPolitico report, the Stuxnet leak “may have played a role in the White House’s decision not to nominate him” for Joint Chiefs chairman.

However, a Foreign Policy magazine report from May 2011 suggested Carwright’s personal life and marital difficulties could also have derailed his campaign by hurting his chances for confirmation in the Senate.

See NBC’s  report here:

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