A professor at City University of New York has uncovered new details which he claims show that the college tried to stave off a scandal by covering up the large amount of money it had intended to pay ex-CIA director David Petraeus to teach a class.
Corey Robin, a professor of political science at the CUNY Graduate Center, reviewed a series of emails and website pages put forth by the college. In doing so, he found a number of inconsistencies between the college’s initial statements, the information obtained by a Gawker reporter through an open records request and its ultimate position on the matter.
Last week, Gawker discovered that CUNY had agreed to pay Petraeus — who resigned from the CIA after having an affair with his biographer–$200,000 to teach three hours of class a week. Commentators balked at the high salary, which is much more than what the typical first-time adjunct makes.
Soon after, CUNY released a letter claiming that Petraeus and CUNY had already agreed to a more modest $150,000, and that a portion of that amount would be donated to veterans’ organizations.
There’s just one problem. CUNY has released different versions of it — including some that are neither emails nor .jpeg files. The wording has been altered upon subsequent releases.
“Oops. Oops. Oops. Oops. And oops,” wrote Robin, noting the number of contradictions in CUNY’s statements about the salary, in an article for Salon.
Robin argues that the letter seems to be fabricated.
The professor suggests that CUNY changed Petraeus’ salary after the fact, in hopes that the lower amount — and the donation to veterans’ groups — would stave off the scandal.
A New York assemblyman has vowed to get to the bottom of the alleged cover-up, and is demanding that CUNY explain itself fully.
“I just don’t buy it,” said Assemblyman Kieran Lalor, a Republican, in an interview with The Daily Caller News Foundation. “I’m not going to let it blow over.”
Robin is already christening the scandal a “second Petraeusgate.”
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.