Army Major General David Haight canned
David sends us a link to USAToday which reports that Army Major General David Haight has been removed from his post as the chief of operations for U.S. European Command because he misused resources while having an extra-marital affair;
“Maj. Gen. Haight was reprimanded for failing to exhibit exemplary conduct by engaging in an inappropriate sexual relationship with a woman who was not his wife and for misusing government resources,” said Col. Pat Seiber, an Army spokesman.
The Army may convene a board to determine the rank at which he last served satisfactorily, Seiber said. Retirement at a lower rank could cost him tens of thousands of dollars in pension pay.
“I’m very sorry — and take full responsibility — for my actions,” Haight said in a statement to USA TODAY. “I will cooperate fully with Army leadership as the process moves forward.”
Well, that statement shows that he still has little bit of good judgement left even though the stuff he did before contradicts that. More SHARP slide-show training for the snuffies should fix the problem in the flag officer ranks, though.
Bio Added;
Category: Army News
But no charge for Adultery?
I was thinking the same thing. By saying he takes full responsibility, I assume he will plead guilty and resign… That’s what full responsibility demands. I suspect, however, that what he really means is “I will accept whatever responsibility the Army assigns me.”
Garden-variety affairs are not often prosecuted unless good order and discipline are implicated. If he’d been banging a subordinate, for example, he’d have very likely gotten more than just a reprimand. The story doesn’t give many details, but given that he only got a reprimand, he probably had an affair with someone who was not under his authority, and the misuse of resources was relatively minor.
In any event, a reprimand is almost certainly a career-ender for him. He’ll likely lose a star (if not more) when he retires. Recall that BG Sinclair retired as LTC Sinclair, as that was the highest rank at which he was determined to have served satisfactorily.
What I want to know more about is the “misuse of government resources”.
I can cut a guy/gal slack for a discrete extramarital affair that doesn’t involve subordinates or bring discredit to the military. But I have a hard time cutting slack for someone who uses government resources for their own benefit in such a way that it costs Uncle Sam (and thus you and me) money.
maybe the “company car”, or a fed credit card was involved.
Could be.
If it was his govt travel card, assuming he didn’t make a false claim for reimbursement that didn’t cost Uncle Sam anything. Holders of a DoD travel card are responsible for paying the bill, then requesting reimbursement. At his rank, he’s also required to have one. But using one for personal expenses is still against regs, so that’s a possibility (it would still technically be “misuse”).
Harder to make that “no cost” argument if use of govt vehicles/aircraft was involved, though. Using those does cost Uncle Sam $$$.
Most likely he bangin’ her during duty hours.
So…..an action that must be “discrete” and “Extramarital Affair” are not a discredit to the military? Really? What world do you live in bud? The ramifications of his actions and others in this situation can and often do affect “your tax dollars” and moral. WAKE UP
And he still collects the benefits. Honestly, I’ve processed charges against guys just like this. Most Senior was an O-6. Then Gen Dugan gave him till I got the charges filed to get retired and off the base or he’d be going to Leavenworth. He didn’t beat me by much, and I suspect the JAG really didn’t want to have the notoriety of prosecuting that guy. Still don’t understand whatever happened to my military. Ye Gods and Little Fishes.
That only applies to enlisted….
???????
So he was buying flowers and chocolate for his girlfriend and Wifey found out about it?
When are you guys going to learn that the higher you go, the more you need to keep your pants zipped and your wicks dry?
Gold star on wings and star on CIB. Im sure they are legit but curious where they were earned.
Oh. Panama and Sandbox probably. Shame…looks like he did a lot of stuff. Not enuff blood to operate penis and brain at same time.
In aviation we called that Hyperbone-ic Hypoxia–lack of partial pressure of oxygen to the brain because all the blood had rushed to the penis, causing the victim to not think straight.
Correct. Official bio is still up on the EUCOM J3 site.
http://www.eucom.mil/media-library/document/33110/j3-mg-haight-bio
Bio says he was a Plt Ldr with 2/75th Inf during Just Cause and commanded 2/325th Inf, 2/75th Inf, and 3rd/Bde, 10th Mtn – all in-theater.
Sad to see another get his dong hammered flat because he couldn’t keep his fly zipped. But he’s not the first, and almost certainly won’t be the last.
“Not enuff blood to operate penis and brain at same time.”
Perhaps that’s what attracted her in the first place (i.e., better than the alternative).
For his age, has to be Panama and then GWOT. Could have been Grenada and GWOT but that would be a stretch of years.
A personal friend of mine from way back in 1989 now has his star. We were PV2’s in Panama. He stayed in and was a company commander in a Stryker brigade in Mosul 04-05.
Think you forgot Gulf War I and Somalia. Both of those conflicts were also in the “Vietnam” CIB period (1961-1995).
MG Haight is a personal hero of mine, this breaks my heart. As far as his decorations, he jumped into Panama and earned every decoration he wears. He’s a legit dude with a legit family, his son is a career NCO in Regiment. He graduated from my alma mater (where I went to school with his daughter) and spoke at my brother in law’s commissioning. I spoke with him after and told him of my goal to go to Regiment, I felt like I was talking to a giant speaking to a guy who spent most of his career in the 75th. This disappoints me, but nobody should be made an idol, I guess.
A friend of mine, too. Very disappointing news. My prayers with the family.
He should have learned the three words Slick Willy used time and time again when he was literally caught with his pants down…”deny, deny, deny”
I just hope that we don’t learn about his salad being stolen valor too…
That would really suck…
Yep, gotta think with the big head, not the little one…
Ask yourself, was it worth it?
Thunder, to answer your question, “Was it worth it”, I would have to see a photo of the lady involved :>))
her name is jennifer armstrong https://www.facebook.com/Jennifer.Armstrong212
hes been banging her for almost 11 years. they told us he was married wtf
Uh-oh, page is gone, not available.
Looks like Jen didn’t like the attention, perhaps?
Ex, it’s still there from my computer.
Her FB page says she’s a Family Readiness Officer at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
I wonder if that’s the official title for a five sided asylum fluffer?
She has a picture on Facebook
JENNIFER ARMSTRONG
Lol, good question “was it worth it?” I asked my husband (soon to be Ex) the same question, being he (LTC) also had an extra marital affair with a CPT in Korea, he virtually moved her into his apartment, shacked up with her at Army Lodging at Fort Knox……he received GO ARTICLE 15, she got nothing, Recruiting Command is protecting her
What about the ridiculous number of Admirals involved with the Fat Leonard investigation? Apparently the Army isn’t as interested in sweeping their dirty laundry under the rug.
Those guys are all on the hot plate, too.
The criminal side of Fat Leonard is under the pervue of the DOJ. The Navy is kind of stuck with all these flag officers who are under investigation. The Navy can’t legally send them packing until the criminal investigation is complete, its chewing up a significant share of FO billets, and the Navy can’t replace them by promoting O-6s to O-7 due to cap numbers.
Hormone-stupid knows no age or rank.
It is a shame to see a good soldier – (and I will work on the assumption that his salad bar is legit) – a good soldier damage his career, his marriage, and his life like that.
Knowing full well that under the right circumstances, we all can be that kind of stupid.
For his combat time:
http://www.benning.army.mil/common/leaders/bio/pdf/BG Haights CMDT Bio.pdf
As I’ve said before, General/Flag officers should be held to a much higher standard. Forget what rank he “served satisfactorily.” Bust his ass to Private, strip all decorations, send him to the most miserable post the Army can find, and make sure every Specialist knows they have a new bitch at their disposal. Leave his ass there for two years, then dump him. No pension, no rank, no medals.
Stop this slap-on-the-wrist chickenshit. Officers at his rank are trusted with far greater responsibility. The standard to which they are held and the consequences they face for breaking it should be higher accordingly.
Given that what the Army is doing now is not working to deter some: I agree 100%.
However, the reality is the last rank served with no known affair was as a major, the rank under current rules he should retire at. Even that wont happen. He prob retires a COL which amounts to a slap on the wrist. Retired Major, never reprimanded, 33 yrs svc (22 AD)
Clown.
You play, you pay.
Oh, he’s gonna pay for this one GT.
He’s over 30 YOS (commissioned in 1986). He’s almost guaranteed to lose at least one star on retirement.
Difference between BG retirment at 30 and MG retirement at 30 is somewhere around $14k annually – for life. He’s out that much – plus whatever his wife gets as alimony and/or division of retired pay if she chooses to divorce his ass.
Word.
That reduction in rank will be penny’s compared to alimony and any settlement.
I wonder if there is any legal grounds to grant the alimony/division of retired pay against the figure that he would have receive as an O-8 as opposed to what he finally retires as.
Example. She could get the 50% of the 100K authorized retired pay of an O-6 with 30, plus 12K (equal to 50% of the difference between the 100K of an O-6 and 125K of an O-8). Oh, and he’s paying the full share of SBP and Tricare premiums.
Division of retired pay is capped at 50% of disposable retired pay. That doesn’t prevent a judge from awarding alimony on top of that, however. Property division and spousal support are two different issues.
I’m already confused by the picture, btw, I used to work for this guy. In the picture he’s wearing the cover of a general officer but he is clearly wearing the shoulder boards of an Infantry Colonel. General officer boards are black. But if the affair goes back eleven years that’s what 2005… that would be his last “satisfactory ” service.
Good point… perhaps that photo was taken in the middle of his promotion ceremony when he made BG?
If she really wants to be nasty about it, she can keep his medals.
I pulled his official BIO from GOMO. His date of rank to O-8/MG is 2 AUG 15, so less than a year, date of rank to O-7/BG is 3 APR 13.
Given the length of some of these investigations, I’d have to think that his bad activities date back to his time as a one star. I’d bet dollars to donuts that he’s being made and example and is going to loose all stars at retirement.
Entirely possible. And if the allegations that the affair has been going on for 11 years are accurate, it’s possible that may not be all.
Just ask a guy named John J. Maher how that can work.
From what I remember, they can bust him back down to the last rank in which he served honorably when they order him into retirement.
And I also seem to remember that if they do that, they can also toss him in the time machine and beam him back to the old pay scale that was in effect at the time for the rank in which he last served honorably. If that’s true, it’ll be a huge pay cut.
Maybe one of the Team TAH JAG/SJAs can comment?
Any way you look at it, this is really gonna hurt.
Especially since it was all so stupid and totally avoidable.
You’re correct about the retired rank – it’s the highest rank “at which he served successfully”. Retired pay would be computed based on the retired rank in that case vice normal “high-3 average”.
Not sure about the payscale reversion to payscales in effect at the time of service at the lower grade, though. I don’t think that’s the case, but I’m not sure.
That’s going to hurt. He’s probably looks below O-5.
Staking out an unpopular position here.
The military should cease all prosecutions for adultery (except in the cases of fraternization). With the repeal of DADT and now allowing trans-genders to serve, the military has lost all pretense of a morality based UCMJ.
How, when and where you let your freak flag fly should be nobody’s business but your own.
Depends on how you define “fraternization”. If you’re defining it as “within the same command”, I might agree – depending on how you define “command”. I personally think drawing the boundary at the O6 level would be about right.
If you’re defining “fraternization” as rank-based, not sure I’d agree. Never have understood the rationale there when the individuals weren’t in the same command.
Someone senior enough (like a GO/FO or SEA) who created a public spectacle via adultery could always be prosecuted for “Conduct Unbecoming” (Article 133, if commissioned) or the general article (Article 134 if enlisted).
The biggest issue is the fact that he held a security clearance and opened himself up to the possibility of blackmail.
Extremely careless.
Going by his bio, he was a hell of a soldier. Supposedly Phil Sheridan said something to the words of “A soldier who won’t fuck won’t fight” Why do I get the impression he did it in the staff car and charged the room on his travel card?
I think that was Patton. IIRC, he was talking about the Army’s “no fraternization with local girls” rule in Sicily.
No one wants to hear this but there is a purge going on in the Big 3 branches of the military.
The litmus test is Global Warming. Anyone on record of questioning it, doubt it or in any way attempting to interfere with even the most dumbass “reforms” regarding it are on the list to get the chop.
Nits are being picked to chum up charges and where nits dont exist to be picked, they’re being invented.
If I recall correctly, awhile back the 4* CG TRADOC was fired for having an affair with a civilian (who had no ties to the military) while he was in the middle of a legal separation. I thought that sucked. I think it was during the era of BJ Willie and no one saw the irony.
During the Bush(43) administration, actually.
http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/4-star_general_relieved_of_duty
Rumor was he’d had differences of opinion previously with the SECDEF, and getting relief was payback. He was in the process of getting a divorce and was scheduled to retire in around 90 days when his relief was announced.
Thanks for the correction Hondo. I should not have implicated slick Willie. I recall now that my thinking was that slick Willie got away with much worse than this GO did (if he did anything at all).
Seems that a decade later a Clinton gets away with doing something that would get any of us slugs in Leavenworth…for the long course.
The 4 star who got crushed during the WJC presidency was former PACOM commander ADM Richard Macke. He went from four stars to retiring with two. He got in hot water when he made insensitive remarks about a rape case of an Okinawan girl by U.S. servicemen. To make matters worse, he also got caught having an affair w/ a Marine LtCol.
Anyone else notice how the warrior types with CIB’s, ranger and SF tabs are being culled from the Army, when these are the people who were running the GWOT prior to this administration. I guess it pays to be a REMF in command in this Dhimmicrat regime. (Not that there is anything wrong with that.)
I suppose just to be fair past presidents have dismissed generals/admirals who didn’t toe the line and “join the team”. Pres Bush 41 didn’t suffer fools gladly & two 4 stars were relieved by SECDEF Cheney for getting out of their lane. Pres Ike dropped the axe on many army/navy GOFOs including the navy CNO ADM Carney for pushing back on his “New Look” policy that provided vast resources & massive budgets to the USAF Strategic Air Command at the expense of the army, navy, Marines. President Truman sacked GA MacArthur & CNO ADM Denfeld.
I can’t stand Supreme Leader Maobama, but firing GOFOs who don’t play ball is what POTUS/SECDEFs do.
So far as has been reported, this officer has not done anything to “get out of his lane,” except have an extramarital affair. Since when is that a disqualification for the Democrats in general or those running DOD. I will only believe the so-called misuse of Gov’t funds when I see the detail and proof, as that was the red herring they used to get rid of Marcinko. I suspect there is a quiet purge going on.
He’s a man. A great warrior but still a man. Unfortunately, even the best of men get tempted. A real shame he couldn’t resist the temptation and thus he has ruined his reputation.
It appears the good general was a busy busy man!
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2016/08/24/new-details-show-how-swinger-army-generals-double-life-cost-him-his-career/89220810/
Senior Drill Sergeant at US Army:
Have you read the latest news about your boy? Asshole still fits.
He violated the UCMJ, we throw the book at privates, so we should throw the book at him. That means a Courts Martial that reduces him to the rank of whatever and a dishonorable discharge. It’s a funny thing when people are like…it was only and affair, I’m cool with what he does behind closed doors. It is not, he willfully submitted himself under the UCMJ by taking a commission. Therefore, he should be should be held to it. The continual exodus of good junior officers continues and this guy had two stars.