US President's pick for Iraq envoy withdraws over racy emails
Brett McGurk, U.S. President Barack Obama's pick to be the next ambassador to Iraq, withdrew his nomination on Monday amid opposition from Senate Republicans over his extra-marital affair while working at the US Embassy in Baghdad in 2008.
McGurk, a former senior adviser on Iraq in both the George W. Bush and Obama administrations, informed the White House that he was withdrawing his nomination.
Six GOP senators had raised questions about his qualifications and his judgment after e-mails between him and former Wall Street Journal Baghdad correspondent Gina Chon, whom he later married, surfaced on the Internet.
Chon was forced to resign from the WSJ last week after admitting that she had shared unpublished stories with McGurk.
McGurk's nomination became controversial after the release of some racy emails allegedly exchanged between them.
McGurk was serving in the U.S. embassy in Baghdad in 2008 as member of the National Security Council in the former George W. Bush administration. He was then already married to another woman, whom he later divorced and married Chon.
"Earlier this afternoon, I informed the President and Secretary Clinton that I will withdraw my nomination to serve as the next U.S. ambassador to Iraq. This is one of the most difficult decisions I have ever made," McGurk wrote to friends and colleagues in an e-mail obtained by USA TODAY.
McGurk sent a letter to President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, saying he took the step with a "heavy heart" after consulting with his wife Chon.
"I believe it is in the best interests of the country, and our life together, to withdraw my nomination and serve in another capacity," McGurk said in the letter.
"The most difficult part of this process, however, was watching my wife become a part of it," McGurk said.
Source: United States News.net
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