‘Swinging’ US general kept security clearance until sex scandal broke, months after Pentagon found out

The US Army waited to suspend the security clearance of a two-star general fired for his role in a sordid sex scandal until a day after revelations of his double life were published last month, the Army has acknowledged.

Major General David Haight had been in charge of plans and operations for the Pentagon’s European Command until an Army investigation in April determined he’d been involved in an 11-year-long extramarital affair with allegations of a “swinger lifestyle.” Haight also was found to have misused his government cellphone and email to conduct the affair.

Haight was stripped of his post and brought back to Washington. However, Haight maintained his clearance to review classified information five months after the Army inspector general’s findings about his double life were substantiated, documents show.

Moreover, Haight did not take a lie-detector test for his sensitive post in Europe because it was not a requirement for his job, according to two Army officials who are not authorised to speak publicly about the screening procedures.

There is, however, no indication that Haight was the target of espionage, the officials say.

Requiring generals and admirals to take polygraph tests would subject hundreds more government officials to polygraph tests, slowing an already time-consuming process. Further, the National Academy of Sciences has raised questions about the accuracy of lie detectors.