Jun 8, 2022 - Politics & Policy

Brookings puts president on leave amid reported federal probe

Jacob Knutson

Brookings Institution president John Allen attending a forum in Rome in December 2021. Photo: Riccardo De Luca/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

The Brookings Institution put its president, former Marine Gen. John Allen, on administrative leave Wednesday, after an AP report said there is a federal investigation into his role in a foreign lobbying campaign on behalf of Qatar.

Why it matters: AP on Tuesday reported the FBI seized Allen's electronic data as part of the probe, which has implicated other U.S. officials.

The think tank informed employees of Allen's leave in an email Wednesday that was obtained by Axios. Brookings stressed to its workers that the organization is not under investigation.

Allen, who led U.S. and NATO forces during the war in Afghanistan, has been president of Brookings since 2017.
Its executive vice president, Ted Gayer, will serve as acting president.

The big picture: As a result of the investigation, Richard Olson, a former ambassador to the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan, pleaded guilty to illegal foreign lobbying on behalf of Qatar last week, according to AP.

The FBI alleged in an affidavit supporting the search warrant to claim Allen's data that "substantial evidence" suggested that he knowingly broke foreign lobbying laws.

Add Axios on Google

Brookings puts president on leave amid reported federal probe

What to read next