Petraeus testifying behind closed doors on Benghazi today

U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus, then-CENTCOM Commander, participates in a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, December 9, 2009 in Washington, DC. / AP Photo/Mark Wilson

Updated 8:30 a.m. ET

Gen. David Petraeus is testifying before the House and Senate Intelligence Committees on the Libya embassy attack this morning, despite the ongoing FBI investigation into an extramarital affair that led to his resignation as director of the CIA.

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What Petraeus told lawmakers

The hearings are taking place early this morning in secure rooms in the U.S. Capitol - the House meeting began at 7:30 a.m. and the Senate hearing begins at 9 a.m. - and are closed to the public and the media. Petraeus is expected to answer questions about the CIA's knowledge and handling of the assault on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi that left U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead. Two of those Americans were with the CIA.

It was unclear at first whether or not Petraeus would testify at all on Capitol Hill at all, after he abruptly resigned from the agency amid news of his affair with biographer Broadwell.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calf., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said on Wednesday that the focus of the hearing is specifically about the events in Libya, not the affair that led to his resignation.

"It's just on Benghazi. Our hearings are on Benghazi and the intelligence that preceded Benghazi and the intelligence that determined security," she told reporters.

• Timeline: How Benghazi attack, probe unfolded

Congressional investigators get access to telegrams, intelligence reports, and classified emails as they interview top security and Pentagon officials. Sources tell CBS News' Margaret Brennan that intelligence officials will show footage from an unmanned surveillance drone that was overhead during the assault.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which has oversight of the State Department, has already been briefed about the attack by Under Secretary Patrick Kennedy and Assistant Secretary for Diplomatic Security Eric Boswell.

[ManOfSteel-Velvet]

Hindsight is always 20/20.

The intelligence community gave its "best assessment" immediately right after the attack. As more and more info came in, the community revised its assessment to reflect what it knew.

Those who claimed the administration politicized this incidence are dumber than they appear.

[Rafterman11]

Correct. They don't understand that, if Obama "changed his story", it was because new info was available. When it first happened, it might have seemed like a terror attack, as Obama said in the Rose Garden. But he received conflicting info after that, from different intel sources, saying different things, where it wasn't so apparent that it was a terror attack. But eventually, after about five days, it was certain. That timeline fits everything that administration officials said, at the time, of what they knew.

[ManOfSteel-Velvet]

Only three of the eight GOP members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee attended the two hour classified briefing which was conducted by top diplomatic, military and counter-terrorism officials.

This (11 a.m. to 1 p.m.) briefing on Benghazi attack included the showing of the actual attack footage in real time as recorded by the drone flying overhead.

Yet those Republican idiots such as John McCain who failed to show up at the meeting running around and claimed they hadn't gotten any info from the administration in regard to the Benghazi incident.

The GOP is not letting education get in the way of its ignorance. What the GOP and its supporters are lacking in intelligence, they more than makes up for in sheer stupidity.

[Filmguy870]

HA HA HA HA!!!

[andie52]

Luckily all the planets aligned and the players who are involved in this then came together many months ago just so President Obama could use Petraeus as for a cover up in the embassy attack on Libya-It's a fairy tale that only the Rush. Beck, Hannity crowd just love buying into.

[Rafterman11]

I can't wait for the 'cons here to start blaming Obama for starting a war between Israel and Gaza to distract attention from the hearings. You know that rant is coming from one of these nutbags.

[dougsams]

Who you going to blame when we join in? Bush!

[Rafterman11]

No, we blame Bush for things he deserves to be blamed on - starting a pointless war in Iraq and leaving a crud economy.

[sepa2]

Mil-ind complex and its shenanigans are taking all the time and resources while economy is in free fall

[Rafterman11]

IAMTHETEAPARTY2 replies: Apparently you also do not believe in lying as an offence, or fixing the elections with over voter turn outs, or telling lies about everything 24/7?
I even bet WEFEW are really traitors and terrorist and not American.

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Wait, did you just say getting people to turn out and vote is "fixing an election"? Really? Did you just say that?

This right wing fantasy about Obama lying 24/7 is really getting pathetic. Every time I ask for proof Obama has lied purposely about anything, I get crickets. Its just an automated response from you nutbags. Time to join the rest of us in reality.

[cleric77]

"A source close to ex-CIA Director David Petraeus tells Fox News that he is expected to tell Congress he believed the Libya attack was terrorism within the first 24 hours — and that he suspected an Al Qaeda affiliate was behind it, a version that conflicts with his earlier statement and those of the Obama administration....."
I think the name of this game that Mr. Obama is playing with our nation is called DECEPTION. I hope Petraeus refuses to continue to play Mr. Obama's of deception and shed some rays of truth on this national crisis.

[Rafterman11]

"A source close to" and "Fox News" is all I need to know about the reliability of this.

And of course, Cleric77 will automatically accept that as truth, while altering it to make that Obama knew this (of course which Cleric doesn't even know is a fact). But then, facts don't get in the conservative's way of a good hate-Obama rant.

[lavonneann-2009]

oh for cripes sake quit already! Quit with jumping to conclusions. Quit with accusations. Quit with the hate ! Just quit being hate filled and mean spirited.
Why were there no such publicized hearings on other killings at consulates? You are making a bigger deal out of this then of the 3500 or more killed on 9/11 under Bush.
Try to be what you preach to the choir.

[animaltoo]

Obama should be impeached for what happened in Bengazi. No, we just reelected the creep.

[Rafterman11]

You nutbags think Obama should be impeached for going to the bathroom. No one will take you seriously. Ever.

[Rafterman11]

BMALLEN3 replies: linkiconreporticonemailiconObama lied, people dies. This scum president lied to everybody for political reasons. ti was inconvenient that Al Qaeda attacked on 9/11 so he launched a cover-up. I would not be surprised to learn that he refused to send help because it would damage him politically. Obama is a narcissistic ego-mainiac who cannot be trusted at all.

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Why launch a coverup? Terrorists attack us all over the world all the time. Why would this be any different?

I know your seething hatred of Obama allows you to alter reality to suit your far right wing politics, but the fact that NOT sending help seems a lot more damaging than sending help would sort of refute your premise that Obama is an evil ego maniac.

Obama won. Get over it.

[animaltoo]

He didn't send help. Too bad he was reelected. Way too bad.

[Rafterman11]

Well, BMallen says Obama purposely chose not to send help because it would look bad. But not sending help looks worse. So which is it? You 'cons can't even settle on one story to complain about.