Petraeus making 1st speech since leaving CIA

LOS ANGELES - David Petraeus, who has remained largely in seclusion since being forced to resign as head of the CIA after the disclosure of an extramarital affair, returns to the public spotlight Tuesday with a speech and an apology before a group of military students and veterans.

Petraeus will deliver the keynote address to some 600 people at the University of Southern California's annual ROTC dinner.

Then US Army Gen. David Petraeus talks at an event in the East Room of the White House in this April 28, 2011 file photo during US President Barack Obama's announcement that then CIA Director Leon Panetta would be nominated as Secretary of Defense. [Photo/Agencies]

The New York Times, which obtained an advance copy of the speech, said he will begin by acknowledging and apologizing for the affair, then will go on to discuss his future plans as a public advocate for veterans' and other causes.

"Needless to say, I join you keenly aware that I am regarded in a different light now than I was a year ago," The Times' quoted from Petraeus' speech.

"I am also keenly aware that the reason for my recent journey was my own doing," the text of his speech read. "So please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply I regret - and apologize for - the circumstances that led me to resign from the CIA and caused such pain for my family, friends and supporters."

The affair with the retired four-star general's biographer, Paula Broadwell, was discovered during an FBI investigation into emails she sent to another woman she viewed as a rival for his attention.

At the time, Petraeus told his staff he was guilty of "extremely poor judgment".

"Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours," he said.

The hero of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars has since stayed out of the public spotlight. His lawyer Robert B. Barnett told The Times that Petraeus has spent much of that time with his family.

As the military leader credited with reshaping America's counterinsurgency strategy, turning the tide in the US favor in both Iraq and Afghanistan and making the US safer from terrorism, Petraeus would be expected to find a friendly audience at the military dinner.

Where he goes from there is uncertain, but at least one expert in crisis communications expects that if his apology comes across as heartfelt and sincere the public will indeed be seeing much more of him.

"America is a very forgiving nation," said Michael Levine who, among dozens of other celebrity clients, represented Michael Jackson during his first child molestation investigation.

"If he follows the path of humility, personal responsibility and contrition, I submit to you that he will be very successful in his ability to rehabilitate his image," he added.

Ahead of the speech, Petraeus drew lavish praise from USC's president, C. L. Max Nikias, who called him "arguably the most effective military commander since Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower".

"In our post 9/11 world, Gen. Petraeus' influence on our military is unmatched, and his contributions to the CIA are far-reaching," Nikias said.

While at USC, Petraeus also planned to visit faculty and students at the Price School of Public Policy, which administers the ROTC program, and USC's School of Social Work, which trains social workers in how to best help veterans returning from war.