Washington ( CNN ) -- President Barack Obama 's been in the bull 's eye of Republicans and conservatives since 2008 , but after Wednesday 's hearing on last September 's terror attack in Benghazi , Libya , many on the right are shifting their aim at former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton . Soon after the hearing by the GOP-led House Oversight Committee looking into the events surrounding the death of the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans , a recently formed pro-Republican opposition research group blasted out an e-mail with the headline `` Benghazi Hearing Raises Serious Questions About Clinton . '' America Rising PAC then followed up Thursday with a Web video which it says outlines `` the serious questions raised about Hillary Clinton 's leadership yesterday in a House Oversight Committee hearing . '' The Republican National Committee and American Crossroads , the Karl Rove-backed pro-GOP super PAC , also issued e-mails critical of Clinton , America 's top diplomat at the time of the attack last September 11 . The group put out a web video Friday morning that asks if Clinton `` was part of a coverup . '' And Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida , a possible 2016 GOP White House contender , criticized Clinton in an interview on Thursday on Fox News Channel . Mother of Benghazi victim : I blame Hillary . Many Republicans see the deadly attack on the diplomatic compound in Benghazi and the initial reaction by the State Department and the White House as a huge scandal , one that they feel Democrats tried to cover up with the president 's re-election , at the time , less than two months away . The GOP accuses the administration of not bolstering security prior to the attack , of botching the response to it , and of misleading the public in its slow-to-evolve explanation of events . They point to five TV appearances the Sunday following the attack by Susan Rice , the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations , who called the armed assault a `` spontaneous protest '' rather than an act of terrorism . Many Democrats disagree and call the GOP drumbeat a `` witch hunt . '' While the president is definitely still in conservative 's line of fire over Benghazi , 2016 politics are also at play in this story . Obama ca n't run for a third term and Clinton , who 's weighing a White House run , would be the instant front-runner for the Democratic nomination if she launches a bid for president . Clinton stepped down as secretary of state with sky-high poll numbers , but the incident in Benghazi is a stain on her record at the State Department . The question is whether it could come back to haunt her if she does seek the presidency . Boehner calls for White House to release Benghazi emails . An independent review of the Benghazi incident , led by Adm. Mike Mullen , a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , and former ambassador Thomas R. Pickering , discovered no wrongdoing by Clinton . But critics noted at the time that neither Mullen nor Pickering interviewed Clinton . Before she stepped down as planned in late January , Clinton testified for hours on Capitol Hill on the Benghazi attack . She was forceful in her defense and the conventional wisdom at the time was that she was not politically wounded . But the story was given new legs thanks to the House hearing , which showcased the testimony of State Department whistleblowers who had not previously testified , including the riveting details from an official who was on the ground in Tripoli at the time of the attack in Benghazi . Even before Wednesday 's hearing , there was plenty of hype . Doomed Libya ambassador : 'We 're under attack ' `` I think the dam is about to break on Benghazi , '' Sen. Lindsey Graham wrote on his Facebook page . `` We 're going to find a system failure before , during , and after the attacks . We 're going to find political manipulation seven weeks before an election . We 're going to find people asleep at the switch when it comes to the State Department , including Hillary Clinton , '' added the South Carolina Republican , who 's been a longtime critic of the administration 's role in Benghazi . But Clinton 's specific role did not dominate the hearing , with only one GOP congressman on the panel trying to drill down for specifics . The question now is whether any smoking gun emerged from Wednesday 's hearing regarding what Clinton knew and when she knew it . Republicans and Democrats obviously disagree on this question . `` I rather doubt the current right-wing demagoguery is going to hurt Hillary if she chooses to run , '' said Democratic strategist and CNN contributor Paul Begala , who was a top political adviser in Bill Clinton 's White House . What the Obama administration has said about the Libya attack . Republican strategist and CNN contributor Alex Castellanos disagreed . `` It is increasingly looking like the only president named Clinton may be Bill , '' said Castellanos , who is spearheading a new super PAC called NewRepublican.org to refocus the party 's messaging and policy goals.. One thing 's for sure : Wednesday 's hearing wo n't be the end of this story . Thursday morning House Speaker John Boehner called on the president to release emails that he says show how the White House wanted to change the Benghazi attack `` talking points . '' Stay tuned .
After Wednesday 's Benghazi hearing , many on the right are shifting their aim at Hillary Clinton . The incident in Benghazi is a stain on Clinton 's record as America 's top diplomat . Before she stepped down , Clinton testified for hours on the Benghazi attack .