Sunday, December 30, 2012

Chuck Hagel nomination for Secretary of Defense - will that come Monday January 7, 2013 ?

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/chuck-hagel-picked-for-defense-secretary-85800.html


President Barack Obama has settled on Chuck Hagel, a Republican and former U.S. senator from Nebraska, to succeed Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, with an announcement expected Monday, Democratic officials tell POLITICO.
The choice of Hagel, who opposed his party on the Iraq War as a senator, is likely to ignite a raucous confirmation battle because several Democratic interest groups and prominent Republicans have voiced strong opposition since Hagel’s vetting for the job was reported five weeks ago.

A Democratic aide described the White House’s logic for choosing Hagel, age 66: “Chuck Hagel is a decorated war hero who would be the first enlisted soldier and Vietnam veteran to go on to serve as secretary of defense. He had the courage to break with his party during the Iraq War, and would help bring the war in Afghanistan to an end while building the military we need for the future.
“He has been a champion for troops, veterans and military families through his service at the VA and USO, and his leadership on behalf of the post-9/11 GI Bill. The president knows him well, has traveled with him to Iraq and Afghanistan, trusts him and believes he represents the proud tradition of a strong, bipartisan foreign policy in the United States.”
Obama, who arrived back in D.C. Sunday morning, is expected to announce his nomination of Hagel on Monday, as his first public appearance after the continuation of his Hawaii vacation.
Within a few days, and perhaps at the same time as the Hagel announcement, the president is likely to name his successor for former CIA Director David Petraeus. The candidates are John Brennan, White House homeland security and counterterrorism adviser, or Mike Morrell, acting CIA director.

Neoconservative Republicans have rallied against Hagel. More damaging in the Democratic-controlled Senate, pro-Israel groups and gay-rights groups have marshaled opposition.
A Senate Democratic official said: “I don’t think Dems just fall in line. Ultimately, he may be confirmed. But at this stage, his fate is totally up in the air. He will really have to work hard to overcome some of his previous statements and positions.”
In 1998, Hagel disparaged James C. Hormel as “openly aggressively gay,” after President Bill Clinton named him ambassador to Luxembourg.
On Dec. 21, Hagel issued a strong apology for the quote, which had appeared in the Omaha World-Herald: “My comments 14 years ago in 1998 were insensitive. They do not reflect my views or the totality of my public record, and I apologize to Ambassador Hormel and any LGBT Americans who may question my commitment to their civil rights. I am fully supportive of ‘open service’ and committed to LGBT military families.”
Hagel’s past comments also have stirred anger among some in the Jewish community and other Israel backers.
Advocates for Israel have a variety of policy disagreements with Hagel, but one of their biggest concerns may be his frank and unflattering public assessments of their work and role in Washington.
“The political reality is … that the Jewish lobby intimidates a lot of people up here,” Hagel told former Mideast peace negotiator Aaron David Miller in a 2006 interview. “I have always argued against some of the dumb things they do because I don’t think it’s in the interest of Israel. I just don’t think it’s smart for Israel.”

Former New York Mayor Ed Koch said Hagel would be “a terrible appointment” in an interview published with the Algemeiner, a website covering Jewish and Israel news.
“Such an appointment would give great comfort to the Arab world that would think that President Obama is seeking to put space between Israel and his administration,” Koch said.

Some of the the best-known voices in pro-Israel circles in Washington have also criticized Hagel, but it’s unclear whether that wave of pre-emptive criticism will spread to the Jewish community more generally. And as the criticism developed, several former officials rallied to Hagel’s side, including former national security advisers Zbigniew Brzezinski and Brent Scowcroft and former Sens. David Boren (D-Okla.) and Nancy Kassebaum-Baker (R-Kan.).
New York Times columnist Tom Friedman wrote on Christmas Day that Hagel is a staunch defender of Israel who has been smeared “as an Israel-hater at best and an anti-Semite at worst.”
“If ever Israel needed a U.S. defense secretary who was committed to Israel’s survival, as Hagel has repeatedly stated — but who was convinced that ensuring that survival didn’t mean having America go along with Israel’s self-destructive drift into settling the West Bank and obviating a two-state solution — it is now,” Friedman wrote.
In an interview that aired Dec. 30 on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Obama told David Gregory that nothing had come out about Hagel that appeared disqualifying: “My No. 1 criteria will be who’s going to do the best job in helping to secure America. … I’ve served with Chuck Hagel. I know him. He is a patriot. He is somebody who has done extraordinary work both in the United States Senate, somebody who served this country with valor in Vietnam. And is somebody who’s currently serving on my intelligence advisory board and doing an outstanding job. … With respect to the [gay] comment, … he apologized for it. And I think it’s a testimony to what has been a positive change over the last decade in terms of people’s attitudes about gays and lesbians serving our country.”

The two other known possibilities for the Pentagon post were Michèle Flournoy, who was under secretary of defense for Policy during Obama’s first two years, and Ashton Carter, the current deputy secretary of defense.
For Senate Republicans, the idea that one of their own would be playing on Obama’s team doesn’t seem to matter much, even though many of them have welcomed Sen. John Kerry’s pending promotion to the Cabinet.

Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn, the incoming minority whip, echoed many conservative commentators in telling POLITICO before the nomination was official that he had concerns with Hagel’s voting record and past statements on issues including Iran, Israel and Hamas, “just to name a few.”
“As important as secretary of state is, I think secretary of defense should meet a higher standard,” Cornyn said in comparing his support for Obama’s choice of Kerry to run Foggy Bottom with his opposition to Hagel.



Cornyn said that Hagel’s views supporting negotiations with Iran and his comments about Israel’s clout in Washington “disqualify him for such an important job where America needs to lead and not just follow.”
Several other Senate Republicans had initially welcomed the rumors of Hagel’s appointment, but many have since expressed reservations.
Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), the new ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, first told POLITICO that he “would look forward to supporting” Hagel as defense secretary. Based on what he knew of the former Republican senator from Nebraska, he said he’d vote to confirm him.
But a day later, Inhofe told a different POLITICO reporter he was “not real happy” with some of Hagel’s past statements about Israel and recalled his former colleague as being “curt” in some of their interactions.
Another prominent Armed Services Committee member, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), said Hagel was “completely wrong about Iraq and some of things he said about Iran were very disturbing, but it’s hard to say he’s not qualified for the job if the president has confidence in him.”
In a subsequent appearance on “Meet the Press,” Graham predicted Hagel’s road to confirmation would be tough.
“Lots of Republicans are going to ask him hard questions, and I don’t think he’s going to get many Republican votes,” he said.
and.....




http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/01/04/1176350/-Chuck-Hagel-to-be-nominated-for-secretary-of-defense?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dailykos%2Findex+(Daily+Kos)#


Former Sen. Chuck Hagel
Via Foreign Policy:
President Barack Obama is expected to name Chuck Hagel as his choice for defense secretary as early as Monday, as critics of the former Nebraska senator prepare to go to war to fight his expected nomination.
This continues the long tradition of Democratic presidents putting Republicans in the top Pentagon position for no clear reason. Hagel was (at the time) pro-Bush-wars and (more recently) fought against greater inclusion for women and for gay Americans in the military, all of which would seem to disqualify him from the top leadership spot; on the other hand, Republicans hate him too, so his nomination isn't necessarily going to be a slam dunk:
Three Senate Republicans have come out firmly against Hagel's potential nomination, Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Dan Coats (R-IN), and Tom Coburn (R-OK). Cornyn said he can't vote for Hagel due to Hagel's "problem with Israel." Coats said Hagel "has had so much disrespect for the military." Coburn said Hagel "does not have the experience to manage a very large organization like the Pentagon."
Other GOP senators have expressed reservations about Hagel without committing to a no vote. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who previously praised Hagel as a close and dear friend, suggested recently that Hagel is not a real Republican. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), said on Fox News Sunday, "There would be very little Republican support for his nomination. At the end of the day, there will be very few votes."
Does the administration consider the hostility from Republicans to be something that can be overcome, or are they considering it a plus—a demonstration that Hagel must be bipartisan, since pretty much everybody dislikes him? No clue. It seems a very, very odd choice, and it'll be interesting to see what arguments the administration uses to try to sell this nomination to the Senate.


http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2013/01/04/obama_expected_to_pick_hagel_as_opponents_prepare_for_a_fight



Obama expected to pick Hagel as opponents prepare for a fight

Posted By Josh Rogin  Friday, January 4, 2013 - 12:49 PM   Share

President Barack Obama is expected to name Chuck Hagel as his choice for defense secretary as early as Monday, as critics of the former Nebraska senator prepare to go to war to fight his expected nomination.
White House officials and sources close to Hagel declined to confirm to The Cable that Hagel is the president's choice to be the replace Leon Panetta at the helm of the Pentagon, but several sources close to the process said have told The Cable that the White House and Hagel have been in touch on a regular basis and that Hagel is indeed the expected pick. Decisions about the timing and logistics of the announcement are being finalized now.

The Cable had previously confirmed that Hagel successfully complete the vetting process, as have Deputy Defense SecretaryAsh Carter and former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy.
Meanwhile, Hagel's detractors are moving forward with their campaign against the nomination, which has been expanding ever since The Cable first reported in November that Hagel was in consideration for the Pentagon post. That campaign has included anonymous Senate aidescalling Hagel an anti-Semite, the Washington Post editorial board writing that, "Chuck Hagel is not the right choice for defense secretary," and the Emergency Committee for Israel, which counts among its board members Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol, running a television ad criticizing Hagel's opposition to unilateral sanctions against Iran. "For secretary of defense, Chuck Hagel is not a responsible option," the ad claims.
"Even if one left aside Chuck Hagel's dangerous views on Iran and his unpleasant distaste for Israel and Jews, a dispassionate analyst would have to conclude that the case for Hagel is extraordinarily weak," Kristol wrote in an editorial Friday, in which he urged Obama to choose Carter, Flournoy, or Navy Secretary Ray Mabus.
The Log Cabin Republicans took out a full page ad in the New York Times to oppose the potential Hagel nomination. Following the publication of the ad, the leader of the group, R. Clarke Cooper, resigned in what he stated was a previously planned departure. He had previously expressed support for Hagel. Cooper and Hagel are both combat veterans.
Three Senate Republicans have come out firmly against Hagel's potential nomination, Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Dan Coats (R-IN), and Tom Coburn (R-OK). Cornyn said he can't vote for Hagel due to Hagel's "problem with Israel." Coats said Hagel "has had so much disrespect for the military." Coburn said Hagel "does not have the experience to manage a very large organization like the Pentagon."
Other GOP senators have expressed reservations about Hagel without committing to a no vote. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who previously praised Hagel as a close and dear friend, suggested recently that Hagel is not a real Republican. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), said on Fox News Sunday, "There would be very little Republican support for his nomination. At the end of the day, there will be very few votes."

Today's Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) gave the following statement about the potential Hagel nomination to The Cable:
"I appreciate and respect Senator Hagel's record of service to our country, especially as a decorated combat veteran," Kirk said. "While he has not yet been nominated, I am concerned about his past record and statements, particularly with regard to Iran and the U.S.-Israel relationship. Should he be nominated to serve as Secretary of Defense, I will join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in a rigorous examination of these and other issues of concern." 
Hagel's supporters, a loose conglomerate of former staffers and friends, have been working hard to defend Hagel from the onslaught of criticism, despite a lack of White House support that would come if the nomination materializes. They point out that Hagel is a decorated Vietnam veteran who served as the deputy administrator of the Veterans Administration during the Reagan administration and as the head of the USO. Hagel also co-authored the 9/11 GI bill as a senator.
They also note he has served in many private and public sector management roles, including as  chief of staff to Rep. John Y. McCollister (R-NE),  deputy commissioner general of the United States for the 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee, and chief operating officer of the 1990 Economic Summit of Industrialized Nations (G-7 Summit) in Houston, Texas.
Hagel has also been president and CEO of the Private Sector Council, a nonprofit organization formed to assist federal government agencies, chairman of the Atlantic Council, a non-partisan think tank, co-founder and president of Collins, Hagel & Clarke, a marketing and communications firm, co-founder of Vanguard Cellular Systems Inc., one of the nation's first non-wire cellular telephone carriers, and president of McCarthy & Co., an investment banking firm in Omaha, Nebraska.
Hagel is also currently co-chairman of Obama's Intelligence Advisory Board, a member of the secretary of defense's Policy Advisory Board, and chairman of the Vietnam Veteran War Commemoration Advisory Committee.

A bipartisan group of former senators and national security officials wrote to Obama last week to express support for Hagel's nomination. That letter was signed by former Defense SecretaryFrank Carlucci, former National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, and others.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq and Afghanistan Ryan Crocker also weighed in this week in support of a Hagel pick.
"Mr. Hagel would run the Defense Department; it would not run him," Crocker wrote in the Wall Street Journal. "And as America's wars abroad wind down, it is clear from his record of service to veterans -- and his own experience as one of them -- that they would receive the support they deserve after they have put their lives on the line for the country."











http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/274887-obama-praises-hagel


Obama praises Hagel as a ‘patriot’

By Daniel Strauss - 12/30/12 10:41 AM ET
President Obama defended former Sen. Chuck Hagel's (R-Neb.) record on Sunday, rebuffing attacks on the potential nominee for Defense secretary.
Asked whether there was anything that easily disqualified Hagel from becoming secretary of Defense, the president said "not that I see.""I've served with Chuck Hagel.  I know him.  He is a patriot," Obama said in an interview that aired Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." "He is somebody who has done extraordinary work both in the United States Senate, somebody who served this country with valor in Vietnam.  And is somebody who's currently serving on my intelligence advisory board and doing an outstanding job."

Hagel, who is believed to be Obama's top choice to replace Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, has recently received criticism for comments he made 14 years ago in opposition to the nomination of James Hormel, who is gay, to serve as ambassador to Luxemborg. The Log Cabin Republicans, a group representing gay Republicans, recently published a full page ad in The New York Timesurging Obama to not nominate Hagel for the Pentagon's top post. 

Critics have also attacked Hagel on his stances on Iran and Israel. Foreign policy hawks say Hagel would not take the necessary steps to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. A number of conservative groups have also questioned Hagel's views on Israel, citing the former senator's comments about the "Jewish lobby" trying to influence legislators. 

 Obama added that he has not made a decision yet on whom to nominate to succeed Panetta.

Obama noted, though, that Hagel had apologized for his comments on Hormel.

 "I think it's a testimony to what has been a positive change over the last decade in terms of people's attitudes about gays and lesbians serving our country," Obama added. "And that's something that I'm very proud to have led.  And I think that anybody who serves in my administration understands my attitude and position on those issues."


and..

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2012/12/does-floating-hagel-balloon-show-obamas-posture-towards-iran.html


SUNDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2012

Does Floating Hagel Balloon Show Obama’s Posture Towards Iran?

This Real News Network interview with Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies looks at the significance of the surfacing of Chuck Hagel as a candidate to run the Department of Defense. Hagel is an interesting choice because he believes in cutting defense spending and in communicating with all of our actual and designated bad guys, including Iran. The latter view has made him an official target of AIPAC.
Bennis also points out that the way Obama allowed Susan Rice to be thrown under the bus didn’t just damage her, but Obama himself, and that if he does the same with Hagel, it would further the impression of weakness.


http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/12/30/breaking-top-jewish-leader-says-chuck-hagel-nomination-on-monday-is-most-likely/


Top Jewish Leader Says Chuck Hagel Nomination on Monday is “Most Likely”

DECEMBER 30, 2012 1:50 AM 3 COMMENTS

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Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice President of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.
A top Jewish leader said that former senator Chuck Hagel is likely to be nominated by the White House for the position of Defense Secretary on Monday, according to audio of an interview with a Jewish radio show obtained by The Algemeiner.
“It’s most likely that on Monday they will announce that Hagel will be the choice,” said Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice President of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, an umbrella group that represents 50 of America’s largest Jewish organizations, to Jewish talk show host Zev Brenner. The interview took place on Saturday night.
While some outlets reported that the White House contacted Jewish leaders about the appointment, Hoenlein told The Algemeiner in an email that “the White House did not call anyone that I know of.”
Hoenlein expressed concern over the appointment saying, “So I think it is something that we’ll live with and we’ll work with whoever is in office, but the concern is because of his past statements and his record on a lot of issues.”

Hoenlein also said that he believes that a recent column in defense of Hagel’s nomination  by New York Times Columnist Tom Friedman was encouraged by “people who were pushing his nomination,” seemingly a reference to the White House.

Hagel’s possible appointment is opposed by many in the pro-Israel community, including prominent Jewish Democrats Alan Dershowitz, and Ed Koch, who told The Algemeiner in a recent interview that he believes it would be “a terrible appointment.” Opposition to Hagel’s appointment comes from other groups as well.

A number of Nebraska Jews criticized Hagel in recent interviews with The Algemeiner, one said that he was “unfriendly” during his time as Senator, and another said that he “didn’t give a damn about the Jewish community.”
The Algemeiner’s full transcript of the relevant part of Brenner’s interview with Hoenlein, in which he made the comments, is posted below:
Brenner: [...] there was some talk last week that Chuck Hagel was perhaps not going to be nominated, now [...] you have a scoop for us tonight?
Hoenlein: Well it’s not a scoop, i’m saying that it’s most likely that on Monday they will announce that Hagel will be the choice, it’s obviously something that raised a lot of concern, and especially because the defense department has a certain amount of independence that other government departments don’t have, it will be a tough time because they have to make a lot of cuts and he is a Republican, but most Republican senators were not too thrilled about his nomination either.
So I think it is something that we’ll live with and we’ll work with whoever is in office, but the concern is because of his past statements and his record on a lot of issues, not just Jewish issues, I think American issues, raised concerns.
Brenner: How does an article such as Tom Friedman in the New York Times where he says it’s the pro-Israel lobby that’s challenging him when really there are a lot of American groups that are opposed to his candidacy, but he propels the pro-Israel lobby as being the top, and writes about it in the New York Times, and if he gets the nomination and he gets in, how does that make his attitude towards the Jewish community and Israel?

Hoenlein: I think Tom Friedman has gone off the cliff [...] the political cliff, I think his columns have increasingly become hostile, and frankly unjustifiable, you can differ with a view on Israel, but his position, it was not the Jewish lobby. Unfortunately, one of the early articles in a major publication spoke about this as a Jewish problem, when there were  many other groups and many people, because of his positions on the military, his opposition to certain things in the past in relation to other groups that raised many more concerns than this, and I think there is no reason why Jews as Americans can’t express their views, but it was never a Jewish campaign, it was never intended to be,  and the lobby I think actually was pretty silent, the quote, “official lobby,” silent on this, so I think it was [...] lets say an unfortunate characterization on his part to say the least and I don’t think he did it without certain people encouraging him to write this article.

Brenner: who are those people that encourage him?

Hoenlein: I think at that point, I really, at that point I understood that Hagel would get the job.
Brenner: But who were the people behind the scenes that have been pushing Tom Friedman?
Hoenlein: People who were pushing his nomination?
Brenner: So by doing it that way [...] by having him attack the Israel lobby, it ensures his nomination?
Hoenlein: And it comes from Friedman, so they think it has credibility even though his, I think his credibility in the community has diminished a great deal.
Brenner: So, among the list of things that we have to deal with in the new year, right?
Hoenlein: And it’s very important who gets the [...] defense secretary’s position, the department of defense is critical in a lot of issues and with the challenges that we are likely to face in the coming year, not in the next four years, that makes it all the more important and I’m obviously referring to Iran and decisions on Iran where in the past he has not been lets say in line with a lot of positions of other members of the senate and people who I think have taken the right decisions, there will be other decisions vis a vis what is happening in the Middle East the changes in the Middle East, the new technologies, the relationship with Israel. I think ultimately the relationship with Israel will be maintained, I think that as secretary of defense he will see the realities of the importance of Israel to the United States, the commonality of interests that they have, but individuals do make a difference in terms of the tone and the attitudes that they manifest and the direction that sometimes things take, so I think it’s not insignificant, but I think ultimately the relationship with the United States and Israel are not built on individuals, they are build on fundamental values, consistent interests, and we have to work hard  to make sure that those aspects are what is known.

Brenner: Even though, like you have said on other occasions, they set the tone, where even though at the end of the day, it’s not going to change, but part of the problem I guess in the last four years has been not so much substance but tone, and this will just add to that tone deficit.
Hoenlein: Well the President has made very clear that he will not tolerate Iran having nuclear weapons. I think that is the fundamental policy, hopefully that will be sustained, and that will be manifest as we go ahead [...] and he sets the policy, not the secretary of defense and not others. But I think [...] you know there is an influence, and you have others in the administration who may have contrary views to the President or try to influence the President to moderate his views and certainly there are still many who are still pushing the negotiations line and we see that people are advocating the P5+1 talks, which are going to take place, the Europeans are very happy if the United States engages in direct negotiations, and there are several ways that that could be important. One is, is it the President saying, look I want to show that I gave them every avenue, every way out of this, or, does this show the Iranians that we are still not determined to do what has to be done, because the question is not what we say, but how do the Iranians hear it, what do they perceive, and if they perceive us as being week and having the negotiations be open ended, and that it will continue forever, then that destroys the strong positions and counteracts any sense on their part that they’re facing a hard deadline. So the future course of action will not be over years, it is going to be about months, therefore, everybody who comes into play on this is so important and it increases the sensitivity about the nature of the appointments and statements people make, and the impressions that are created. You know, I don’t know, will the Europeans really have the guts to stand up and do the right thing, they rarely do. We see that the United States led the sanctions, they came into the picture, will they, if the United States decides to act, and what happens if circumstance demands that Israel has to act, where will everybody be? These are really critical life and death issues, this is not just a question of some of the hypothetical issues that people often deal with and get licked up with, but rather the critical issues about the future.


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