Tag: Hagel

A recent poll showed most Americans didn’t know enough about Chuck Hagel to have an opinion on his confirmation as Secretary of Defense. You’d never know that, however, with all the drama emanating from Washington on the subject. So did all that sound and fury signify nothing? What seems like an inside-baseball brouhaha actually maps … Continue reading “What Was That All About?”

The much-awaited Senate Armed Services Committee hearing – and vote – on Chuck Hagels’ nomination as Secretary of Defense finally arrived, and once again the neo-McCarthyites stole the show. Unfortunately for them, their numerous curtain calls failed to yield bouquets of flowers. Instead, their reenactment of the Jerry Springer Show exposed them for what they … Continue reading “How Sweet It Is!”

We have to be thankful to Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of our more theatrical solons, for dramatizing the way in which the Israel lobby intimidates members of Congress: by asking Chuck Hagel if he could name a single Senator who was so intimidated he merely underscored how thoroughly each and every one of them is … Continue reading “Hagel Hearing: The War Party’s Waterloo”

Something curious is taking place. The nomination of Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense came under fire from the friends of Israel even before it was certain that President Barack Obama would name him to the post. Hagel demonstrably has no particular animus towards Israel but he, while senator, refused to kowtow to the Israel … Continue reading “It Is All About Israel”

President Obama announced his choices for key national security posts this past week, and there has been both celebration and gnashing of teeth in Washington and around the country. There is widespread belief that either or both of these nominees will have an immediate and profound effect on US policy. However, this belief is really … Continue reading “On Obama’s New National Security Team, Keep Your Eye on the Policy”

The heated debate over Chuck Hagel’s nomination as Secretary of Defense has led to the resurgence of the "chickenhawk" meme: the idea that a lot of armchair generals, who never served in the military, are criticizing a Vietnam veteran with two Purple Hearts for "appeasement" of our alleged enemies is grating on many ears. The … Continue reading “The Chickenhawk Meme”

I FIND Chuck Hagel eminently likeable. I am not quite certain why. Perhaps it’s his war record. He was decorated for valor in the Vietnam War (which I detested). He was a mere sergeant. Since I was a mere corporal in our 1948 war, I find it elating to see a non-commissioned officer become Minister … Continue reading “Welcome, Chuck”

To say that the events of September 11, 2001, had a distorting effect on American foreign policy is to seriously understate the case. What happened in the wake of that catastrophe, in the highest councils of the US government, has been called a coup by none other than Washington insider Bob Woodward. Citing Colin Powell, … Continue reading “Hagel Nomination:
The Revenge of the Realists”

“Chuck Hagel is out of the mainstream of thinking … on most issues regarding foreign policy,” says GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham. Neocon William Kristol concurs: Hagel is “out on the fringes.” But where, exactly, is the mainstream on foreign policy in 2013? Since the Bush II years, “the three amigos” — Sens. Graham, John McCain … Continue reading “Is Hagel out of the Mainstream?”

You might think that China’s political system is in no way comparable to our own – and further, you might not be blamed for thinking that the 1973 Chinese Communist propaganda campaign, "Criticize Lin Biao, Criticize Confucius," has zero to do with the current campaign to impugn the views and character of Chuck Hagel – … Continue reading “The Hagel Battle:
‘Why is Obama Doing This?’”