He's like John McCain, but with integrity.
Here's Hagel chiding the Republicans unwilling to buck the authority of Dick Cheney and the White House:
What do you believe? What are you willing to support? What do you think? Why were you elected?
If you wanted a safe job, go sell shoes. This is a tough business. But is it any tougher, us having to take a tough vote, express ourselves and have the courage to step up on what we’re asking our young men and women to do?
I don’t think so.
When I hear, on both sides of this argument, impugning motives and patriotism to our country, not only is it offensive and disgusting but it debases the whole system of our country and who we are.
My goodness. Can’t we debate the most critical issue of our time, out front, in front of the American people?
They expect it. Are we so weak, we can’t do that?
I don’t think so. Like always, the American people are far ahead of us sitting here, far ahead of us. Because we’re concerned about politics. We’re concerned about our position. We’re concerned about our next election.
Pointing out that before the invasion of Iraq, that the White House wanted it (the approval of military force) to cover the entire Middle East:
HAGEL: [F]inally, begrudgingly, [the White House] sent over a resolution for Congress to approve. Well, it was astounding. It said they could go anywhere in the region.
GQ: It wasn’t specific to Iraq?
HAGEL: Oh no. It said the whole region! They could go into Greece or anywhere. Is central Asia in the region? I suppose! Sure as hell it was clear they meant the whole Middle East. It was anything. It was literally anything. No boundaries. No restrictions.
GQ: They expected Congress to let them start a war anywhere in the Middle East?
HAGEL: Yes. Yes. Wide open. We had to rewrite it. Joe Biden, Dick Lugar, and I stripped the language that the White House had set up and put our language in it.
He's stuck his neck out repeatedly against Bush and Cheney, usually as the lone Republican. I don't know where he stands on other issues, but as far as the planning, prosecution, and evaluation of this war, I agree with him 100%.
[Updated] In addition to all of the above, there's much more – apparently there's some animosity between Hagel and Cheney.
Cheney said this (via thinkprogress):
Yesterday on CNN, Vice President Cheney told Wolf Blitzer that “the biggest threat” in the Iraq war right now is that the American public may not have the “stomach for the fight.”
To which Hagel Responded:
Responding to Cheney’s comments, Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) told PBS Newshour host Gwen Ifill that it’s astounding the Vice President so “underestimates the people of this country” and “has so little faith in this country to say something like that.” Hagel also suggested that Cheney talk to the families of the soldiers and tell them “that they don’t have the stomach.”
Prior to that, Cheney lamented to Foxnews that criticism hurt the troops:
Last weekend on Fox News Sunday, Vice President Dick Cheney claimed congressional opposition to the administration’s escalation plan undermines the troops. Cheney said “you cannot run a war by committee,” and whatever Congress does “would not affect the president’s ability to carry out his policy.”
Today, Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) said it “is complete nonsense to say we’re undercutting the support of the troops.” Hagel, a Vietnam veteran, said that as a soldier in 1968, he “would have welcomed the Congress of the United States to pay a little attention as to what was going on.” Hagel added: “What are we about? We’re Article 1 of the Constitution. We are co-equal branch of government. Are we not to participate? Are we not to say anything? Are we not to register our sense of where we’re going in this country on foreign policy?”
It's also worthwhile to note that Hagel is bucking the party, and he IS up for re-election in 2008. He's a true-Conservative in most regards, except for his position on the war. It also appears that he has nowhere near the money he should for a Senator running for reelection, especially since many areas of the midwest are turning blue.
Tags: bush, central Asia, Chuck Hagel, chuckhagel, CNN, Congress, Dick Cheney, Dick Lugar, dickcheney, Fox News Sunday, georgebush, Greece, Gwen Ifill, Iraq, Joe Biden, John McCain, Middle East, United States, Vietnam, White House, Wolf Blitzer
