Senator Chuck Hagel arrives to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his confirmation hearing for Secretary of Defence, in Washington.
WASHINGTON: Republican lawmakers harshly attacked Chuck Hagel yesterday at a contentious hearing over his nomination to become the next US defense secretary, questioning his judgment on war strategy and putting him broadly on the defensive.
In one of the most heated exchanges, influential Senator John McCain aggressively questioned Hagel, interrupting him and talking over him at times. He openly voiced frustration at Hagel’s failure to say plainly whether he was right or wrong to oppose the 2007 surge of US troops in Iraq.
“Your refusal to answer whether you were right or wrong about it is going to have an impact on my judgement as to whether to vote for your confirmation or not,” McCain said. Hagel, who like McCain is a decorated Vietnam War veteran, declined to offer a simple yes or no answer, responding: “I would defer to the judgment of history to sort that out.”
As President Barack Obama’s choice to lead the Pentagon in his second term, Hagel may yet win Senate approval with help from majority Democrats, but he appeared to pick up little fresh Republican support as his hours-long hearing wore on.
Hagel’s fellow Republicans dredged up a series of his past controversial statements on Iran, Israel and US nuclear strategy, trying to paint him as outside mainstream security thinking. Even in polarised Washington, the grilling was highly unusual for a Cabinet nominee.
Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina laid into Hagel for once accusing a “Jewish lobby” of intimidating people in Washington, comments Hagel repeatedly said he regretted. Asked whether he could name one lawmaker who had been intimidated, Hagel said he could not. It was one of the many times he appeared uncomfortable.
“I can’t think of a more provocative thing to say about the relationship between the United States and Israel and the Senate or the Congress than what you said,” Graham said.
If he is ultimately confirmed, Hagel would take over the Pentagon at a time of sharp reductions in defence spending, but with the United States still facing major challenges, including China, Iran and North Korea.
Hagel, speaking publicly for the first time since the attacks against his nomination began, at times seemed cautious and halting. He sought to set the record straight, assuring the panel that he backed US policies of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and supporting a strong Israel.
“No one individual vote, no one individual quote, no one individual statement defines me, my beliefs, or my record,” Hagel said in opening remarks to the packed hearing room. “My overall world view has never changed: That America has and must maintain the strongest military in the world.”
In an unusual reversal of partisanship, Democrats, more than his fellow Republicans, gave Hagel sympathetic support and time to air his views. The committee’s Democratic chairman, Carl Levin, said his concerns, especially over Hagel’s past comments about unilateral sanctions on Iran, had been addressed. “Senator Hagel’s reassurance to me ... that he supports the Obama administration’s strong stance against Iran is significant,” Levin said.
Despite the harsh tone from many Republicans, some senators from the party approached Hagel more collegially. Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia called Hagel by his first name and exchanged jokes with him during his testimony. He served alongside Hagel in the Senate. Roy Blount of Missouri had a cordial exchange about the strength of the country’s industrial base.
Hagel also was questioned on his view of the Pentagon budget. He is known as an advocate for tighter spending controls.
Reuters
