The Washington Post’s Shailagh Murray has a long look at how Senator Chuck Hagel’s profile has been dramatically raised by his vocal opposition to escalating the war in Iraq. Hagel has ripped the escalation both before and after details Bush’s decision to send an additional 21,500 troops was announced. Opposition to the Bush plan has given Hagel a platform to speak to the nation; or rather, the lack of any principled opposition by other members of the Republican Party has left a gaping hole that Hagel has stepped into.
The media narrative on Hagel is that he’s a maverick. Early today, while watching a Washington Journal (C-Span) segment on Hagel, I heard caller after Republican caller criticize Hagel for being a moderate and a RINO (Republican In Name Only). Obviously none of the callers knew that Hagel’s voting record earned him a 96 rating from the American Conservative Union last year.
Hagel has been eclipsed by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a leading contender for his party’s presidential nomination who has vigorously endorsed the president’s war policies.
But with McCain appearing increasingly isolated on the issue as public opinion has turned overwhelmingly against the war, Hagel is acting like a politician who believes his stock is climbing. In other words, he is considering a White House run.
McCain can no longer wave maverick credentials because he is the most vocal proponent (rivaled only by independent Joe Lieberman) of escalating the war in Iraq. Apparently the Republican Party must always have a rogue senator in their midst for the media to latch onto and Hagel has now assumed that mantle.
But make no mistake, Hagel is not a moderate or a RINO. Yesterday he voted to abolish the federal minimum wage in its entirety, alongside Senators Brownback and McCain. This is an extreme position to hold, far outside the mainstream of America.
What makes Hagel distinct from other Senate Republicans is that he has a conscience and cannot stomach Americans getting killed while the president wanders around Baghdad without a plan.
That’s not centrism, that’s the minimum threshold for being a human being with power to influence the course of events in a war. In this context, Hagel is only a maverick to the extent that the party with which he shares his deepest seated beliefs on the economy, taxation, and the role of the federal government is filled with people who have spent the last five years prioritizing the powers of the presidency over their own, while seeking the approbation of the man who continually benefits from their negligence as legislators.
Technorati Tags: Chuck Hagel, Shailagh Murry
4 Responses to “Hagel’s Principled Opposition Raising His Profile”
I checked out youtube for old Hagel footage and found this ad in support of Pete Ricketts, who challenged conservative Democratic Senator Ben Nelson in Nebraska in 2006:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=RtLUB0Mq5A0
According to Wikipedia, Ricketts is “A former Ameritrade executive…”
Is there a link via Sam Waterston to Un08, or is it just a coincidence?
Also, what’s your take on his affiliation with a voting machine manufacturer?
QUOTE:
In 1992, investment banker Chuck Hagel, president of McCarthy & Co, became chairman of AIS. Hagel, who had been touted as a possible Senate candidate in 1993, was again on the list of likely GOP contenders heading into the 1996 contest. In January of 1995, while still chairman of ES&S, Hagel told the Omaha World-Herald that he would likely make a decision by mid-March of 1995. On March 15, according to a letter provided by Hagel’s Senate staff, he resigned from the AIS board, noting that he intended to announce his candidacy. A few days later, he did just that.
A little less than eight months after stepping down as director of AIS, Hagel surprised national pundits and defied early polls by defeating Benjamin Nelson, the state’s popular former governor. It was Hagel’s first try for public office. Nebraska elections officials told The Hill that machines made by AIS probably tallied 85 percent of the votes cast in the 1996 vote, although Nelson never drew attention to the connection. Hagel won again in 2002, by a far healthier margin. That vote is still angrily disputed by Hagel’s Democratic opponent, Charlie Matulka, who did try to make Hagel’s ties to ES&S an issue in the race and who asked that state elections officials conduct a hand recount of the vote. That request was rebuffed, because Hagel’s margin of victory was so large.
As might be expected, Hagel has been generously supported by his investment partners at McCarthy & Co. since he first ran, Hagel has received about $15,000 in campaign contributions from McCarthy & Co. executives. And Hagel still owns more than $1 million in stock in McCarthy & Co., which still owns a quarter of ES&S. END QUOTE
Link to Fitrakis/Wasserman story:
http://www.verifiedvotingfound.....hp?id=1809
[...] Ari Melber has a great post at Personal Democracy Forum rebutting the Washington Post’s fact-free claim that Senator Chuck Hagel is benefitting from an online movement to push his candidacy. I blogged about Shailagh Murray’s WaPo piece on Friday, though I didn’t address the line about Hagel’s alleged internet support. [...]
Something to say?
this is a wonderful post matt. i just sent it to my friend who sent me GQs fawning piece over Hagel.
Left by elana
January 26, 2007 at 2:51pm