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* Voted for the [[Patriot Act]] <ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=1&vote=00313 | title =U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 107th Congress - 1st Session | publisher = | date = | accessdate = }}</ref>
* Voted for the [[Patriot Act]] <ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=1&vote=00313 | title =U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 107th Congress - 1st Session | publisher = | date = | accessdate = }}</ref>
* Voted for the [[Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001|2001]] and [[Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003|2003]] [[Bush tax cuts|tax cuts]] <ref>{{cite web | url=http://votesmart.org/bill/votes/8369#.UNjV7W9ZUV0 | title =HR 1836 - ECONOMIC GROWTH AND TAX RELIEF RECONCILIATION ACT, 2001 - VOTING RECORD | publisher =votesmart.org | date =May 26, 2001 | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=108&session=1&vote=00196 | title =U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 108th Congress - 1st Session | publisher =senate.gov | date = | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref>
* Voted for the [[Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001|2001]] and [[Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003|2003]] [[Bush tax cuts|tax cuts]] <ref>{{cite web | url=http://votesmart.org/bill/votes/8369#.UNjV7W9ZUV0 | title =HR 1836 - ECONOMIC GROWTH AND TAX RELIEF RECONCILIATION ACT, 2001 - VOTING RECORD | publisher =votesmart.org | date =May 26, 2001 | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=108&session=1&vote=00196 | title =U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 108th Congress - 1st Session | publisher =senate.gov | date = | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref>
* Voted against [[No Child Left Behind]] <ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=1&vote=00371 | title =U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 107th Congress - 1st Session | publisher =senate.gov | date = | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref>
* Voted against [[Every Child Left Behind Halliburton|No Child Left Behind]] <ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session=1&vote=00371 | title =U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 107th Congress - 1st Session | publisher =senate.gov | date = | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref>
* Voted against Bush’s [[Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act|Medicare prescription drug bill]] <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=108&session=1&vote=00459 |title=U.S. Senate: Legislation & Records Home > Votes > Roll Call Vote |publisher=Senate.gov |date= |accessdate=January 7, 2013}}</ref>
* Voted against Bush’s [[Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act|Medicare prescription drug bill]] <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=108&session=1&vote=00459 |title=U.S. Senate: Legislation & Records Home > Votes > Roll Call Vote |publisher=Senate.gov |date= |accessdate=January 7, 2013}}</ref>
* Voted against [[Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act|McCain-Feingold]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://votesmart.org/bill/votes/7717#.UNja629ZUV0 | title =HR 2356 - CAMPAIGN REFORM ACT OF 2001 - VOTING RECORD | publisher =votesmart.org | date = | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref>
* Voted against [[Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act|McCain-Feingold]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://votesmart.org/bill/votes/7717#.UNja629ZUV0 | title =HR 2356 - CAMPAIGN REFORM ACT OF 2001 - VOTING RECORD | publisher =votesmart.org | date = | accessdate =December 24, 2012 }}</ref>

Revision as of 21:21, 7 January 2013

Chuck Hagel
Chairperson of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board
Incumbent
Assumed office
October 28, 2009
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byStephen Friedman
United States Senator
from Nebraska
In office
January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2009
Preceded byJames Exon
Succeeded byMike Johanns
Personal details
Born
Charles Timothy Hagel

(1946-10-04) October 4, 1946 (age 78)
North Platte, Nebraska, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseLilibet Hagel
Children2
Alma materBrown College
University of Nebraska, Omaha
AwardsPurple Heart (2)
Army Commendation Medal
Vietnamese Gallantry Cross
Combat Infantryman Badge
Military service
Allegiance United States of America
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1967–1968
RankSergeant
Unit47th Infantry Regiment
9th Infantry Division
Battles/warsVietnam War

Charles Timothy "Chuck" Hagel (born October 4, 1946)[2] is an American politician and a former United States Senator from Nebraska.

A recipient of two Purple Hearts while an infantry squad leader in the Vietnam War, Hagel returned home to start careers in business and politics. He made millions as co-founder of Vanguard Cellular, and served as president of the McCarthy Group, an investment banking firm, and CEO of American Information Systems Inc., a computerized voting machine manufacturer. A member of the Republican Party, Hagel was first elected to the Senate in 1996. He was reelected in 2002, and retired in 2008. Hagel is currently a professor at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, the chairman of the Atlantic Council, and co-chairman of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board. He also serves on a number of boards of directors, including that of Chevron Corporation.

On January 7, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Hagel to serve as Defense Secretary in his second term.[3][4][5] The nomination is broadly supported although opposed by a vocal minority of members of both the right and left.[6]

Early life, education, military, and early political career

Hagel was born in North Platte, Nebraska, the son of Betty (née Dunn) and Charles Dean Hagel. His father had German ancestry, while his mother was of Polish and Irish descent.[7][8] He graduated from St. Bonaventure High School (now Scotus Central Catholic High School) in Columbus, Nebraska, in 1964, the Brown Institute for Radio and Television in 1966, and he earned a BA degree in History from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 1971.[2][9]

Hagel is a Vietnam War veteran, having served in the United States Army infantry from 1967 to 1968. Holding the rank of Sergeant (E-5), he served as an infantry squad leader in the 9th Infantry Division.[10] Hagel served in the same infantry squad as his younger brother Tom, and they are believed to be the only American siblings to have done so during the Vietnam War.[11] They also ended up saving each other's lives on separate occasions.[11] While serving during the war, he received the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, two Purple Hearts, Army Commendation Medal, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.[12]

After returning from Vietnam, he worked as a radio newscaster and talk show host in Omaha from 1969 to 1971[13] while finishing college on VA assistance under the GI Bill.[14]

In 1971, Hagel was hired as a staffer for Congressman John Y. McCollister (R-NE), serving until 1977. For the next four years, he worked as a lobbyist for Firestone Tire and Rubber Company,[15] and, in 1980, he served as an organizer for the successful presidential campaign of former California Governor Ronald Reagan.[15]

After Reagan's inauguration as President, Hagel was named deputy administrator of the Veterans Administration. In 1982, however, he resigned his post over a disagreement with VA Administrator Robert P. Nimmo, who was intent on cutting funding for VA programs. Nimmo had referred to veterans groups as "greedy", and to Agent Orange as not much worse than a "little teenage acne".[16]

Business career (1982–96)

After leaving government employment, Hagel co-founded Vanguard Cellular, a mobile phone service carrier that made him a multi-millionaire.[17] While working with Vanguard, he served as president and chief executive officer of the United Service Organizations and the Private Sector Council, as deputy director and chief operating officer of the 1990 G7 Summit, and on the board of directors or advisory committee of the American Red Cross, the Eisenhower World Affairs Institute, Bread for the World, and the Ripon Society. He also served as Chairman of the Agent Orange Settlement Fund and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.[18]

Although he was pressured by some to run for Governor of Virginia, where he had lived for 20 years, in 1992 Hagel moved back to Nebraska to become president of the McCarthy Group, an investment banking firm.[19] He also served as a Chairman and was CEO of American Information Systems Inc. (AIS), later known as Election Systems & Software, a computerized voting machine manufacturer.[20][18] On March 15, 1995, Hagel resigned from the board of AIS as he intended to run for office.[21] Michael McCarthy, the parent company’s founder, was Hagel’s campaign treasurer.[22] Until at least 2003, he retained between $1 million and $5 million in stock in Election Systems & Software's parent company, the McCarthy Group.[23]

U.S. Senate (1997–2009)

Elections

Main article: United States Senate election in Nebraska, 1996

In 1996, Hagel ran for the open US Senate seat created by the retirement of Democrat J. James Exon. Hagel's opponent was Ben Nelson, then the sitting Governor of Nebraska. Hagel won and became the first Republican in twenty-four years to win a Senate seat in Nebraska. Six years later in 2002, Hagel overwhelmingly won re-election with over 83% of the vote, the largest margin of victory in any statewide race in Nebraska history (see below or link to: United States Senate election in Nebraska, 2002).

In 2004 The Hill reported that the United States Senate Ethics Committee had asked for “additional, clarifying information” about the value of the assets of the McCarthy Group, which it described as a private merchant banking company, including about its ownership of American Information Systems Inc which at that time made nearly half American voting machines. Hagel also did not report he was CEO of the company for the first 10 weeks of 1995. American Information Systems machines counted 85 percent of votes cast in Hagel’s 2002 and 1996 races. The committee did not accuse Hagel of wrongdoing.[24] Bev Harris,[25] Thom Hartmann,[26] and Victoria Collins in Harper's Magazine[27] have implied that Hagel's victories may have been due to Electorate manipulation.

Senate voting record

According to David Boaz, during the Bush administration, Hagel maintained a "traditionally Republican" voting record, receiving "a lifetime rating of 84 percent from the American Conservative Union and consistent A and B grades from the National Taxpayers Union."[28] On the Issues describes Hagel as a "libertarian-leaning conservative".[29] According to Boaz, among his most notable votes, Hagel:

Foreign policy

On October 11, 2002, Hagel, along with 76 other Senators, voted in favor of the Iraq Resolution.[36] Hagel, a later critic of the war, commented on his vote authorizing the use of force against Iraq saying,

How many of us really know and understand much about Iraq, the country, the history, the people, the role in the Arab world? I approach the issue of post-Saddam Iraq and the future of democracy and stability in the Middle East with more caution, realism, and a bit more humility.[37]

In July 2007, Hagel was one of three Republican Senators who supported Democratic-proposed legislation requiring a troop withdrawal from Iraq to begin within 120 days. He told Robert D. Novak "This thing is really coming undone quickly, and [Prime Minister] Maliki's government is weaker by the day. The police are corrupt, top to bottom. The oil problem is a huge problem. They still can't get anything through the parliament—no hydrocarbon law, no de-Baathification law, no provincial elections".[38] In 2008 along with then-Senator (and presumptive democratic nominee for president) Barack Obama, and Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Hagel visited Iraq in a congressional delegation trip, meeting with U.S. service members, General David Petraeus, and the Prime Minister of Iraq Nouri al-Maliki.[39] While talking to reporters in Iraq, Hagel said “Each one of us who has a responsibility of helping lead this country needs to reflect on what we think is in the interests of our country, not the interest of our party or our president.” [40]

Hagel in a 2002 visit with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and Afghan Minister of Women's Affairs Sima Samar

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Hagel voted in favor of Senate Joint Resolution 23, authorizing “necessary and appropriate U.S. Military force” in Afghanistan against those who planned or aided the September 11th attacks.[41] During his tenure in the Senate, Hagel continued his support for NATO involvement, and funding in the War in Afghanistan.[42] In a 2009 The Washington Post op-ed after being nominated as Chairman of President Obama’s Intelligence advisory board, Hagel said that “We cannot view U.S. involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan through a lens that sees only ‘winning’ or ‘losing,’ Iraq and Afghanistan are not America's to win or lose.” And that “We can help them buy time or develop, but we cannot control their fates.” [43] In 2011, after he left office, Hagel stated that President Obama needs to start “looking for the exit in Afghanistan”, and that “We need to start winding this down.” [44]

Hagel co-sponsored the failed Kosovo Resolution, authorizing President Bill Clinton the use of U.S. military force against the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.[45]

National security

In his first term in the Senate, Hagel voted in favor of the Chemical and Biological Weapons Threat Reduction Act, establishing criminal penalties for possession of Chemical or Biological weapons, and he cosponsored the American Missile Protection Act, deploying an effective National Missile Defense system capable of defending the U.S. against limited ballistic missile attacks.[46][47] Hagel voted to establish the United States Department of Homeland Security, and supported increasing Defense Department spending, voting in favor of the National Defense Authorization Act every year he served in the Senate.[42][48] Hagel voted for spending increases in preventing AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria funding, and voting against caps on the U.S.’s Foreign aid budget.[49][50]

Veterans affairs

In 2007 Hagel introduced Senate Amendment 2032, amending the Defense Authorization bill limiting the deployment of U.S. service members serving in Iraq 12 months. The amendment needed 60 votes in the senate to pass, but was ultimately defeated in 52-45 vote.[51] In 2008 Hagel was a principal co-sponsor with two other veterans in the Senate of Senator Jim Webb's "21st Century GI Bill" which passed congress as the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, expanding education assistance to veterans who served after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.[52][53] During his tenure in the Senate Hagel supported the Military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, barring openly LGBT members of the armed forces from serving, but is now described as “pro-ending don’t ask, don’t tell.” [54]

Civil liberties

In 2001, Hagel voted in favor of the USA PATRIOT Act.[55] Although Hagel originally indicated a “nay” vote in reauthorizing expiring provisions of the Patriot Act in 2006,[56] Hagel voted in favor of reauthorization.[57] After calls from the Bush Administration for the House and Senate to reform FISA, the House introduced the Protect America Act of 2007, expanding provisions allowing electronic surveillance of foreigners outside of the U.S. with a warrant. In a 68-29 vote, the Protect America Act of 2007 passed the Senate, with Hagel voting to expand FISA’s provisions on warrantless surveillance.[58] Hagel voted in favor of Senate Amendment 2022, restoring habeas corpus, the right to due process, to American citizens detained at Guantanamo Bay detention camp, but voted against a similar resolution restoring it to all prisoners detained at Guantanamo.[59][60] In response to the Bush Administration’s intentions to permanently keep Guantanamo Bay open, Hagel said the military prison is why the U.S. is “losing the image war around the world,” and that "It's identifiable with, for right or wrong, a part of America that people in the world believe is a power, an empire that pushes people around, we do it our way, we don't live up to our commitments to multilateral institutions." [61]

Immigration

Hagel co-sponsored the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006.[62] He supported the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 and, with Senator Bob Menendez proposed an amendment to allow immigration authorities to consider family-unification petitions submitted by people for an additional two years, which would have allowed approximately estimated 833,000 additional individuals to seek permanent residency. The proposal received 51 votes but was defeated by a procedural maneuver.[63] The bill failed to pass.[64] Hagel voted in favor of the Secure Fence Act of 2006, which aimed to build a 700-mile (1,100 km) double fence along the Mexico–United States border and appropriated $1.2 billion for the fence and a systematic surveillance system.[65]

Committee assignments

Criticism of Bush administration

On August 18, 2005, Hagel compared the Iraq War to Vietnam, and openly mocked Vice President Dick Cheney's assertion that the Iraqi insurgency was in its "last throes".[66] In November 2005, Hagel defended his criticism of the Iraq war, stating "To question your government is not unpatriotic — to not question your government is unpatriotic."[67] In December 2005, in reference to Bush, the Republican Party, and the PATRIOT Act, Hagel stated "I took an oath of office to the Constitution, I didn't take an oath of office to my party or my president."[68]

Senator Chuck Hagel arriving at Camp Ramadi, during a 2008 visit to U.S. Service members in Iraq

In January 2006, Hagel took issue with Karl Rove, saying "I didn't like what Mr. Rove said, because it frames terrorism and the issue of terrorism and everything that goes with it, whether it's the renewal of the Patriot Act or the NSA wiretapping, in a political context."[69]

In July 2006, Hagel criticized the Bush administration on its handling of the Israel-Lebanon issue, saying "The sickening slaughter on both sides must end and it must end now. President Bush must call for an immediate cease-fire. This madness must stop." He also said "Our relationship with Israel is special and historic... But it need not and cannot be at the expense of our Arab and Muslim relationships."[70]

Following heavy Republican losses in the 2006 midterm election, Hagel penned an editorial in The Washington Post highly critical of military strategies both employed and proposed for Iraq. He wrote that "There will be no victory or defeat for the United States in Iraq," and called for a "phased troop withdrawal".[71] According to a SurveyUSA poll, in August 2006 Hagel had a 10% higher approval rating among Nebraska Democrats than Republicans.[72][73]

In January 2007, Hagel openly criticized President Bush's plan to send an additional 20,000 troops to Iraq. He called it "the most dangerous foreign policy blunder in this country since Vietnam, if it's carried out."[74] Together with Democrats Joseph Biden and Carl Levin, he proposed a non-binding resolution to the Democratic-controlled Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which rejected Bush's policy as "not in the national interest" in a 12-9 vote.[75] After an April 2007 visit to Iraq with U.S. Congressman Joe Sestak (D-PA), Hagel stated his belief that the occupation of Iraq should not continue indefinitely and expressed his intention to cooperate with Senate Democrats in voting for a bill that would set a timeline to get out of Iraq.[76]

In November 2007, he rated the Bush administration "the lowest in capacity, in capability, in policy, in consensus—almost every area" of any presidency in the last forty years.[77]

Post–U.S. Senate career (2009–present)

Retirement from U.S. Senate

During his first campaign, Hagel indicated that, were he to be elected, he would retire in 2008 after two terms in the Senate.[78] In August 2004 Hagel acknowledged that he was considering a presidential campaign in 2008.[79] In 2006 he cooperated with Charlyne Berens who wrote a biography entitled Chuck Hagel: Moving Forward.[80] On September 10, 2007, Hagel announced that he would retire and not seek a third term. He also declined to run for president in 2008. He decided to go into academia.[81][82][83]

America: Our Next Chapter

In Hagel's 2008 book, America: Our Next Chapter: Tough Questions, Straight Answers (with Peter Kaminsky), he suggests that the United States should adopt independent leadership and possibly another political party. He also believes that the Iraq War is one of the five biggest blunders in U.S. history. Hagel is critical of George W. Bush's foreign policy, calling it "reckless." He has been a major critic of the war since it started, and has stated that the United States should learn from its mistakes in the Vietnam War. He considered Bush's foreign policy a "ping pong game with American lives".[84]

Service in academia and on boards of directors

Following Hagel's retirement from the Senate, in February 2009 he accepted a position as Distinguished Professor in the Practice of National Governance at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., where he currently teaches.[85] He is Chairman of the Atlantic Council, Co-Chairman of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board; a member of the Secretary of Defense’s Policy Board and Secretary of Energy’s Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future; and is a member of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) board of directors. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Chevron Corporation; the Advisory Boards of Deutsche Bank Americas; Corsair Capital; M.I.C. Industries; is a Director of the Zurich Holding Company of America; and is a Senior Advisor to McCarthy Capital Corporation.[86] In October 2012 Defense Secretary Leon Panetta asked Hagel to chair an advisory committee for the Vietnam War 50th anniversary commemoration. When a Senator, Hagel co-sponsored the bill creating the commemoration committee.[53]

Endorsement of Senate candidates

In 2010, Hagel endorsed Democratic Pennsylvania Congressman Joe Sestak in his run for the United States Senate. In 2012 he endorsed Democrat Bob Kerrey in the race for an open U.S. Senate seat in Nebraska.[87][88]

Obama administration Secretary of Defense nomination

Former Senator Hagel meeting with, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey, and former Virginia Senator John Warner

Hagel was rumored to be a possible Obama pick for the Vice Presidential candidacy in his 2008 presidential election ticket. On June 20, 2008, Hagel said he would consider running with Obama if offered the VP spot.[89] At the time he also was mentioned as a potential United States Secretary of Defense to succeed incumbent Robert Gates in the Obama administration.[90][91] President Obama was quoted as saying "Chuck Hagel is a great friend of mine and I respect him very much."[92] Hagel said that he would consider serving if asked.[93] In August 2008, Hagel indicated that he wouldn't endorse either candidate or get involved in their campaigns.[94]

Obama nominated Hagel to succeed Leon Panetta and serve as his second term Secretary of Defense on January 7, 2013.

Criticisms of the nomination

Some critics charged that Hagel is a weak supporter of Israel, with Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina predicting that Hagel would be "the most antagonistic Secretary of Defense toward the State of Israel in our nation's history," and calling it an "in-your-face nomination."[6] In a 2006 interview with Aaron David Miller, Hagel said that "[t]he Jewish lobby intimidates a lot of people [on Capitol Hill]",[95] and "I’m not an Israeli senator. I’m a United States senator."[96] Hagel was criticized for voting against some sanctions against Iran, and for calling for direct negotiations with both Iran and with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which both the U.S. and Israel refuse to engage directly.[97][6]

Hagel has also been criticized for his record on Jewish issues other than Israel, such as an incident in 1999 where he was the only senator to not sign a letter asking Boris Yeltsin to take action against rising anti-Semitism in Russia.[98]

Hagel's remarks on the Defense budget were also controversial, with some noting his 2011 statement: "Our Defense Department budget, it is not a jobs program. It's not an economic development program for my state or any district."[99] Opponents also complained of Hagel's 2011 call to have the Pentagon "pared down", saying that "[t]he Defense Department, I think in many ways, has been bloated."[100]

Hagel's historical stance on gay rights was objected to with the Human Rights Campaign taking issue with Hagel for having a “consistent anti-LGBT” voting record in the Senate and for opposing President Bill Clinton’s nomination of James Hormel as the U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg by stating that Hormel was "openly, aggressively gay." The group demanded that Hagel apologize for this 1998 remark.[101] Hagel apologized to Hormel in December 2012. Before seeing the apology, Hormel told reporters: “Given that he is under consideration for a presidential appointment, one can only wonder the sincerity of the apology".[102] During the Meet the Press interview, President Obama said he thought the apology was "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 also said that "anybody who serves in my administration understands my attitude and position on those issues.”[103]

On December 27, the Log Cabin Republicans ran an ad in the New York Times opposing Hagel's nomination.[104]

Support for the nomination

Defenses of Hagel were published in a number of publications. They included writer Amy Davidson's analyses in The New Yorker of what was behind what she termed the "ugly attacks" on Hagel;[105] columnist Thomas Friedman's OpEd "Give Chuck a chance",[106] and journalist Jack Besser's OpEd "Don’t Let Pro-Israel Extremists Sink Chuck Hagel",[107] both published in the New York Times; and Robert Wright's description of "McCarthyite" smears against Hagel published in The Atlantic.[108] Jeremy Ben-Ami, President of pro-Israel liberal J Street, said: “The notion that Chuck Hagel is anti-Israel is ludicrous. The notion that he is anti-Semitic is slanderous."[97] Harvard University Professor Stephen Walt wrote in Foreign Policy that "The real meaning of the Hagel affair is what it says about the climate inside Washington. Simply put, the question is whether supine and reflexive support for all things Israeli remains a prerequisite for important policy positions here in the Land of the Free."[109]

Several conservatives who distinguish themselves from and have been critical of neoconservatism have expressed support for Hagel's nomination, such as the paleoconservative commentators at The American Conservative[110][111] and Pat Buchanan[112] in addition to the libertarian conservative Cato Institute.[113]

Five former U.S. ambassadors to Israel wrote a letter in support of nominating Hagel in December 2012.[114]

Awards and honors

In 2001, Hagel was awarded the Horatio Alger Award for Distinguished Americans.[115] He was also granted the title of Nebraska Admiral by Nebraska's Governor, an honorary title, considering Nebraska is a landlocked state.

On June 9, 2007, Hagel gave the commencement address for North Central College and was given an honorary L.L.D.[116] He was the keynote speaker at the College of William & Mary's Charter Day in 2007, at which he was awarded an honorary degree of Public Service.[117] On March 3, 2008, he hosted a town hall meeting on domestic and foreign policy issues at the University of Maryland, at which the Center for American Politics and Citizenship (CAPC) gave him the Millard Tydings Award for Courage and Leadership in American Politics.[118] Hagel served as the 2010 Clifford P. Case Professor of Public Affairs at Rutgers University's Eagleton Institute of Politics, speaking at public programs in New Brunswick and Newark, New Jersey.[119]

Personal life

Hagel has two younger brothers: Thomas is a professor at the University of Dayton School of Law,[120] and Mike is an artist who resides in Omaha, Nebraska.[121] Hagel's third brother, Jim, died in an automobile accident at the age of 16.[122]

Hagel married Lilibet Ziller in April 1985. The couple live with their daughter, Allyn, and son, Ziller, in McLean, Virginia.[123] The family has a dog, Figgie, a Portuguese water dog who was trained by Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz, who also trained the Obama Family's dog, Bo, as well as Ted Kennedy's dogs.[124]

As a Senator, Hagel had a tradition of wearing costumes to work on Halloween, usually masquerading as one of his colleagues or other notable political figures. He has arrived at work dressed as Joe Biden, John McCain, Colin Powell, and Pat Roberts in past years.[125]

Electoral history

1996

Republican United States Senatorial Primary Election in Nebraska, 1996 [126]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Chuck Hagel 112,953 62.24
Republican Don Stenberg 67,974 37.46
Republican Write-ins 544 0.30
Total votes 181,471 100.00
United States Senate election in Nebraska, 1996 [127]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Chuck Hagel 379,933 56.14% +15.21%
Democratic Ben Nelson 281,904 41.65% −17.25%
Libertarian John DeCamp 9,483 1.40%
Natural Law Bill Dunn 4,806 0.71%
Write-ins 663 0.10%
Majority 98,029 14.48% −3.49%
Turnout 676,958
Republican gain from Democratic Swing

2002

Republican United States Senatorial Primary Election in Nebraska, 2002 [128]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Chuck Hagel (inc.) 144,160 100.00
Total votes 144,160 100.00
United States Senate election in Nebraska, 2002[129]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Chuck Hagel (inc.) 397,438 82.76% +25.36%
Democratic Charlie A. Matulka 70,290 14.64% −27.96%
Libertarian John J. Graziano 7,423 1.55%
Independent Phil Chase 5,066 1.05%
Majority 327,148 68.13% +53.31%
Turnout 480,217
Republican hold Swing

References

  1. ^ Hagel was raised in the Roman Catholic faith; see cached excerpt from Charlyne Berens' biography, Chuck Hagel, which refers to Hagel's parents as "pillars of their Catholic church"; Hagel's father; Charles Hagel had converted to the Catholic faith of his wife.
  2. ^ a b Biographical information on ex-Sen. Chuck Hagel, The Associated Press, published in The News-Times, December 17, 2012.
  3. ^ Gorman, Siobhan (January 7, 2013). "Obama Nominates Brennan for CIA, Hagel for Pentagon". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  4. ^ Wilson, Scott; Branigin, William (January 7, 2013). "Obama nominates Chuck Hagel for Defense, John Brennan for CIA". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  5. ^ Landler, Mark (January 7, 2013). "Obama Nominates Hagel as Defense Secretary and Brennan as C.I.A. Chief". The New York Times. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  6. ^ a b c Gold, Matea. "Critics slam Chuck Hagel's likely nomination as Defense secretary". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  7. ^ Lelyveld, Joseph. [1]. "The New York Times Magazine", online edition, The Heartland Dissident, February 12, 2006. Retrieved January 4, 2012.
  8. ^ Dufour, Jeff. Glenn Close and Chuck Norris push pet projects. The Hill, online edition, Under The Dome, May 11, 2006. Retrieved March 4, 2007.
  9. ^ The Associated Press (October 4, 1946). "Biographical information on ex-Sen. Chuck Hagel". Huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
  10. ^ Experiencing War, Stories from the Veterans History Project, Charles Timothy Hagel, Library of Congress, accessed December 12, 2012.
  11. ^ a b "The private war of Chuck and Tom Hagel" by Myra MacPherson, Salon, April 30, 2007.
  12. ^ Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the 110th Congress, Government Printing Office, October 2, 2008, Remarks by Senator Harry Reid,p. 692.
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Further reading

Wikisource has original works by or about:
Chuck Hagel
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Documentaries, topic pages and databases
Selected speeches
Selected news articles
Party political offices
Preceded by Republican nominee for U.S. Senator from Nebraska
(Class 3)
1996, 2002 		Succeeded by
U.S. Senate
Preceded by U.S. Senator (Class 3) from Nebraska
1997–2009
Served alongside: Bob Kerrey, Ben Nelson 		Succeeded by
Academic offices
Preceded by Chairman of the Atlantic Council
2009-present 		Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by Co-Chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board
2009-present
Served alongside: David L. Boren 		Incumbent
Chairman of the Intelligence Oversight Board
2009-present

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