WarSclerotic

Attacks mount on Obama nominees Hagel, Brennan.

Even as President Barack Obama has gone ahead with his nominations of Chuck Hagel and John Brennan as the next Defence Secretary and CIA director, Republican attacks have mounted on both nominees, raising doubts on their Senate confirmation.

Much to the discomfiture of the White House, some Democratic Senators have also indicated that they would make up their mind on voting for him after he comes out with a satisfactory explanation of his controversial past positions on Israel and Iran.

Leading Republicans have been on the attack mode ever since word came over the weekend that Obama would press ahead with Hagel’s nomination, which he formally announced on Monday along with that of Brennan.

The former Nebraska Senator, known to be a moderate Republican, has antagonised members across the political aisle. Republican commentators labelled Hagel as someone way out of the American mainstream by being soft on Iran and hard on Israel.

Obama himself stoutly defended his choice and called upon the Senate to confirm both nominees at the earliest. “My No.1 criteria in making these decisions was simple — who is going to do the best job in securing America,” Obama said as he announced the nomination of Hagel and Brennan.

While Obama described Hagel as “the leader that our troops deserve”, some more Republican Senators voiced their opposition against their former colleague.

“Given Chuck Hagel’s statements and actions on a nuclear Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah, I think his confirmation would send exactly the wrong message to our allies and enemies alike,” said Senator David Vitter from Louisiana in a statement.

This entry was posted on January 9, 2013 at 10:12 AM and is filed under Uncategorized. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.