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President Barack Obama's choice to lead the Pentagon, former GOP Sen. Chuck Hagel, will likely be confirmed next week, one of his most dogged opponents said Sunday.
"I'm confident that Sen. Hagel will probably have the votes necessary to be confirmed as secretary of defense," Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press."
After Senate Republicans voted to sustain a filibuster and block the former Nebraska senator's nomination from advancing toward confirmation, McCain acknowledged that Hagel will likely win confirmation once the chamber returns from its recess.
Arizona Sen. John McCain visits Meet the Press to discuss the ongoing battles in Washington over Chuck Hagel's defense secretary nomination, the sequester and government spending, and the Benghazi incident investigation.
"I think it's a reasonable amount of time to have questions answered," McCain said of the week-and-a-half-long window which Senate Republicans demanded to pore more thoroughly over their former colleague's records.
Democrats and the Obama administration have complained that a filibuster for a defense secretary nominee is without precedent. Moreover, they argue that filling the defense post is particularly urgent given outgoing Secretary Leon Panetta's plans to leave the Pentagon, and the looming "sequester" of automatic spending cuts, which fall heavily upon the defense budget.
The administration publicly shrugged off, though, the notion that the delay had damaged Hagel's ability to serve effectively.
"No, he's not going to be a weaker defense secretary," said Denis McDonough, the president's new chief of staff, "he's going to be a great defense secretary."
Wrapped up into the GOP's objections are the desire to ding the administration, a demand for fuller answers to the Sept. 11, 2012 attacks on the diplomatic post in Benghazi, Libya, and personal quarrels with Hagel over his criticism of President George W. Bush and the handling of the war in Iraq. McCain denied, though, that Republicans' attacks on Hagel were personal in nature.
"99 percent of it has to do with the positions Sen. Hagel has taken," he said.
The Hagel fight has consumed Congress in recent weeks, threatening to expend Obama's political capital as he enters a second term. It's yet to be seen whether this fight, and the looming fight to replace the sequester with other equivalent savings, would affect other elements of the Obama agenda — including gun control, and immigration.
Amid a New York Times report that suggested the White House had pushed ahead with its own immigration bill, McDonough said it was consistent with Obama's promise to simply be prepared with his own alternative plan. Obama, McDonough said, was still hoping that a bipartisan Senate group would be able to produce its own comprehensive immigration reform proposal.
"I believe we're making progress on a bipartisan basis," said McCain, a member of the eight-member, bipartisan Senate group working on the immigration proposal. The Arizona senator said, though, that Obama had had no communications with the Senate group.
"Does the president really want a result?" asked McCain, reflecting Republicans' concerns on the politics of immigration. "Or does he want another cudgel so he can beat up Republicans to get an advantage in the next election?"
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What is this I read in another post that McCain cannot prove he was a POW?!? His whole career is based on that issue. If he cannot show evidence that he was actually in a POW camp in N Vietnam, he should immediately relinquish the tens of millions he has taken in bribes while in the Senate.
It was more that he can't "prove" that he was offered a release and yet chose to remain captive in defiance of N Viet "wishes". They then beat him mercilessly. Of course, that's more or less common knowledge but there was this supposed lack of PROOF. I posted several times that while I do not LIKE him, his service and the circumstances surrounding that service are NOT in question. 40 Y/O Newspaper accounts apparently don't provide sufficient "background" to be considered "proof".
forky,
Kinda like the Right not accepting fifty-one year old newspaper accounts of a baby's birth in the State of Hawaii.
Th Rubio "water bottle incident" is irrelevant. Who cares? But then again, who cares about Rubio? He's being trotted out as an "ethnic" candidate when in reality he is a typical GOP tool. The GOP of Reagan is a relic.
Rubio is the Cuban version of Herman Cain.
I think it is about time for the Guards at the funny farm go and get MCCain and his [FRIEND Graham]and take them TOGETHER back and lock them up . It has been a LONG LONG time since two politicians have created so much commotion and static over so many stupid little non-sensical matters over such idiotic WHATEVERS.These losers need to be back at the Funny Farm.
Personally, I think someone needs to tell McCain that the election is over, and that he lost.
I can't believe how much coverage this incompetent nobody is receiving. Surely there are other people out there who have something important to say. Give it a rest - please!
WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2003 – Iraq's chemical weapons arsenal is not some hypothetical problem, but a danger and a weapon Saddam Hussein has used in the past.
Hussein had been in power only a year when he declared war on neighboring Iran in 1980. He flexed his muscles against the Persian Gulf region's largest military power, but one weakened by post-shah disarray. Iraq had a more modern military and banked on a fast, easy victory.
Iranian leaders, with a population of 55 million at their disposal, had no compunctions about launching low-tech "human wave" attacks against the Iraqis. Hussein's blitzkrieg devolved into a trench war of attrition, but one he couldn't afford with a population of only about 20 million.
The war was clearly going against Iraq by 1983, when Hussein ordered the use of chemical weapons against Iran. The first of 10 documented chemical attacks in the war was in August 1983 and caused hundreds of casualties, according to CIA sources. The largest documented attack was a February 1986 strike against al-Faw, where mustard gas and tabun may have affected up to 10,000 Iranians.
To this day, no one really knows how many other Iraqi chemical attacks went undocumented or how many Iranians died in them. Iranians call the survivors of the attacks "living martyrs," and the government in Tehran estimates that more than 60,000 soldiers were exposed to mustard gas and the nerve agents sarin and tabun.
One survivor described a rolling cloud of gas enveloping his position in 1985. When the cloud of death rolled away, he was one of 3,000 casualties of the Iraqi attack.
Iran and Iraq ended the war in 1988 with their boundaries about where they'd been when the war started. But Hussein was not through: If the weapons worked against the Iranians, they would also work against internal enemies of his regime.
In August 1988, Hussein launched chemical attacks against defenseless men, women and children in Kurdish villages in northern Iraq. International groups ascertained he used mustard gas and sarin.
Again, no one knows how many Kurds died as a result of these attacks. Some estimates place the dead at 8,000 while others say up to 24,000. The key, CIA officials said, is to remember the attacks weren't against military foes, but used specifically to kill and to terrorize noncombatants. The Kurdish civilians had not had even the basic and inadequate protections carried by some Iranian soldiers.
During the Persian Gulf War, Hussein threatened to use his chemical arsenal against the coalition arrayed against him. The United States said if he did he should expect an instant, overwhelming allied response. Hussein apparently backed down -- while some people may suspect he loosed chemicals on coalition forces, no proof has been found.
Following the war, U.N. inspectors went into Iraq and found stockpiles of chemical weapons. The Iraqis had large caches of mustard gas, which causes casualties by blistering or burning exposed skin, eyes, lungs and mucus membranes within hours of exposure. It is a persistent agent that can remain a hazard for days.
Iraq also had large amounts of sarin and tabun. When absorbed through the skin or inhaled, these nerve agents cause convulsions and unconsciousness. Tabun is a persistent agent and can remain potent for days. While not persistent, sarin is more dangerous inhaled.
The inspectors also found large amounts of VX nerve agent, which is more toxic and persistent than sarin or tabun.
Maybe John would feel better if he had arm extensions.
do you know that from the time iraq threatened us with chemical weapons till th time we invaded he had more than enough time to ship them to syria or iran . just because they were not there doesnt mean they never were
Mouse turd gas. Thats what happened to Mc Cain.
WOOOOOO Tom . Repub-lie con fear has gotten to you.
When did Iraq threaten us with chemical weapons? The bomb would have been dropped.
Are you afraid of those deadly spiders too.
Don't let a monkey near you HIV you know.
Can't you see how silly and pathetic the GOP has become?
I loved John the boners coments. Republicans did this twiced. This has to strop. I agree John get off the sauce and sober your tired ass up.
127 days congress will be in session this year. I think I will apply for that job. Oh yeah the rest of the time they are fund raising or on vacation. Half a job half pay.
Every once in a while they visit their state. Probably just to use the bathroom.
What could they possibly know about bills or the American people? They don't even read the crap just partisan BS.
Does anybody know, are Lindsey Grahmn and John short arm dating?
They are lying more together than they do with their wives.
just stating the facts my fellow american i dont see anywhere there that im afraid or a republican has me scared. this is what you say . i just know these things happened there are survivors who can attest . these things were going on with dems and rep. i agree we would of used the bomb and saddam actually did threaten us and when he was warned backed down. you rewriting history or you just forget it.. keep telling me and my friends how the rep and tea party is dead . i like when you all point that out and show your concern .with our stupid gaffs rubio ruined now and next it will be christie getting caught eating a whopper . how could these two young future leaders get caught eating and drinking in public. they are no match for i dont know joe biden. or the next queen hillary . we know what she will do when she gets that late night call. but at this point what difference does it make. so while youb try to show us how out of touch we are . keep on letting us know i finally figured out why you mascot is a donkey because you are all jack ass's .
I've figured out why your mascot is an elephant. It is for vaginal probes, and to push your way around with the peanuts you have for brains.
oh and i guess menendez screwing children in the dominican is lies too
Look at the history of the republican party with sexual abuse through hiostory an you will Be appalled.
well all you need to do is look back at the threat son put the bong down .
The threat to your brain through Fox media brainwashing. Useless BS gets you useless BS.
here is the difference between the media and truth and lies if one station reported that obama was out ice skating on a lake . the other would report he was walking on water.then u all let everyone know how great he is and that we are out of touch or tea party is dead . i guess to try to reassure yourselves.you can choose to believe whatever i choose to educate myself. when people go around and can say that someone eating or drinking can ruin their chance of becoming president is actually quite pathetic.
When you own 95 % 0wn the media that is propaganda radio.
Botched that argument up. The joke was Obama walks on water because he can't swim.
You say you are educating yourself? Fracking and destroying our country is not an education it is destroying the human race.
Looik out behind you Tom Alquida.