Quote Of The Day – Chuck Hagel Edition

Doug Johnson February 1, 2013 Congress 41 Comments

abc_senator_chuck_hagel_hearing_thg_130131_wg

“It is very clear from the testimony that Sen. Hagel will not be bringing the potato salad to the next Mensa picnic.“

A long-time Capital Hill Democrat (as told to Jennifer Rubin) commenting on Thursday’s dismal performance by Sen. Chuck Hagel at his confirmation hearings to be the next Secretary of Defense.

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Doug Johnson

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Commander_Chico

I was wondering when someone here would join the coordinated attack on this American patriot.
- herddog505
  
  Sorry; TEH OLIGARCHY! was late getting the talking points out.
  
  Say, can you help me out? While I’m going to parrot the talking points that I’ve been given (I’ve got bills to pay, you know), is it REALLY true that he sounded like an idiot in his testimony yesterday? That he claimed that, as Secretary of Defense, he won’t be in a policy-making position? And that he’ll (pinky swearz!) actually try to learn something about the DoD if he gets the job? Or did he really sound intelligent and well-informed as he explained that he still believes all the things he’s said in the past about Iran and Israel? I’m just curious.
  
  I won’t ask about his remarks about the Joooos… er, Israelis… because I know where you’re coming from on that.
  
  By the way: is criticism of Allen West a “coordinated attack on [an] American patriot”? Or is it A-OK because he’s a madman?
  
  ===
  
  As an aside, I went to ABC’s website to get a little more information about Hagel. The top banner featured photos of smiling Barry and Uncle Choo-choo with the title “OTUS NEWS”. The video was of Diane Sawyer, who informed us in the first few seconds that Chuck Hagel is a Purple Heart winner from Vietnam. Yeah, no bias at ABC at all…
  
  http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/chuck-hagel-facing-colleagues-defense-secretary-nominee/story?id=18365695
  - Commander_Chico
    
    Any patriotic American should be concerned when propagandists of a foreign country go all out to smear a guy like Chuck Hagel.
    
    Jennifer Rubin quoting an unnamed source? Give me a break.
    - Jwb10001
      
      Yep you’re right Chico, Hagel really pulled it off yesterday, he was articulate knowledgeable, forceful and engaging, everyone came away thinking man this guy is going to rock as SoD.
      - JLawson
        
        Or was that “A rock would do better as SoD”?
      - Rodney G. Graves
        
        So say all the soi disant “cognoscenti”!
    - retired.military
      
      Any patriotic American should be concerned when Islamic terrorist cheer a president getting reelected. Or how about communists cheering Obama when he talks about gun control? OR when a nominee for SecDef says during their Senate hearing “If I get the job I will learn more about the defense dept” (paraphrase there).
      
      As for unnamed sources. Gee they were great when bush was president.
    - herddog505
      
      Any patriotic American should be terrified that this idiot is being considered to be the Secretary of Defense.
  - Rodney G. Graves
    
    One of his fellow dhimmicrats said:
    
    “It is very clear from the testimony that Sen. Hagel will not be bringing the potato salad to the next Mensa picnic.”
    
    Then again, neither will our resident soi disant “cognoscenti.”
- jim_m
  
  Patriot? So you think that it is the act of a patriot who goes on al Jazeera and listens to someone say that the US is the world’s bully and agrees with the statement? Hagel tried to weasel his way around that , but if you are going to represent the US military it is a good start if you haven’t made a career throwing them under the bus for your own advancement.
  
  But then THAT is probably why you like Hagel. That and he makes your anti-semitism look benign.
  - Commander_Chico
    
    Do you ever post links or references for your factual assertions?
    
    Hagel is a true patriot, the fact that he’s not enthusiastic about Americans dying in Middle East wars for Israel is why he’s being attacked.
    
    He’s the opposite of a chickenhawk, which is why the chickenhawk crowd hates him so much.
    - Jwb10001
      
      You mean those Chickenhawks like McCain and Graham? Or are you talking about his supporters like Chuckie S. Please stop with the Chicken Hawk name calling it’s not persuasive
      - Commander_Chico
        
        McCain is going to vote for him.
      - Jwb10001
        
        Then McCain’s an idiot too.
    - jim_m
      
      No. He is an antisemite and he has thrown the US under the bus on al Jazeera. This came up in Sen Cruz’s questioning. I shouldn’t have to link you to something that was covered in the news just yesterday.
      
      Being called a chickenhawk by you is an honor. What it means is that you aren’t someone who thinks that serving in the military means your S**T doesn’t stink. What it means is that you believe that the military serves the civilian government and not vice versa. What it means is that you’re not a fascist.
      - Commander_Chico
        
        Hagel was engaging other points of view, as Americans should be.
        Truth is the USA spends more on the military than the next five countries combined. Cruz came across like an ignoramus,
        
        You say “antisemite” more than Grumpy or anyone else ever said “racist.” And you say it to mean “anyone who does not want the USA to take orders from Netanyahu.”
      - jim_m
        
        No, I pretty much say it to you be cause it succinctly describes your views.
        
        And you say it to mean “anyone who does not want the USA to take orders from Netanyahu.”
        
        And this is a wonderful example of why I tell you that you are an anti-Semite. Considering the national interests of the only real democracy in the Middle East and the one country that has been consistent in supporting our interests in the region is not taking orders from them. You think that anyone not shoving a Jew into an oven is under their control.
      - jim_m
        
        Hagel wasn’t engaging anything. Engaging those points of view would have been to counter them with a statement that defended US policy. What Hagel did instead was to agree with people who criticized the US and its policies.
        
        You think that Cruz came across poorly because he showed Hagel to be an ignorant fool who doesn’t understand US foreign policy and has a track record of believing in idiotic conspiracy BS like you do Chico.
      - retired.military
        
        Well considering most of our allies rely on the US to protect them they dont have much of a reason to spend money on their military.
        
        THe next 5 countries
        
        China – conscripts, low pay, bad food, poor training
        Russia – conscripts, low pay bad food, poor training
        France – They train their troops to run away at the first shot. Same population as maybe Texas. RElies on the US to defend it.
        UK – Relies on US to defend it. Same population as maybe Texas.
        Japan – Uses WW2 disarmanent as reason to not spend money on defense and relies on the US to defend it.
        
        So out of the 5 we have 3 who rely on the US to defend them and 2 of which use transcripts as cannon fodder.
        
        Good comparisions there Chico. What is your next DNC talking point.
      - Commander_Chico
        
        Begs the question: if those countries forces suck so much, why do we have to spend so much to be able to beat them?
      - jim_m
        
        We spend so much so we don’t leave tens of thousands of our men dead on the battlefield. But then you’d like it if we did.
      - jim_m
        
        As I recall the USSR did not train their troops in orienteering so the Afghans learned that if they took out the officers the remaining infantry would be incapable of finding their way to help. The Soviets did not hold with training their troops to an extent that they may become a danger to the state they served.
        
        Chico also believes in reinstating the draft. Charlie Rangel sponsored a bill to do that and his express reason was that it would cripple the military. Chico believes in a military that can’t protect America. All this while he wraps himself in the flag.
    - herddog505
      
      While I don’t think that Hagel is a scoudrel, you are otherwise proving the validity of the assertion that patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.
      
      Would you accept Allen West for SecDef? How about Michele Bachmann? Hell, why not George Bush or Dick Cheney or Rick Perry or Herman Cain or Condi Rice or John Bolton? Are they not “patriots”? And is merely being a “patriot” enough qualification for the job?
      - Commander_Chico
        
        Cheney is a traitor to the Constitution.
        
        Bolton and Bachmann are nutty, Bolton is a warmonger too.
        
        It would be unseemly for a guy who narrowly escaped being courtmartialed (West) being the boss of the guy who gave him a GO Article 15 for his erratic actions (Odierno).
        
        Rick Perry might make a good SecDef, as would Rice.
        
        Cain could run the on-base AAFES and NEX pizza franchises.
        
        Bush does not have it left in him, I think.
    - Vagabond661
      
      Here is a compliation of all of Chico’s links or references for his factual assertions for this topic:
  - Rodney G. Graves
    
    That, it would seem, is what passes for patriotism amongst the soi disant “cognoscenti.”
- Jwb10001
  
  So please tell me Chico if Hagel is so correct in his thinking why is he so afraid to stand up and say, “hell yes I said those things they are all true and I stand by each and every one of them” and please spare me the Jews run the world BS.
  - jim_m
    
    Well, obviously Hagel is running away from his international Jewish conspiracy BS because the Jews really do run the world and if he doesn’t cool it the International Jewish Conspiracy (TM) will destroy his nomination. His reluctance to push his crazy ideas is proof of their truth.
    
    And if it isn’t the Jews!, it will be the Freemasons!! The Knights Templar!!! The Illuminati!!!! The Oligarchy!!!!!
  - Commander_Chico
    
    I don’t think he’s disavowed anything he said.
    - Jwb10001
      
      oh you might want to watch the replay you got the call wrong.
      - Rodney G. Graves
        
        Heaven forbid!!! Our own soi disant “cognoscenti” wrong on the facts?
      - Jwb10001
        
        Well he clearly has not seen any of the video, he wants a link to the line of questions about the “biggest bully” dialog which was all over the intertubes yesterday.
      - jim_m
        
        Facts are not important. Chico is correct in that anything that Hagel said that might appear as a disavowal was not meant sincerely and that Hagel is still the blame America first, beware the international Jewish conspiracy, anti semite that he was before the hearing.
        
        These are the very facets of Hagel’s beliefs that make him the number one man for the job in Chico’s eyes.
      - retired.military
        
        He hasnt got the latest DNC talking points.
- retired.military
  
  Yet when the MSM says that McCain is suffering from Vietnam flashbacks Chico says nothing.
  
  Hypocrit thy name is Chico.
  - Commander_Chico
    
    And when the MSM said JFK was a communist, retired military said nothing.
    - jim_m
      
      Citation needed. I’ve never heard anyone in the media calling JFK a communist.
Paul Hooson

I don’t really get Chuck Hagel. Someone, please explain him to me? He makes statements that seem incredibly out of the loop of comprehension of important foreign policy situations, strongly suggesting that he doesn’t really comprehend complex issues. Yet, he’s being nominated to manage our all-important defense forces, something that involves very complex decision making on some very complicated military strategy and defensive systems.

Mr. Obama may be attempting to prove that he wants his government to be inclusive and diverse. Nominating a former Republican senator is an honorable step. And Chuck Hagel does have very honorable military background, which I admire. But, as far as a decision maker, he appears to be a very ill fit for the role of managing our nation’s defenses. I just don’t see where his limited abilities will be helpful to our nation’s defenses. I think the country needs to look further to find someone better suited to this role.
- JLawson
  
  “Yet, he’s being nominated to manage our all-important defense forces,
  something that involves very complex decision making on some very
  complicated military strategy and defensive systems”
  
  Want something really scary to think about? Pretty much any administration will look to put their best and brightest in as SecDef. Defense is IMPORTANT, both in the long and short run.
  
  What if he’s the last person left in the Obama administration that’s judged to be even marginally capable of doing the job?
  - jim_m
    
    Amen. The problem with the left is that they have a pathological hatred of the notion that the US should defend itself. Too many on the left would prefer if the US were incapable of defending itself as they believe that all military defeats of the US are just.
    
    There are so few candidates for the job on the left because they want it that way. It is hard to be a strong defender of national defense and remain viable in the dem party. Too many of the dem leaders are like Dick Durbin, who compares our military to the Nazis.
- retired.military
  
  ” Someone, please explain him to me?”
  
  He supported Obama. Enough said.

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Doug Johnson