The Real Reason Republicans Hate Hagel

It has more to do with President Obama than the former senator from Nebraska.

By Fred Kaplan  |  Posted Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, at 8:37 PM ET

It’s good news that President Obama will nominate Chuck Hagel as his secretary of defense, despite the frantic campaign against him that’s been mounted by certain Republicans.

I don’t think that he chose Hagel because of the opposition. It’s generally not Obama’s style to pick a fight for its own sake (cf. Rice, Susan). He’s an issues man, and he faces many fights on other pressing matters. If he thought that someone less controversial could do the job at the Pentagon, he’d have gone with that person in a flash (cf. Kerry, John).