commentaries

Well said.

The biggest reason that the GOP will oppose is that he is being nominated by Obama.

The Republicans one gripe is that he will cut the defense budget? It needs to be cut, there is so much waste in the military. Worked as a civilian contractor on an Air Force base and saw the waste, was in the navy onboard aircraft carriers and saw the waste there too.

"Why Republicans resist Hagel"...Because they resist ANYTHING and ANYONE Obama supports.

----The biggest reason that the GOP will oppose is that he is being nominated by Obama.---- There are some liberal factions that don't like him either. It tells me 2 things, he is a pragmatist and works outside the box. those are 2 things that the establishment GOP and Dems don't like as it makes them both accountable. I say that makes for a pretty good pick...

Republicans want to cut spending? Well the military is a good start, even the military realizes this.

They're afraid he'll cut the budget? He's got my support.

Hagel was a wise choice. Bring on the confirmation hearings. I want to see Republicans filibuster a member of their own party because he doesn't tow the war-profiteer line. Americans know they trumped up a case to lie us into Iraq. We want to leave Afghanistan. And most Americans think cuts to military spending is necessary to reduce the deficit. The Senate will roll over for Hagel.

Nicely stated. The four points you touch on illustrate how the GOP "governs" for anyone who makes campaign contributions, not the american people. They fully lack the skills to have an even-headed, reasoned conversation.

Defense is by far the largest budget item we have that doesn't have an independent funding source. It's also the one with the most pork. We're paying for weapons systems the Pentagon doesn't even want. It's also a non sustaining expense since none of it goes back into the economy as does spending on infrastructure and even the so-called entitlements which mostly go to those who spend nearly all their income. We no longer need the vast military spending because traditional armies are not nearly as crucial for defense in the modern world as are intelligence and policing (which isn't even in the defense budget). There's no good reason for us to spend nearly as much as the rest of the world combined on defense - especially when many of the others are considered allies.