Senator Hagel's speech at the Brookings Institution

Today Senator Hagel delivered a speech to The Brookings Institution, an event described as

"a discussion of U.S. foreign policy in the context of the 2008 presidential campaign. Senator Hagel examined the inventory of global challenges that the next president will inherit and the responsibilities of the presidential candidates to address these challenges."

The speech was titled "Memo to the Candidates." You can read the full text here as a pdf.

The Global Wire

The Global Wire's first episode is an interview with Senator Chuck Hagel. Take a look.

"Hagel Statement on Announcement that the U.S., Iran and Syria will Attend Talks in Baghdad"

Chuck Hagel has been urging the President and his administration to engage Iraq's neighbors (particularly Iran and Syria) for three years now. The Iraq Study Group Report released at the end of last year said the same thing. It looks like the President has listened. Here is the press release from Chuck Hagel's Senate website:

Hagel Statement on Announcement that the U.S., Iran and Syria will Attend Talks in Baghdad

February 27th, 2007 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Iraqi Foreign Minister announced today that Iran and Syria will join U.S. and British envoys at a meeting in Baghdad next month to seek ways to stabilize Iraq. U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE) has repeatedly called for regional talks to address the situation in Iraq. Hagel released the following statement today in reaction to the announcement:

“This is an important diplomatic initiative taken by the Iraqi government. We will not achieve peace and stability in Iraq without a regional framework that includes Iran and Syria. This conference can be an important first step towards creating that framework,” Hagel said.

"Hagel Speech on U.S.-Iran Relations at the University of Nebraska at Kearney’s Conference on World Affairs"

Senator Hagel gave a speech on Iran yesterday that is well worth a read. Reading this speech reminded me why I do this blog: we need Chuck Hagel, with his wisdom and insight in foreign policy, in the White House. Here are some excerpts:

Forces and events in the Middle East cannot be neatly categorized. The swirl of Middle East history creates layers upon layers of complexity. There is little transparency in the Middle East. That is a reality that is inescapable and cannot be assumed away. To ignore this reality is to risk being trapped by false choices....false choices such as the question, “which is worse – Iran with nuclear weapons or war with Iran?”
...
On Afghanistan, the United States and Iran found common interests – defeating the Taliban and Islamic radicals, stabilizing Afghanistan, stopping the opium production and flow of opium coming into Iran. From these common interests emerged common actions working toward a common purpose. It was in the interests of Iran to work with the U.S. in Afghanistan. It was not a matter of helping America or strengthening America’s presence in Central Asia. It was a clear-eyed and self-serving action for Iran.
...
Two-thirds of Iran’s population is under the age of 30. Iran is undergoing a generational shift that will shape Iran’s outlook...and its opinions of the United States...for decades to come. Iran’s young people use the internet in large numbers, wear American jeans, listen to American music and are positive about America and the West. We do not want to lose this pro-American generation by turning them away from us. They are the hope of Iran. They bristle under the heavy yoke of the Ayatollahs’ strident limitations of personal freedom.
...
it was President Reagan who, in 1986, almost reached an agreement with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to abolish nuclear weapons. President Reagan understood the need for America to engage...to understand our friends and our adversaries...to explore our options...to identify common interests. President Reagan understood that great powers engage because they are secure in their beliefs and purpose but humble and wise in their policies and actions.
...
We are living today at an historic transformational time in history. The great challenges of the 21st century will require U.S. leadership that is trusted and respected, not feared nor resented. America cannot project only military power. Inspirational leadership and confidence in America's purpose, not imposed power, will be essential for world peace. If we fail, we will lose the next generation in Iran and around the world. This would result in a far more dangerous world than any we have ever known.

The full text is available on his Senate website.

"Hagel's Moment"

The Washington Post today has a great piece by David Ignatius ("Hagel's Moment?"). It is well worth the read. My appologies for two full article posts in one week, but they're both so good...

Hagel's Moment?

By David Ignatius

Wednesday, November 29, 2006; Page A23

A month ago the idea that Sen. Chuck Hagel would make a serious run for the Republican presidential nomination would have been a non-starter. As an outspoken critic of President Bush on Iraq and other issues, Hagel's way was blocked. His best hope was nomination by a quixotic third party in an online convention.

It's a measure of the step change brought about by the Nov. 7 elections that Hagel is now seriously exploring a GOP presidential bid. The Republican blowout, he says, reflected a "breakdown of confidence and trust in governance" and opened the way for what he believes will be "the most wide-open presidential race since 1952." The Nebraska senator says he will make a formal decision in the next two months on whether to run.

What would make a Hagel candidacy interesting is that he can claim to have been right about Iraq and other key issues earlier than almost any national politician, Republican or Democratic. Though a Vietnam veteran and a hawk on many national security issues, he had prescient misgivings about the Iraq war -- and, more important, the political courage to express these doubts clearly, at a time when many politicians were running for cover.

Hagel warned about the dangers of invading Iraq in a Feb. 20, 2003, speech in Kansas. He noted that America stood "nearly alone" in advocating military force to disarm Iraq and cautioned against "a rush to war." Some of Hagel's premonitions were almost eerie: "What comes after Saddam Hussein? The uncertainties of a post-Saddam, post-conflict Middle East should give us pause, encourage prudence and force us to recognize the necessity of coalitions in seeing it through." He urged the Bush administration to transfer postwar oversight to the United Nations as soon as possible, and he admonished Iraq boosters to "put aside the mistaken delusion that democracy is just around the corner."

Hagel was also early to understand the importance of talking to Iran, another idea that has since become commonplace but at the time took political guts. In a July 10, 2003, speech on the Senate floor, he said that a direct U.S. dialogue with Tehran about the nuclear issue might be necessary. In a Nov. 15, 2005, speech to the Council on Foreign Relations, he was emphatic: "The fact that our two governments cannot -- or will not -- sit down to exchange views must end."

Such outspoken criticisms of Bush policies had put Hagel outside the respectable Republican perimeter -- until Election Day. Hagel delivered his own blunt postmortem in a Nov. 16 speech to a conservative political action committee, GOPAC. The message of the election, he said, "is the American people saying you failed." Republicans had become so focused on keeping power that "we came loose of our moorings."

Hagel went on to criticize his party's failings in language you rarely hear in the usual pre-masticated sound bites of today's politicians. On GOP ethics lapses: "When you blow past the ethical standards and you play on the edge of legality, you're in trouble." On Bush administration foreign policy: "You cannot have a foreign policy based on divine mission. We tried that in the Middle Ages, that's what the Crusades were about."

It strains credulity to imagine that a GOP controlled by Bush and Karl Rove could learn to love Hagel, but, as the Nebraskan says, this is a time of "transformational politics." A more practical problem is that if Hagel does decide to seek the nomination, he will be competing for the same niche as the GOP front-runner, Sen. John McCain, who has been on his "straight-talk express" longer than has Hagel. And although McCain's centrist halo has been tarnished by his efforts to woo the far right, he remains a far more polished speaker and campaigner than Hagel. But on Iraq, Hagel has a clearer stance than does McCain, whose call for a big increase in troops is out of step with both the recommendations of U.S. military commanders and the public mood.

Hagel likes to evoke the Republicanism of Dwight Eisenhower, another former military officer who could be devastating in his criticism of the policies advocated by the military-industrial complex. "This was a real Republican president," he told the GOPAC audience.

Will that pre-Reagan Revolution message play to the party faithful in Iowa and New Hampshire in 2008? Will the Bush administration's problems become so severe that Republicans would embrace a senator from the radical center? The very fact that Hagel is mulling a campaign reminds us that American politics turned a corner this month and that we are in new territory.

Technorati tags: Chuck Hagel, 2008 Election, Washington Post

Hagel Press Release on the Middle East

Senator Hagel's office issued this press release yesterday:

Hagel Statement on the Current Situation in the Middle East

July 14th, 2006 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees, released the following statement today regarding the on-going violence between Israel and Hezbollah in the Middle East:

“We are at a moment of crisis in the Middle East. If the current violence spreads beyond Israel and Lebanon, the consequences for the region and the world are enormous. The instability in Iraq, tensions over Iran’s nuclear program, the rise of terrorism and its support by Syria and Iran, and growing domestic pressure on Arab governments have created dangerous instabilities in the Middle East. In this fragile situation, an escalation of violence could produce a region-wide conflict that engulfs United States and the rest of the world, particularly with the world’s dependence on Middle East energy. The United States must quickly and actively help stabilize and work to de-escalate this dangerously volatile situation. Within this moment of crisis is an opportunity for focused and creative diplomacy. Working with the nations of the region and our allies we can concentrate our efforts to build a stronger consensus against those who support terrorism.

“The United States must show leadership and directly engage this crisis. The President should send someone of global stature, credibility and experience, such as General Colin Powell or former Secretary of State James Baker, to the Middle East to act as his personal envoy. The United States is the only country with the ability to lead a coalition to prevent the region from spiraling out of control,” Hagel said.

Technorati tags: Senator Chuck Hagel, Israel, Middle East

Hagel Resolution on Iran

Here is a press release from Senator Hagel's office: " Hagel Resolution Endorsing Administration Policy on Iran and Calling on Iran to Suspend Nuclear Enrichment Activities Passes Senate"

June 15th, 2006 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Joseph Biden (D-DE) sponsored a resolution today endorsing the Bush Administration policy on Iran and calling on Iran to fully and verifiably suspend nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activities. The resolution passed the Senate by a vote of 99-0. Below is text from the resolution:

"Congress (1) endorses the policy of the United States, announced May 31, 2006, to achieve a successful diplomatic outcome, in coordination with leading members of the international community, with respect to the threat posed by the efforts of the Iranian regime to acquire a capability to produce nuclear weapons; (2) calls on Iran to suspend fully and verifiably its enrichment and reprocessing activities, cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency, and enter into negotiations, including with the United States, pursuant to the package presented to Iran by the High Representative of the European Union; and (3) urges the President and Secretary of State to keep Congress fully and currently informed about the progress of this vital diplomatic initiative."

From his official Senate Website

Technorati tags: Senator Chuck Hagel, Iran

"Hagel Statement on the Administration Announcement that the U.S. will Engage in Talks with Iran"

A press release from Chuck Hagel's Senate site:

May 31st, 2006 - WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement today regarding the announcement by Secretary of State Rice that the U.S. would engage Iran if Iran suspends its nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activity:

“I applaud President Bush and Secretary Rice for the decision to engage Iran through multilateral talks if Iran suspends its nuclear enrichment and reprocessing activity. This is an important development that should strengthen diplomatic efforts to address the Iranian nuclear threat.

“As I have said, our allies will support tough action against Iran only if they are confident that the United States is serious and committed to achieving a negotiated, diplomatic solution. Iran should return to the negotiating table. Ultimately, a lasting solution can only be achieved if the broader interests of the U.S., Iran, the region and world are addressed,” Hagel said.

The Washington Post has the details of the announcement by Bush and Rice.
Technorati tags: Senator Chuck Hagel, Iran, President Bush

Senator Hagel speaks on Iran

Senator Hagel wrote a compelling piece for the Financial Times regarding Iran. The full text can be viewed on his web site or if you have a subscription at FT. It is one of the best pieces I have read on the complex and difficult subject of Iran.

"America’s strategic policy toward Iran must be comprehensive and include a wide-lens view of Iran and the entire Middle East. It is a strategic mistake to believe that the US can successfully pursue a policy that segments Iranian and US interests. Iraq, nuclear capabilities, terrorism, Israel and oil are all part of an Iranian puzzle game that cannot be played one piece at a time. A clear inventory of Middle East realities frame America’s options and policies."

American Footprints had a nice post regarding Chuck Hagel's piece on Iran. Foreign policy is one of Chuck Hagel's strengths and is a critical reason for why we should support him to be the next President.

Update:
The Washington Post has a nice article on Senator Hagel's call for diplomacy with Iran along with others.

Technorati tags: Chuck Hagel, Iran