The issue of President Obama’s nomination for the next Secretary of Defense should presumably be one of national interest. But it turns out that the nod from the president has some outside the country - in Israel - feeling a bit uneasy. Some in that country believe that Hagel, a former Nebraska senator, is unsympathetic and possibly even hostile to their agenda. Hagel’s stance on Iran’s nuclear program and relations with the Palestinians seem to be entirely different from those of the Israeli government.
There is already a strained relationship between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is expected to be re-elected later this month. "Because of his statements in the past, and his stance toward Israel, we are worried," Reuven Rivlin, the speaker of the Israeli parliament and a member of Netanyahu's Likud Party, told the Associated Press.
Netanyahu’s office had no comment on the nomination. In the U.S., Hagel is known as something of a maverick and he once said "the Jewish lobby (in the U.S.) intimidates a lot of people here," doing "dumb things" that aren't "smart for Israel." He also once famously noted, "I'm not an Israeli senator. I'm a United States senator." Hagel added on another occasion, "I support Israel, but my first interest is I take an oath of office to the Constitution of the United States, not to a president, not to a party, not to Israel." Hagel also seems to be a pragmatist rather than an idealist on many issues related to the ever-ongoing tension in the Middle East, making him an especially uncomfortable choice for those with a more one-sided approach to the issues.
There is already a strained relationship between President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is expected to be re-elected later this month. "Because of his statements in the past, and his stance toward Israel, we are worried," Reuven Rivlin, the speaker of the Israeli parliament and a member of Netanyahu's Likud Party, told the Associated Press.
Netanyahu’s office had no comment on the nomination. In the U.S., Hagel is known as something of a maverick and he once said "the Jewish lobby (in the U.S.) intimidates a lot of people here," doing "dumb things" that aren't "smart for Israel." He also once famously noted, "I'm not an Israeli senator. I'm a United States senator." Hagel added on another occasion, "I support Israel, but my first interest is I take an oath of office to the Constitution of the United States, not to a president, not to a party, not to Israel." Hagel also seems to be a pragmatist rather than an idealist on many issues related to the ever-ongoing tension in the Middle East, making him an especially uncomfortable choice for those with a more one-sided approach to the issues.
