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| Hagel running? | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 13 2007, 02:03 AM (122 Views) | |
| bsb006 | Mar 13 2007, 02:03 AM Post #1 |
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Ruler of the Mountain
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Fox states he did not make an announcement again today - but look at his plans... :angry: Reprinted from NewsMax.com Monday, March 12, 2007 9:55 a.m. EDT Hagel Raises Impeachment Specter If Chuck Hagel is looking to join the cast of Republican presidential hopefuls, he's certainly not taking an orthodox route. Speculation that the senior U.S. senator from Nebraska is considering a run for the White House has run high since 2004, when he confirmed he might make the leap. A new flurry of conjecture hit political blogs and news programs Wednesday, when he revealed his intention to make an announcement on Monday about his future plans. Loree Bykerk, a political science professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, says recent rumblings within the state indicate he likely will run. Former students of Bykerk's now active in the state Republican Party have told her of "the queuing up ... in the Republican party of who is going to run for his senate seat and keep the governor's seat and other state offices," she said. But if Hagel is beating a path to the White House, there are those who question what he's using to pave the way. In an interview appearing in April editions of Esquire magazine -- set to hit stands next week -- Hagel suggests that President Bush could be subject to calls for impeachment as the Iraq war drags on. "The president says, 'I don't care.' He's not accountable anymore," Hagel said in the article. "Before this is over, you might see calls for his impeachment. I don't know. It depends on how this goes." Hagel has long been an outspoken critic of the administration's foreign policy and its handling of Iraq, but for a conservative Republican from a firmly rooted red state to mention the "I" word in the same breath with a sitting party president is still shocking. "That's pretty strong," Bykerk said. "It's hard for me to judge whether that sets him up as the anti-war candidate or some kind of superconscience for the Bush supporters of the Republican Party. "He just tells you what he thinks." That could hurt him among the loyal Republican base, where Bush still enjoys strong support, said Ross Baker, a congressional scholar at Rutgers University who served as a senior adviser to Hagel in 2000 and once served on the Senate staff of former presidential candidate Walter Mondale. But Baker and others note that simply appearing in such a high-profile, mainstream publication could mean he's posturing as a presidential contender. Hagel could stand out as an anti-war candidate, Bykerk said, but will have mend ties with Bush supporters he's offended in recent years. Baker believes Hagel's anti-war stance and late announcement could point to another possibility. "It's possible he might try to run as an independent," Baker said. "The Republican electorate is going to be a real problem for him." There is no law or regulation that would keep a sitting Republican senator from running as an independent for president, Baker said. "If you're not going to be involved in the primaries, you don't have to make a very hasty decision," Baker said, adding that it also would give Hagel plenty of time to collect contributions for the general election. Hagel would be a strong general election candidate, Baker said, not only because of his position on Iraq, but because he is a solid conservative who could still draw Republican support based on his anti-abortion, less-government foundation. "Hagel's voting record is the most conservative in the United States Senate," Baker said. "So he has not found it necessary to go to Liberty University and genuflect in front of Jerry Falwell." As a Vietnam veteran who -- along with his brother, Tom -- suffered life-threatening injuries during that war, he also carries an air of authority when he objects to the Bush administration's current war policy, Baker said. "I guess if you crawl into a burning armored personnel carrier to pull your brother out, there's not much anybody can do to you to make you feel intimidated," he said. "When you're a rifleman, you're the business end of American foreign policy." If Hagel announces a presidential bid in Omaha on Monday, he might start with persuading his own state of his worth. According to an Associated Press Election Day exit poll last year, only 37 percent of Nebraska voters surveyed indicated they believed Hagel would make a good president. Nearly half indicated they did not think Hagel would make a good president. Whatever his plans, Hagel isn't sharing them publicly. He rebuffed all questions about his political future asked by reporters Thursday during a telephone conference, saying only that he would outline his plans on Monday. His announcement could be less far-reaching than expected, if he merely announces his re-election intentions for 2008. Baker thinks Hagel would have a shot at the White House, even running as an independent. "There are a lot of people out there with their wetted fingers to the wind, and that's not what he does," Baker said. "People find it refreshing." © 2007 Associated Press. Hagel's story |
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