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US Secretary of Defense, Chuck Hagel, Resigns Over the Sudden Emergence of Sunni Arab Islamic State in Iraq and Syria

 November 26, 2014 

 

Hunting for scapegoats, Obama bagged the wrong guy in Hagel

By Lawrence Korb

Reuters, November 24, 2014

The timing of Chuck Hagel’s resignation as secretary of defense may have been a surprise, but the fact that he was on his way out has been rumored for weeks. The real issue is why he either stepped down or was forced to leave after such a comparatively short time in office.

Hagel’s departure may bring about some short-term political gains, but in the long run it will not be good for the administration, the Pentagon or the country.

There are two interrelated reasons for his exit. First, the Obama administration needed to have a high-ranking figure take the fall for the emergence of the militant group, Islamic State in Syria and the Levant (often called Islamic State), and the initial disjointed White House response to the threat.

Second, Hagel’s ability to influence administration policy was hampered from the start by his contentious confirmation hearing, which seemed to catch the White House by surprise. Then, as the White House took increasing control of the foreign policy decision-making process, Hagel’s influence diminished markedly. 

Was Hagel fired because he was not qualified for the post? Administration sources have reportedly suggested that the Pentagon needed someone with a “different set of skills” to tackle the threat of Islamic State extremists in Iraq and Syria.

This, however, ignores Hagel’s on-the-ground combat experience as a soldier and a leader. He enlisted in the Army infantry during the Vietnam War, receiving two Purple Hearts and the Army Commendation Medal, among other decorations.  To suggest that he doesn’t have the skills or experience to guide the Pentagon in the fight against Islamic State extremists strains credulity.

Beyond the fight on the ground, Hagel also understands the big picture of U.S. national security and foreign policy. As a two-term senator from Nebraska, Hagel showed astute foreign policy acumen, especially regarding the Middle East and Afghanistan. He was one of the first to recognize that Prime Minister Nouri al-Malaki’s shortcomings jeopardized Iraq’s stability, and consistently argued that the Iraqis would have to take responsibility for their own future.

Hagel also brought considerable private- and public-sector management expertise to the Pentagon, as both the founder of a successful cell phone company and the deputy administrator of the Veterans Administration.

Was Hagel dismissed because he failed to grapple with the problems the Pentagon faced? Hardly. Unlike several of his predecessors, he adjusted the military budget to reflect the spending reductions mandated by sequestration; took forceful action to deal with the problems of sexual violence and suicides in the ranks, and began overhauling a dysfunctional nuclear-weapons complex. 

In addition, Hagel capably managed the drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, and set the rules of conduct for American troops as they take on a train, advise and assist role there next year. 

Will appointing a new defense secretary have much impact? Not really. When he or she is confirmed sometime next year, the current muddle-through approach to Islamic State extremists, Iraq, Syria and the Kurds will still be continuing. 

The Pentagon’s fiscal year 2016 budget will have already been drafted, and maybe sent to Congress. So that leaves little room for a new secretary’s imprint. The new Pentagon chief will have a chance to have an impact on the fiscal year 2017 defense budget. But without knowing who the president will be in 2017. 

Even on the managerial front, the new secretary will not have the opportunity to bring in his or her own appointees to help run the Pentagon, leaving little hope for a continued push to reform the Defense Department’s approach to sexual assault or improve the acquisitions process.

Ultimately, finding a new secretary may be difficult. Like Hagel’s 23 predecessors, none of the people rumored to be potential replacements bring a similar combination of military, managerial and political experience to the job.   Moreover, few qualified people would want to leave their jobs for a post that requires a sure-to-be difficult Senate confirmation hearing and offers a tenure of less than two years. 

With the 2016 presidential election campaign in full swing shortly after a new defense secretary would take office, the window for wielding influence over the Pentagon and our national security policy is likely to be very brief. 

Americans must hope that Obama considered all these factors before he asked for Hagel’s resignation.

 

News Analysis: Obama likely to seek team player for new U.S. defense secretary

by Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, Nov. 25, 2014 (Xinhua) --

As U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is stepping down, President Barack Obama is likely to choose a new defense chief who can play ball with the rest of the team, experts said.

Hagel has butted heads with the White House over a number of issues, including how to deal with the onslaught of the Islamic State, a terror group also known as ISIS that has overrun vast swaths of Syria and northern Iraq in a bid to establish its own nation based on a twisted version of Islam.

While initially Hagel's focus was on making military cuts, that changed abruptly when the Islamic State began grabbing global news headlines and the administration shifted its focus toward combating the extremists. As time went on, Hagel was seen to be more on board with U.S. generals than with the White House, and the administration resented his independence, some experts said.

Obama may have a hard time finding a replacement who is not only right for the job but who will also be a team player.

"The next defense secretary will be someone who basically is going to do what the administration wants. It seems that they butted heads over ISIS and the state of the global landscape," Republican strategist Ford O'Connell told Xinhua, speaking about the relationship between Hagel and the White House.

"They want someone who is willing to tow the administration line, and Hagel was not that person," he said. "When things got crazy with ISIS and Russia, he was saying very different things than the administration."

Darrell West, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua that Hagel's departure signals the need for a different kind of defense secretary.

"Hagel was brought into the cabinet to help Obama wind down the Iraq and Afghanistan wars," he said. "But circumstances have changed now with the emergence of ISIS in the Middle East and the Taliban in Afghanistan. Obama feels he needs someone who is tougher on foreign policy in order to execute the new strategy. The main challenge for the new appointment will be devising a strategy to confront ISIS and deal with new threats that are emerging around the world."

The rapid advancement of ISIS has alarmed the United States, as Washington's worst nightmare is another attack on the homeland like the Sept. 11, 2001 strikes on New York City and Washington, D. C.

The ISIS has threatened to "fly the flag of Allah in the White House," and the United States has in recent months launched an air- bombardment campaign against the militants, although some have blasted it as weak.

Obama announced earlier this month that he will deploy an additional 1,500 U.S. troops to Iraq as advisers, around three years after the president pulled out the last U.S. troops from the war-torn country, but experts question whether the move will have any impact at all.

Hagel's departure means Obama will find his fourth secretary of defense, and it is rare in U.S. history for one president to go through so many defense secretaries.

Two possible replacements are former Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and former Undersecretary of Defense Michele Flournoy, who are both viewed as capable.

Flournoy confirmed to the Politico newspaper that she has taken herself out of the running to succeed Hagel.

Editor: yan

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