“Democrats — from both the White House and Capitol Hill — tell First
Read that they’re still confident Hagel will win confirmation. You’re
unlikely to see a Senate Democrat vote against him or even peel off
today; in fact, the hostile GOP questioning might have made Democrats
even more united, or so the White House hopes and believes. And if
that’s the case, Hagel will have support from a majority of senators. So
the question becomes: Do Republicans decide to mount a filibuster
against Hagel? That could make things more problematic for his
nomination, because he would need 60 votes instead of 51. But it also
would create a problematic storyline for Republicans: Do they really
filibuster one of their former colleagues who fought and bled in
Vietnam?”
Chris Cillizza: “Chuck Hagel was … just plain bad during his confirmation
hearing to be the next Secretary of Defense. And it almost certainly
won’t keep him from becoming the next man to lead the Pentagon.”
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