Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel Shown the Door … Barack Obama Can Tolerate A Lot, Cluelessness, Incompetence & Laziness But Not Criticism

THAT WAS QUICK …

Barack Obama’s Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is out. Some say he resigned, others say it was a firing. In any event, Hagel has stepped down as Defense Secretary. Talk about a revolving door. On January 7, 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Hagel to serve as Secretary of Defense. On February 12, 2013, the Senate Armed Services Committee approved Hagel’s nomination. Now on 11/23/14, Hagel has resigned. The former Senator from Nebraska had many missteps and seemed like he was over his head from the outset. But how should that be any different from others in Obama’s inner circle, including Obama himself? However, it was Hagel’s criticism of Obama policy that ultimately led to his demise.  Hagel’s comment that ISIS is “like beyond anything we have ever seen” might have been the truth, but as we have seen on so many other occasions with the Obama presidency, there is no place for the truth with this administration.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel’s exit from the Obama administration came after weeks of discussion with President Obama over what role he would play in shaping defense policy over the last two years of his term.

The pair ultimately came to the conclusion that another leader would be better equipped to lead the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), senior administration and Defense officials said.

While aides described the departure as a mutual decision based on shifting priorities at the Department of Defense, there are signs that tensions between Hagel and the White House contributed to the personnel change.

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RCP:

CHARLES KRAUTHAMMER: Hagel’s problems were not institutional, he was over his head from the beginning. Anybody who watched his hearings knew that, he knew that. He was sort of a non-presence for the first year or so. The irony is that he got tossed in the end and thrown under the bus because he actually sort of spoke up, spoke out and spoke the truth on the fact that the Syrian policy was entirely incoherent. He went against the White House and Susan Rice and the NSC, who were trying to manage his department and manage the Department of Defense over his head. And when he said the truth, he criticized the administration. Obama can tolerate a lot — cluelessness, incompetence, laziness — but not criticism; he had to go.