Big whoop. Sen. Chuck Hagel addresses a polite letter to the President asking him to, golly gee, maybe think about diplomacy before launching a full-blown war against Iran.
But he apparently intended for it to be kept secret. See Private Note to Bush from Hagel Calls For Direct, Unconditional, Comprehensive Talks with Iran Steve Clemons, The Washington Note 10/31/07.
Somehow, the myth of the Republican "moderate" limps along. Hagel has one of the most pro-Bush voting records in Congress. He did vote for one or two of the Democrats' more substantial proposals on withdrawing from Iraq.
But at this stage of the game, what is an appeal like this going to accomplish when dealing with men like Dick Cheney? It's just hard to believe it can accomplish anything.
A more public and explicit stance against launching a unilateral war against Iran, combined with aggressive debunking of the shaky-to-downright-bogus claims Cheney and Bush are making about Iran would be more helpful.
It's symptomatic that the only Republican in Congress identified with strong, straight-forward opposition to the Iraq War and to attacking Iran is Ron Paul. And he's a far-right conspiracy kook. He's against the Iraq War, he says, because it is being waged on behalf of the United Nations.
Tags: chuck hagel, iraq war, iran war, ron paul
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