Chris Cillizza documents what he thinks the case for Chuck Hagel to run for president.

Missing from Cillizza’s analysis is the fact that Hagel is one of the most conservative members of the Republican senate caucus, with a 96 rating from the American Conservative Union. Hagel’s ideology is the reason Republicans would support him, not a narrative that falsifies his record in order to get it to fit with his Iraq war stance.

Conventional Wisdom has become that because Hagel is bucking President Bush to oppose escalating the Iraq war that he is therefore a rebel or a maverick. Democrats love him because of his Iraq war stance. But both Conventional Wisdom and the Democrats that who are falling for the CW narrative on Hagel are wrong. Hagel is a doctrinaire conservative and he should not be praised by anyone who calls themselves a Democrat.

Cenk Uygur has a great breakdown of who Chuck Hagel really is. Did you know he’s voted with the Bush administration 95% of the time? Or that Hagel voted with Bush more than any other senator in 2006? I suggest you check Uygur’s post out before making a decision about Chuck Hagel that revolves around the Conventional Wisdom that he is a moderate maverick who Democrats should love.


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