McCain has daddy issues. His father and grandfather were both decorated Navy admirals, and John's own military career never reached those same heights. He tries to make up for it by displaying a rabid, chest-thumping militarism -- he's always in favor of more military action, more troops, more ships, more bombing, more war. When in doubt, blow something up, send in the Marines and stay there forever.
McCain has maintained that our departure from Viet Nam was a mistake because that war was "winnable." He was all for our invasion and occupation of Iraq, he was a big fan of our "surge" in Iraq, and did not want us to leave. Even now, he does not think we should leave Afghanistan.
True, Hagel often looked like a deer in the headlights yesterday and at times was not especially articulate. I think he was stunned by the vicious grandstanding and back-stabbing from some of his former GOP colleagues. With friends like these . . . It really was an ugly episode.
Hagel's military experience is beyond reproach. He has personally defended us against our supposed enemies. But he's not your standard-issue Republican military cheerleader -- Hagel makes it clear that he considers the Viet Nam War our worst military misadventure, and Dubya's Iraq War a close second. He was unenthusiastic about the surge because he was unsure if the result would be worth the price in lives lost. He supported our withdrawal from Iraq, and supports Obama's timetable for gettin' our asses out of Afghanistan.
Hagel speaks the truth about our military fuck-ups, and McCain takes it personally, and poorly.
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