What Chuck Hagel’s Resignation Signals About Obama’s Foreign Policy

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel formally submitted his resigned on Monday, after being pressured by the White House to give up the job less than two years into the cabinet post.

In a speech announcing his resignation, President Barack Obama praised Hagel as “an exemplary defense secretary” and “a great friend,” but his departure likely signals a shift in defense policy.

Even though he maintained that the decision was a mutual one, an anonymous Obama administration official told the New York Times that the resignation came because of an agreement that “the next couple of years will demand a different kind of focus.”

Another anonymous official familiar with the situation said that Hagel had been forced out claiming, “There’s no question he was fired.”

When nominated for the secretary post two years ago, Hagel was seen as a prime candidate to contend to manage plans for the drawdown of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and Iraq and to manage an overhaul in defense spending. But as Obama has pushed back withdrawal dates and committed additional resources to contain ISIS, Hagel may have become increasingly ill-suited for the role.

“They chose Hagel for a job that just turned out to be very different than what was expected with the rise of ISIS,” a former national security aide to Obama told NBC.

Hagel, the only enlisted combat veteran to serve as defense secretary, has been an outspoken critic of U.S. military intervention. In his 2008 book America: Our Next Chapter, Hagel called the military invasion of Iraq under President George W. Bush “misguided and dangerous.”

“To go to war in Iraq was an historic blunder borne of an astounding amount of arrogance, ignorance and incompetence. In my opinion, this misstep will play out to be the most dangerous and costly foreign policy debacle in our nation’s history,” he wrote.

On September 3, Hagel told CNN that he did not support “boots on the ground” in Iraq.

“The president has been very clear about we’re not going to go back into Iraq the same way we came out of Iraq a few years ago,” he said. “That means a combat action, so-called boots on the ground combat action for American troops. We’re not going to do that. I support that decision. I think it’s the — the right decision.”

Days later, Obama announced that he would increase “support to forces” fighting ISIS in Iraq.

Over the last few months, Obama has continued to increase the number of U.S. troops in Iraq in addition to carrying out airstrikes over ISIS targets there and in Syria. And as questions about the ability of Afghan forces to maintain peace after the U.S. closes down its combat mission there, Hagel’s well-documented skepticism of intervention abroad may have put him at odds with the president’s foreign policy. His resignation might, therefore, only signal further military engagement abroad.

Hagel will continue to serve as defense secretary until his successor is confirmed. In a statement following one made by President Obama on his resignation, Hagel said, “I believe we have set not only this department, the Department of Defense, but the nation on a stronger course toward security, stability and prosperity. If I didn’t believe that, I would not have done this job.”

Original Article
Source: thinkprogress.org/
Author:  Beenish Ahmed