JustASC

A Christian Science Monitor oped praising Chuck Hagel is exactly what the pro-Israel community is worried about:

With today’s Senate confirmation hearing for Chuck Hagel as US secretary of Defense, it is worth taking a moment to review the fall and rise of Mr. Hagel’s nomination

It is a welcome, if overdue, sign that “daylight” between American and Israeli policies may be becoming more politically acceptable in Washington.

Or maybe not:

Hagel himself will be under pressure to back off his previously stated positions, such as favoring diplomacy over military action with Iran and willingness to engage with Hamas. To support his confirmation, he wrote in a letter to California Sen. Barbara Boxer (D), “I fully intend to expand the depth and breadth of U.S.-Israel cooperation.”

Thus the price for Hagel’s confirmation may be to hew closer to the currently acceptable political line – much as he did earlier this month when meeting with Senator Schumer.

The author, by the way, is Rebecca Vilkomerson, the executive director of Jewish Voice for Peace.