WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House confirms that President Barack Obama will be nominating former Republican senator Chuck Hagel and counterterrorism adviser John Brennan today to be key players in his second-term national security team.
Hagel is Obama's choice to be defense secretary, while Brennan is being nominated to lead the CIA. Along with John Kerry -- who is nominated to be secretary of state -- Brennan and Hagel would play major roles in shaping and implementing Obama's national security priorities for the next four years.
Obama is making it clear that he's ready for a tough confirmation fight in the Senate. Hagel has been accused of being anti-Israel and soft on Iran. And Brennan has faced questions about his ties to harsh interrogation techniques that were used during the administration of George W. Bush.
%@AP Links
128-a-13-(Mark Jacobson, Army veteran and senior transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund, in AP interview)-"he has taken"-Mark Jacobson, an Army veteran and security analyst at the German Marshall Fund, predicts that although the path may be rough, lawmakers will approve Chuck Hagel's nomination. (7 Jan 2013)
<<CUT *128 (01/07/13)>> 00:13 "he has taken"
129-a-14-(Mark Jacobson, Army veteran and senior transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund, in AP interview)-"of terrorism worldwide"-Mark Jacobson, an Army veteran and security analyst at the German Marshall Fund, says John Brennan is a perfect choice for CIA director. (7 Jan 2013)
<<CUT *129 (01/07/13)>> 00:14 "of terrorism worldwide"
GRAPHICSBANK: John Brennan headshot, as Assistant to the President for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security, graphic element on gray (7 Jan 2013)
