The Ever-Shifting Confidence of the Anonymous Anti-Hagel Sources

By David Weigel | Posted Friday, Feb. 8, 2013, at 4:32 PM ET

Carl Levin is pushing past the GOP's request for a proctology-level examination of Chuck Hagel's foundation ties. The anti-Hagelians don't miss a step. Today's meme, as CTRL+F'd by Jennifer Rubin, is that Hagel is probably hiding something—"a host of shadowy figures whose identities Hagel is so insistent on concealing." Yes, Hagel released information in line with the committee's standards and requests, but when Henry Kissinger was up for the 9/11 Commission, Democrats wanted similar information from him—the sin of hypocrisy, if hypocrisy can be applied to how one feels about an apple after stating one's opinion about an orange.

Innuendo aside, I'm struck by the return of the anti-Hagelians' greatest, yet most disappointing ally: The anonymous Senate staffer. A "disgusted" staffer tells Rubin that the nomination could be sunk, if only this information were released. What else have we heard from staffers?
December 13, 2012: Republicans will prove Hagel's racism!

In response to reports that Barack Obama is likely to choose Chuck Hagel to be the next secretary of defense, a top Republican Senate aide emails, "Send us Hagel and we will make sure every American knows he is an anti-Semite."

--clip
So we've gone from, "We'll prove he's an anti-Semite," to, "We proved it, he's done," to, "We might block him because of the hearing," to, today, "Maybe we can prove he's tied to foreigners?" Feel the momentum.

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http://www.slate.com/blogs/weigel/2013/02/08/the_ever_shifting_confidence_of_the_anonymous_anti_hagel_sources.html