Hagel: "A Steady, Unsure Sense ..."

Reuters filed this report early this afternoon, highlighting some recent appearances by Nebraska senator Chuck Hagel and some new and important statements from him on Iraq which I think are certainly worth noting. There is little here that he's not said similarly in the past, but coming right now they are particularly powerful.

- "We are seen as occupiers, we are targets. We have got to get out. I don't think we can sustain our current policy, nor do I think we should."

- "The mood is one of a certain sense of unsteadiness. I have sensed that since September 11, 2001. Our people have still not found an equilibrium and when you get these shocks, like gasoline at $2.50 a gallon and projecting natural gas costs doubling and tripling from what they paid last year, that further shakes them. I don't think there's panic, I don't think there's cynicism. I think there's this steady unsure sense about where is this all leading -- the constant daily reports on Iraq, our people being killed there, the money being spent there."

- "The feeling that I get back here, looking in the eyes of real people, where I knew where they were two years ago or a year ago -- they've changed. These aren't people who ebb and flow on issues. These are rock solid, conservative Republicans who love their country, support the troops and support the president."

- "The expectations that the president and his administration presented to the American people 2 1/2 years ago is not what the reality is today. That's presented the biggest credibility gap problem he's got. I hope he has some sense that something's going on out in the country, that there's a lack of confidence that has developed in our position."

I take every statement from Chuck Hagel very seriously. I don't think he's the kind of guy who messes around. These are statements that all of us need to consider carefully right now, but I hope that they are viewed with a particular seriousness by the folks down at the ranch.