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Republican opposition to Chuck Hagel dissipating?

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    Fox News contributor Byron York weighs in

  • Duration 3:35
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Or more on this let's bring in Byron York chief political correspondent for the Washington examiner.

And a Fox News contributor the ways of the senate can sometimes be confusing Byron.

But it looks like those senators who have voted to block the nomination to this point.

Might not necessarily vote against the nomination when they come back.

-- in session.

You're right the the hagel filibuster which started on Thursday did not survive the Sunday shows and the reason is is because Republicans were were never united on this are very divided on this -- are very few of Republicans.

Who actually support the -- nomination.

In -- -- others who oppose hagel but oppose filibustering them that there were those who wanted to filibuster hagel on the merits.

And then there were a couple more like Lindsey Graham and John McCain.

Who didn't want to filibuster on the merits but one of the filibuster is a way to pressure of the Obama administration to release more information about and got -- so.

There were all these different reasons and they were the and they didn't have any votes to spare -- only 41 votes.

To uphold a filibuster and it pretty much fell apart yesterday is McCain the pivotal vote here.

Yeah I think he was because he he had originally come out very publicly said.

I don't think Chuck Hagel the right guy for the job but he should get an up or down vote I John McCain will not filibuster him.

Then after talked with -- Lindsey Graham he decided to join a group that was filibustering.

In an effort to get those Ben -- documents so he voted to uphold the filibuster.

On Thursday.

Now he says that hey it was gonna get -- -- I think that.

There's no doubt that unless some sort of new information comes out in the whole situation changes -- will be confirmed.

I wanted to ask you this question and and then give you -- sort of theory on an why did the president nominate.

Chuck -- to begin with and and I wondered from the start whether.

Whether this was a Republican nominee whom the president new rule would not be popular among his fellow Republicans and it might somehow make the Republican members of the senate look small.

And created those very divisions we were talking about I think first of all.

The president nominated echo because I think he -- -- is pretty much in the same places the president on a number of major public policy issues.

And -- -- the secretary defense side I think that's what happened I do think.

The president may have under estimated the intensity of the opposition among -- Republicans.

I was talking about all those groups of various positions the biggest group actually opposes hagel on the merits.

And but the problem for those Republicans it is.

They've been delaying and delaying trying to find -- good stuff in hopes that at least one just one Democrat would peel off.

And oppose -- and then they hope maybe the floodgates would open.

I just hadn't happened yet and it looks like senator Graham and particularly -- Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has received the information that he wanted -- -- Ghazi.

It's not really on Ben -- there was this was actually on a statement -- who was alleged to have made about Israel.

And -- -- made a number of comments about Israel pastoral years that have disturbed a lot of his.

Detractors.

Among the Republican in the Republican Party.

And so this was statement calling the State Department -- adjunct of of Israel.

Which really raised a lot of eyebrows among Republicans and an -- hagel told Graham that you can recall saying it so hate -- -- okay if that's that's what he says I'll go along with that that was the Rutgers University remark -- -- -- aren't.

Thanks for clear me up on that Byron York from the Washington examiner -- thank thank you John.

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