DREAM Act Fails Senate Test Vote

WASHINGTON (AP) --

Legislation to give children of illegal immigrants a path toward legality failed a crucial test vote in the Senate Wednesday, likely putting a final stamp on major immigration measures for the year.

Supporters needed to get 60 votes to advance the DREAM Act, which would have allowed illegal immigrants who plan to attend college or join the military, and who came to the United States with their families before they turned 16, to move toward legality.

The final vote was 52-44.

Nebraska
Aye NE Hagel, Charles [R]
Aye NE Nelson, Ben [D]

Chuck Hagel: Out

"I said after I was elected in 1996 that 12 years in the Senate would probably be enough, and it is," Hagel said.

Chuck Hagel will announce the end of his career in the U.S. Senate next week

BREAKING NEWS: Chuck Hagel is calling it quits

Omaha.com | JAKE THOMPSON

WASHINGTON - Chuck Hagel will announce Monday that he is retiring from the U.S. Senate and will not run for president next year, people close to the Nebraska Republican said Friday.

Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel plans to leave the Senate after two terms as a Republican Party maverick, people close to him say.Hagel plans to announce that "he will not run for re-election and that he does not intend to be a candidate for any office in 2008," said one person, who asked not to be named.

Chuck Hagel likely to announce retirement next week

Hagel to announce his future plans next Monday

The Political

Hagel to announce his future plans next Monday

Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), who is up for re-election next year, will be making an announcement on his political future Monday morning at 11:00 EST in Omaha, Nebraska.

Hagel and Godot - How Long The Wait?

What do Bob and Mike and Mike have in common with Estragon and Vladimir?

They are waiting.

Estragon and Vladimir are French tramps, endlessly Waiting for Godot in the play by Samuel Beckett that gave rise to the term “Theater of the Absurd.”

Bob Kerrey and Mike Fahey and Mike Johanns are politicians from Nebraska, but it only seems like they are endlessly waiting for Senator Chuck Hagel. The situation has become an overlong example of politics of the absurd.

read::: Nebraska StatePaper.com

Washington Post: Chuck Hagel keeps you guessing

Hot September for Senate Races

read::: The Fix blog

Flynn joins Jon Bruning in the Nebraska race for U.S. Senate

Pat Flynn, 48, founder of the investment firm Flynn and Associates in downtown Schuyler will announce his U.S. Senate candidacy on Tuesday. In our humble opinion, this appears to be more of a public relations and business development move than a serious political effort.

Meanwhile, current Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel remains open to:

a). running for a third term as senator
b). running for the president of the United States of America
c). running for vice president with Democrat Joe Biden
d). voluntary retirement
e). forced retirement
f). some of the above
g). all of the above

Hagel in a Hell of a Battle

“Cut & Run” Senator Chuck Hagel, who is still considered a possible GOP candidate for president next year, should probably be focusing a little more on his Senate re-election campaign.

read::: Michael Illions at the CWA-NJ blog

Hagel, Warner Announcing Exits Soon?

The two common strengths of my guests at lunch July 3 were 1) they know Republican politics in their respective states well and 2) they concluded that the Republican senators from those states, Chuck Hagel (Neb.) and John Warner (Va.), will announce sooner rather than later that they will not seek re-election in ’08.

“[Hagel] is doing some stupid things lately,” one source told me ...

read::: Human Events

Chuck Hagel: GOP hijacked; no run for president as an Independent

Chuck Hagel loves to meet the press. Today he said the following to a national television audience.

"But I have no plans to change parties or run for president as an independent."

Later (hedging): "You try to keep as many options open for yourself in life as you can. And you try to be in a position where you've got some opportunities."

"I also have said and said this when I first ran for the Senate after I got elected in 1996 that 12 years, two terms may be enough and that's another option."

"And then if there might be a place for me along the presidential road somewhere to try to have some influence and change the course of this country, then I'll look at that. But the decision needs to be made soon and I'll make it soon."

In May, Hagel said Republican Party had been led astray by some and it might be time for an independent presidential ticket.

To Hagel, the GOP is longer the party of "Eisenhower, of Goldwater, of Reagan," but instead has been hijacked by "single-minded, almost isolationist insulationists, power-projectors."

Hagel was interviewed Sunday on "Meet the Press" on NBC.

Hagel: "Ah…no. I think that was unfortunate."

Hagel: Libby shoulda gone to jail

U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel was asked on Omaha's KMTV whether he agreed with President Bush on the commutation of Scooter Libby’s thirty-month sentence. Hagel’s answer:

"Ah…no. I think that was unfortunate."

read>>> Leavenworth Street blog


MSNBC's Chuck Todd commented: "I used to joke that I thought Hagel was doing a great job campaigning to be the Democratic VP nominee. Maybe I should stop joking."

Jon Bruning Statement on the Hagel Town Hall Meeting

This week Senator Hagel spoke before 300 people at a "Town Hall Meeting" at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. Hagel said he thought the Iraq war would prove to be the greatest foreign-policy mistake in U.S. history.

"We're in a mess, we're in a huge mess," Hagel said. "We've got to get out of the mess, but we've got to do it the right way."


Jon Bruning reacted to Chuck Hagel's comments:

ON IRAQ:
Actions speak louder than words. Regardless of what Sen. Hagel says, conservative Nebraskans are frustrated that he has repeatedly voted with Harry Reid and the Democrats in favor of strict timetables for early surrender. They’re also frustrated with his comments that this country is engaged in an all-time “foreign policy blunder” and that the administration is “playing ping-pong with American lives.”

While I agree that diplomacy and international mediation are needed to help ease the burden on our troops, Senator Hagel’s plan does nothing to defeat the terrorists in Iraq or stop the sectarian violence that has slowed our progress. Security must be established before diplomacy can succeed. We must give General Petraeus a fighting chance to complete his mission before we talk about redeployment from Iraq.

ON IMPEACHMENT:
Conservative Nebraskans were outraged with Senator’s Hagel’s suggestion that impeachment was a viable option for President Bush. When asked today how he would hold the administration accountable, Senator Hagel changed his tune and said that wasn’t his job. The voters won’t forget his careless remarks and will hold Senator Hagel accountable.

ON IMMIGRATION:
I was surprised to hear Senator Hagel suggest today that border security has nothing to do with immigration reform. Illegal immigration costs taxpayers billions of dollars every year, and many continue to break our laws by flooding over our southern border. Border security is an urgent priority and must be a part of comprehensive immigration reform.

Newsweek: Rumbling on the Right

Newsweek says:

"Chuck Hagel's antiwar stance could make him a serious Republican candidate for the White House in 2008. But it's causing him headaches back home."

Jon Bruning says:

"Nebraska is more conservative than the nation as a whole. Senator Hagel, however, has become more liberal. And for some reason he has an anger to George Bush that is not particularly productive."

Read the full Newsweek article

Wake up Nebraska! Only One Senator is Listening

Today, the United States Senate blocked the much publicized immigration bill.

The bill's supporters fell 14 votes short of the 60 needed to limit debate (and to clear the way for passage of the legislation)

Critics of the bill assailed it as offering amnesty to illegal immigrants. The vote was 46 to 53 in favor of limiting the debate.

Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel (R) voted AYE (the pro amnesty position) while Nebraska Senator Ben Nelson (D) voted NO (the no amnesty position).

The vote was a victory for those who strongly criticized the bill's provisions that would have established an easy and unfair pathway to lawful status for many of the estimated 10-20 million illegal immigrants.

Opinion polls in Nebraska and throughout the country overwhelmingly disapproved of the amnesty features this bill would have allowed.

The affirmative, pro-amnesty vote by Senator Hagel (R) was anticipated. Senator Hagel has had a very open and liberal position on immigration over many years. A selection of Chuck Hagel's recent votes:

• Voted YES to kill the establishment of the border fence in 2006
• Voted YES on establishing a Guest Worker program. (May 2006)
• Voted YES on allowing illegal aliens to participate in Social Security. (May 2006)
• Voted YES on giving Guest Workers a path to citizenship. (May 2006)
• Voted YES on allowing more foreign workers into the US for farm work. (Jul 1998)

Despite the calls and requests of the voters from Nebraska to vote against this illegal immigration (amnesty) legislation, only one Senator listened (Nelson).

Today, one of two senators voted according to the wishes of the voters of Nebraska.

Wake up Nebraska!

Bruning Disappointed in Hagel Vote on Amnesty Bill

Jon Bruning is quoted as saying the following in the Southwest Nebraska News:

“I am terribly disappointed that Chuck Hagel would support any measure that prevents our immigration and custom officials from enforcing the law,” Bruning said.

Reason: Chuck Hagel Delenda Est!

For the record, you can now count on The Reason blog and David Weigel to provide an unreasonable defense of Senator Chuck Hagel. (btw, they don't call it "Hit & Run" for nothin!)

Hagel and the Immigration Bill of 2008

THE SELLOUT SEVEN * Graham (R-SC) * Hagel (R-Neb.) Lugar (R-Ind.) Martinez (R-Fla.) McCain (R-Ariz.) Specter (R-Pa.) Voinovich (R-Ohio)

Ted Kennedy on Immigration

1965: "The bill will not flood our cities with immigrants. It will not upset the ethnic mix of our society. It will not relax the standards of admission. It will not cause American workers to lose their jobs."
1986: "This amnesty will give citizenship to only 1.1 to 1.3 million illegal aliens. We will secure the borders henceforth. We will never again bring forward another amnesty bill like this."
2007: "Now it is time for action. 2007 is the year we must fix our broken system."

Jon Bruning officially enters Senate race

omaha world hearald

Published Thursday | June 7, 2007 Jon Bruning officially enters Senate race BY ROBYNN TYSVER WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

It's official: Jon Bruning entered the 2008 Senate race today.

Jon Bruning announcing his run for the Senate in the rotunda of the State Capitol.The second-term Nebraska attorney general said he will run for Senate whether fellow Republican and incumbent Sen. Chuck Hagel runs or not.

"I am a candidate without reservations," Bruning said at a news conference in Lincoln today. "I'm running hard and I'm running to win."

Hagel, who has angered many rank-and-file party members with his criticism of the Iraq war, has not announced whether he will run for a third term. He plans to make his decision in the fall.

Bruning said he is disappointed in Hagel's vote for early troop withdrawal from Iraq and Hagel's support of President Bush's immigration bill.

Bruning said he believes he can beat Hagel and former Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns if either get into the race. He tried to paint Hagel as an out-of-touch Washington lawmaker who is not a Nebraskan.

He referred to Hagel - who currently lives in Virginia - as a carpetbagger. Bruning said that if former Sen. Bob Kerrey got into the race he would also portray him as a carpetbagger.

Bruning noted that his supporters include former Nebraska football coach Tom Osborne, Omaha businessman David Sokol and state Treasurer Shane Osborn.

Bruning made his announcement with family and about 75 supporters in the rotunda of the State Capitol.

Bruning 4 Senator in Nebraska!

It's official: Jon Bruning entered the 2008 Senate race today.