FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2007, file photo, then-Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., speaks during an appearance at Bellevue University, in Bellevue, Neb. President Barack Obama will nominate Hagel as his next defense secretary, a senior administration official said Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013. The selection of the decorated Vietnam combat veteran sets up a potentially contentious confirmation hearing because Hagel has come under scrutiny from his former colleagues over his positions on Israel and Iran. Some Republicans already have declared their public opposition to Hagel replacing Pentagon chief Leon Panetta in Obama's second-term Cabinet. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)