[h=3]By SARA MURRAY[/h]WASHINGTON—Chuck Hagel's confirmation as the next secretary of defense was again in jeopardy Thursday as Republicans declared he wouldn't have the 60 votes necessary for his nomination to proceed.
Republican leaders told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) they were withholding GOP votes until they received more information, a Democratic leadership aide said.
Associated PressChuck Hagel, Obama's choice for defense secretary.
A senior Republican senator said they have the votes to block the nomination from proceeding—at least for a week. The senator said the intention wasn't to delay the vote indefinitely.
Earlier Thursday, Mr. Reid said the Senate would vote Friday on the Hagel nomination and delivered a scolding to Republican colleagues for their attempts to derail confirmation.
"This isn't a high school getting ready for a football game," he said on the Senate floor. "We're trying to confirm somebody to run the defense of our country."
Mr. Hagel, a former two-term Republican senator from Nebraska and a Vietnam combat veteran, was chosen to succeed Leon Panetta, who is retiring but will remain as defense secretary until his successor is confirmed.
Some Republican senators have requested extensive information about Mr. Hagel's finances. Others are pressing for more details from the administration about the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that left four Americans dead.
Instead of proceeding with the vote Friday, Democrats could choose to postpone it until the Senate returns from recess on Feb. 25. But doing so could set a dangerous precedent, one Democratic leadership aide said, by allowing the minority party to hold up cabinet nominees to extract information from the White House.
Republicans, including Sens. John McCain of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, want to delay a vote until the White House provides more information about the September attack in Benghazi.
Specifically, they want to know whether President Barack Obama personally spoke to Libyan government officials to ask for help while the U.S. post there was under siege. The White House said it has already detailed the president's involvement in responding to the Libya attack and accused Republicans of trying to politicize the issue.
Republican leaders told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) they were withholding GOP votes until they received more information, a Democratic leadership aide said.
Associated PressChuck Hagel, Obama's choice for defense secretary.
A senior Republican senator said they have the votes to block the nomination from proceeding—at least for a week. The senator said the intention wasn't to delay the vote indefinitely.
Earlier Thursday, Mr. Reid said the Senate would vote Friday on the Hagel nomination and delivered a scolding to Republican colleagues for their attempts to derail confirmation.
"This isn't a high school getting ready for a football game," he said on the Senate floor. "We're trying to confirm somebody to run the defense of our country."
Mr. Hagel, a former two-term Republican senator from Nebraska and a Vietnam combat veteran, was chosen to succeed Leon Panetta, who is retiring but will remain as defense secretary until his successor is confirmed.
Some Republican senators have requested extensive information about Mr. Hagel's finances. Others are pressing for more details from the administration about the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that left four Americans dead.
Instead of proceeding with the vote Friday, Democrats could choose to postpone it until the Senate returns from recess on Feb. 25. But doing so could set a dangerous precedent, one Democratic leadership aide said, by allowing the minority party to hold up cabinet nominees to extract information from the White House.
Republicans, including Sens. John McCain of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, want to delay a vote until the White House provides more information about the September attack in Benghazi.
Specifically, they want to know whether President Barack Obama personally spoke to Libyan government officials to ask for help while the U.S. post there was under siege. The White House said it has already detailed the president's involvement in responding to the Libya attack and accused Republicans of trying to politicize the issue.