Former Republican presidential candidate and Senator Rick Santorum came out in strong opposition of Chuck Hagel's nomination as Secretary of Defense, suggesting that Iran could acquire a nuclear bomb if he holds the position.
Santorum's PAC, Patriot Voices, sent an email to supporters this morning with the subject line "Iran has a nuclear bomb." Santorum suggested in the email that it could be the case with Hagel as Defense Secretary.
Santorum said that Patriot Voices will be launching a national media campaign with ads on television and radio in the hopes of blocking Hagel's confirmation.
Here's Santorum's full email:
"Iran has a nuclear bomb"
This could be the horrific headline not too far in the future if we don't stop the nomination of Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense.
I strongly oppose President Obama's nomination of former Senator Chuck Hagel for Secretary of Defense because his confirmation would send a dangerous signal to Iran and other radical Islamic elements which would make our country and our allies less secure. Not only did Senator Hagel tip off the Iranians that he would not use strength to prevent them from obtaining nuclear weapons, he disrespects our strongest ally in the middle east, Israel. Time after time, Sen. Hagel has sought to distance the United States from Israel and refused to stop efforts to end terrorist attacks on Israel.
But we shouldn't be surprised that President Obama would nominate someone like Senator Hagel to this important position. After all, it was President Obama who whispered his "flexibility" to Russian dictators.
That's why I am announcing our campaign to stop Chuck Hagel from becoming Secretary of Defense.
Defeating Senator Hagel's nomination will not be easy, but as we learned with our efforts to defeat the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) treaty, it is a battle worth taking on. Just last month, we won our fight to stop CRPD, and for the safety and security of our nation, I intend to win the fight to stop the nomination of Chuck Hagel as Defense Secretary.