The (NWO)Neo-cons now in control of GOP are against Hagel because he's a true conservative.

[blm]

No true conservative supports neo-con interventionism or supported the invasion of Iraq. True conservatives questioned Bush and Cheney's rush to war.

When Graham and Co. are attacking Hagel as 'not conservative' enough, don't let them get away with their misuse of language - it's deliberate to distract their GOP voters from the fact that the military policies the GOP leaders have been pushing the last few decades are the policies pushed by the neo-cons, not traditional conservatives.

I have always been square with true conservatives and accept the legitimacy of their views based in conservative principles, but, they haven't been the voice of the GOP for many years.

[Jackpine Radical]

1. "True conservatives" in my estimation run heavily toward libertarianism.

Small government, small armies, low authoritarianism, pro-civil-rights, etc. There was a time in my long-gone idealistic youth when I held ideas that had a lot in common with them. Then I got out into the real world and discovered that some of their theories don't translate well into providing good lives for people. But I can still respect their sincerity and the value of some of their positions.

[blm]

2. Yep. True conservatives are loathe to overspend on military, too.

Today's neocons don't care how wildly out of control military spending has become, the overthetop upkeep suits their interventionist worldview.