Washington Post, Post Politics, 31 Jan 2013, Ed O'Keefe: "Using charts and video clips from a 2009 interview with Al Jazeera English, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) sought to highlight concerns with previous statements, or perhaps the lack thereof, made by Chuck Hagel during appearances on the international news channel. Departing from the normal format at Senate hearings, Cruz had the committee staff play a clip of Hagel’s appearance on an Al Jazeera call-in program, during which a caller suggested that Israel had committed war crimes. During his response to the question, Hagel did not anything to refute the caller's statement. 'Do you think the nation of Israel has committed war crimes?' Cruz asked Hagel after the clip was played. 'No I do not, senator. I’d want to look at the full context of the interview, but to answer your question, no,' Hagel said. ... After Cruz’s questions, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.) asked Cruz’s staff to transcribe the interview clips in their entirety so they could be included in the formal record of the hearing."

TPM, 31 Jan 2013, David Taintor: "One woman wrote in to ask, 'Can the rest of the world be persuaded to give up their arsenal when the image of the United States is that of the world's bully? Don't we indeed need to change the perception and the reality before asking folks to lay down their arms, nuclear or otherwise?' Hagel responded on-air, 'Well, her observation is a good one and it's relevant. Yes to her question.' Cruz used the woman's question -- and Hagel's answer -- to suggest that the defense secretary nominee agreed with the statement." -- My interpretation of the woman's words is that the United States has the image of a bully, not that the United States is a bully. It appears that Senator Hagel was agreeing with that interpretation of what the woman had written.

TPM, 12 Feb 2013, Tom Kludt: "Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member James Inhofe (R-OK) on Tuesday commended Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) for playing a footage of an 2009 appearance that defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel made on Al Jazeera during last month's testy confirmation hearing. Inhofe thanked Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) for 'bending the rules a little bit' in allowing Cruz to play the footage during the hearing." With video.