Chuck Hagel served two terms in the U.S. Senate and was sworn in as the 24th Secretary of Defense on February 27, 2013, becoming the first enlisted combat veteran to lead the Department of Defense. Hagel and his brother Tom served side by side in Vietnam in 1968 as infantry squad leaders with the U.S. Army's 9th Division. He earned many military decorations and honors, including two Purple Hearts. A fourth-generation Nebraskan, Secretary Hagel is a graduate of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Hagel and his wife, Lilibet, have two children.
