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Mr. Hagel, who has gone through three "murder boards," or mock hearings, in preparation for the real one, has met with nearly 60 members of the Senate. He has spent the past three weeks working out of a modest transition office down the hall from the office of the man he hopes to succeed, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, in the Pentagon E-ring, the corridor with sweeping views of the Potomac River and Washington.

With the help of a transition staff led by Marcel J. Lettre, Mr. Panetta's deputy chief of staff, Mr. Hagel has received voluminous Pentagon briefings, met with Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and spoken with the deputy defense secretary, Ashton B. Carter, who will remain in the job.

Mr. Hagel, 66, a decorated Vietnam veteran and a former Republican senator from Nebraska, has also worked closely with Mr. Obama's aides on what has become a major White House offensive to counter criticism from Jewish and conservative groups and some Democrats that Mr. Hagel is too hard on Israel and too soft on Iran.

The criticism surfaced even before Mr. Obama nominated Mr. Hagel, much in the same way that Susan E. Rice, the American ambassador to the United Nations and a favorite or Mr. Obama's to be secretary of state, came under harsh criticism for statements she made about the attack on the American mission in Benghazi, Libya.

But rather than allowing Mr. Hagel to step aside as Ms. Rice did, Mr. Obama formally announced him as his choice for defense secretary on Jan. 7.

As part of an aggressive effort to support Mr. Hagel, the White House arranged for him to meet this month with major Jewish groups as well as Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, who objected to a statement Mr. Hagel made in 2006: "The Jewish lobby intimidates a lot of people up here."

He was referring to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or Aipac, which advocates for Israel. Critics took issue with the implication that members of Congress are bullied and with his use of the word "Jewish" rather than "Israel," which some said suggested that all advocates for Israel are Jewish.

Mr. Hagel's past opposition to unilateral American sanctions against Iran, which he viewed as ineffective, has also become an issue. His view was out of step with current Obama administration policy, which has imposed on Iran tough unilateral sanctions as well as sanctions worked out with a coalition of other countries.

Mr. Schumer, the most influential Jewish member of the Senate, endorsed Mr. Hagel after the meeting with him, paving the way for other Democrats to do the same. The White House subsequently arranged another meeting between Mr. Hagel and representatives of major Jewish groups, including Aipac, the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Congress. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. stopped by. Although the Jewish groups did not endorse Mr. Hagel afterward, they have remained publicly silent and have not moved against him.

But some new political groups financed by anonymous donors continue to wage a media campaign against Mr. Hagel. One calling itself Americans for a Strong Defense is urging Democratic senators in five states to vote against him, saying he would make the United States "a weaker country." Another, Use Your Mandate, which presents itself as a liberal gay rights group but buys its television time through a prominent Republican firm, is attacking Mr. Hagel in ads and mailers as "antigay," "antiwoman" and "anti-Israel."

The antigay charge stems from disparaging comments he made in 1997 objecting to an "openly, aggressively gay" nominee for a top diplomatic post. Mr. Hagel has since apologized for the remarks.