(MCT) — WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans refused to allow a vote Wednesday on the nomination of Chuck Hagel to lead the Defense Department, staging the first filibuster against a president’s choice to head the Pentagon.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., called the move “a shame” as he announced on the Senate floor that he was unable to reach an agreement with the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee to avoid such a delay. Reid filed a motion to end the filibuster and said he expected to vote on it Friday.