Well, this doesn’t happen very often, but I agree with this post by Markos:
Here’s what we all need to do the next few days:
- Push Harry Reid to strip Lieberman of all committee assignments.
- Let people know what a sore loser Lieberman is.
- Get all Democrats — including Bill Clinton — to publicly back Ned Lamont.
- Get the Democratic interest groups who backed Lieberman to switch allegiances in the general.
The DSCC and the DCCC will have to deal with the fact that this race will continue to suck oxygen from great pickup opportunities. And I won’t apologize for that, because as a proud Democrat, I will help in whatever way I can the Democratic nominee from the Great State of Connecticut.
Of course, I’m pretty certain that Reid won’t do shit about it. The boys’ club is more important than the will of the people, and if they don’t actually act like a real political party and freeze Lieberman out of the caucus they will prove what so many of us know … that the Democrats aren’t a real political party. I hope I’m wrong. I’ll post a mea culpa if I am.
I’m not holding my breath.
That’s good.
blue is definitely NOT my color!
I think Reid should let Lieberman know in no uncertain terms that he will be stripped of his committee assignments if he files as an independent tomorrow. If he decides to bow out gracefully I would let him keep his assignments for whatever good he may want to do for the people of Connecticut in his time left in the Senate. (Consider that the carrot part of the equation.) But if he follows through on his threat to run as an independent he is leaving the party, and should be treated like he was leaving the party. (The stick.)
Will it happen? I wouldn’t even pretend to know. Too bad Connecticut doesn’t have a sore loser law like Ohio’s.
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Congratulations to all – let’s go forward for total victory in November and General Bush’s Waterloo: what a loserman …
«« click for Lieberman's retreatNed Lamont celebrates his victory at the Four Points Sheraton in Meriden, CT. In the background are Rev. Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, and to Lamont's left are his daughter Lindsay, and son Teddy. AP Photo/Fred Beckham≈ Cross-posted from my diary —
Lieberman Support for Bush, Israel, Iraq [War] and Mujadeen ≈
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
Joe,
If you read this, just go home and find a new line of work. The voters just handed you your ass. Don’t whine, don’t jump up and down. Embrace defeat, you will be a better person for it.
Bobx
Mr. Lieberman, you have been weighed, and you have been measured, and you have absolutely been found wanting. Welcome to New World. The people have chosen
Ned Lamont.
PS. I would not recommend Florida for your retirement.
In no way will Leiberman drop out. Statewide polls show a tight race. Republicans will support Leiberman. His support of bankrupt policies must be attacked. Attacking his running as an independent, with the voting populace, won’t work.
I’m actually more interested/worried about how the party “leadership” reacts to this. I think Lieberman will probably win, but Lamont could make it a real contest if the party actually supports him fully, and NOT just w/ money.
I make jokes (it’s a defense mechanism against all the horror), but that’s about my take on it, too. I’m very curious to see what happens next.
I’m actually more interested/worried about how the party “leadership” reacts to this.
Yes, this is the part I find interesting also. As a C-Span watcher I’ve seen Lieb undercut his fellow Democratic senators so many times and in inexcusable fashion I cannot help but think that a good many of them are pleased by yesterday’s primary results. For instance, I’m pretty sure Carl Levin went to bed smiling….
What, do you think, will Bill Clinton do?
Bill has been so willing to back up the Bushies over the last couple of years it is hard to say. I could really see him backing Lieberman, then Hillary doing a Sister Souljah number on her husband, to demonstrate independence from him.
God knows … the speeches I heard today were pretty lukewarm, and merely giving $5K from your “leadership” PAC (cough) isn’t really demonstrating enthusiastic source …
I think Lamont makes them nervous, b/c they spend more time w/ Beltway water cooler talk than they do in the real world, and they fear and dislike real voters. Emphasis on dislike.
…I’ve seen Lieb undercut his fellow Democratic senators so many times and in inexcusable fashion I cannot help but think that a good many of them are pleased by yesterday’s primary results.
Oh yeah. Not everyone is crying over this simpleton sychophant. Trust.
Damn…wish I could be a fly on the wall at the next caucus meeting…Heh.
A thousand times “yes!” on this point.
I don’t want to see CYA support. I want the real thing. I’ll be pissed to high heaven if it doesn’t happen.
This fiction, this absolute fiction that some how this columnist creation was EVER popular in the party is bullshit. There was A LOT of pressure to get folks to get accept that ticket. They did. Same as with Kerry…ABB, remember? After the primary, that’s exactly what liberals and progressives did–close ranks behind Kerry. Get people to turn out and vote, talk Kerry up, Greens down, the whole thing.
I want to see some fucking reciprocity this time.
I’m not holding my breath, either. But I don’t think there are too many people willing to make nice if the party screws Lamont.
From ABC News blog:
Ha ha… Although this information was later disclaimed (see UPDATE of that message).
On the rightwing blogosphere, Joe and Karl were mentioned together this way yesterday.
If general elections were today, Lieberman would win. But Lamont has a few weeks of time to make a case that the people who voted for him have a point. It is a new political teritory, but the ball is in Lamont’s hands. All Lieberman can do is to use Rovian tricks and hope that Lamont will make mistakes or miss opportunities.
He should just bow out gracefully. But given his recent tenor, Lieberman will continue to look more shrill, desperate and irrelevant if he goes independent and continues his efforts. Lamont will look even better by comparison.
It appears that Revoltin’ Joe has indeed filed the paperwork to go it alone. So be it. Cry havoc, and let slip the dogs of war. If he thought the primary was bad, I hope he’s ready for the general election, because it’s going to be “no more Mr. Nice Guy” from Blogtopia (let ‘er rip, Lance Corporal Skippy!).
Should we place odds on him delivering the keynote address at the 2008 Republican National Convention?