Lieberman nervous, angry, dispirited

Good!

Mr. Lieberman's physical posture is more hunched than usual these days, his normally deep and lulling cadences more clipped. "I should probably cut off this line of questioning," he said in a discussion relating to his recent announcement that he would run as an independent if he did not get the Democratic nomination. "I'm focused on the primary."

Mr. Lamont and Mr. Lieberman's critics on the left say he is out of touch with his party, especially but not solely on Iraq, and cannot be trusted to advance what they say are core progressive values.

"It's been just one thing after another with Lieberman," said Mr. Anderson, of New Haven, who went on to offer a litany of Mr. Lieberman's supposed sins against the Democratic Party, including his support for the nomination of Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the Supreme Court and his on-air chumminess with Sean Hannity, the conservative co-host of "Hannity & Colmes" on Fox News.

"This has all been in the works for a long time," he said, referring to the intraparty opposition to Mr. Lieberman.

Mr. Anderson nailed it. Joe Lieberman has carried the water for the Republicans and this administration for years. He's publicly embraced the most despicable people on the right (Limbaugh, Hannity, Buckley, every neo-con in Washington) while criticizing his own party (to his delight). Joe would almost trip over wires as he jumped in front of a network camera gleefully chastising Democrats on issue after issue for years (funny how you haven't seen him on FOXNews lately huh).

Now, more than ever, members of the Democratic Party should be working together for the good of The Democratic Party. A united party that works together, has a clear vision for the future, and (most importantly) is in touch with the people they represent, is the party that controls Congress. The Republicans had this mindset when they took over as the majority party and the Democrats must adopt this principle as they have a golden opportunity to become the ruling party for the first time in over 10 years.

Senator Joe Lieberman simply doesn't fit in that equation. In fact, when I think of a loyal Democrat who works for the good of the party, Joe Lieberman is the last person that comes to mind.

Think about it for a second. How many Democrats voted for the war? Hillary Clinton, John Kerry Joe Biden. Do you see any of these people in any sort of political trouble? No. Well, maybe that should tell you something the dissatisfaction people have towards Joe Lieberman...it goes well beyond the war.

Unlike those democrats who voted for the war, Lieberman is out of touch with the people he represents, goes out of his way to chastise any democrat who opposed the administration's handling of the war, and has the audacity to cheerlead for the conservative agenda (thus the term George Bush's favorite democrat). We, the democratic voters of Connecticut, simply can not have anymore of this nonsense from a senator who is suppose to represent our state. This embarrassment needs to come to an end, which is why Lieberman is currently facing the fight of his political life.

Now it seems that all the heat Joe's taking from the blogs and his critics is getting to him.

Mr. Lieberman, who seemed slow to recognize the seriousness of Mr. Lamont's challenge, also appears taken aback by the ferocity of the onslaught, particularly from liberal blogs.

To Mr. Lieberman's camp, the bloggers embody what his longtime friend Lanny Davis calls "the demonizing, hating, virulent, character-assassinating left of the Democratic Party."

Mr. Lieberman began, "Some of the vituperations, some of the extremity of the language and anger," before his voice trailed off. He paused for a second and started again: "They're describing a person who is not me." Colleagues have approached him on the Senate floor to console him, asking how he is holding up, as if he is sick or experiencing some trauma.

Mr. Lieberman's allies discuss him these days with a tinge of sadness, as if mourning a kindly gentleman who has wandered into a bad neighborhood. "He's being subjected to the hate machine like Bill Clinton and George Bush have," said Mr. Davis, a former special counsel to Mr. Clinton. "Joe Lieberman has never been subjected to this before."

Whaa, nobody likes me, whaa, bloggers are picking on me...

Is he serious?!?

Poor Joe? What about the countless democrats in this area he's slapped in the face over the last 6+ years? Since Joe had no problem spitting in the eye of the Democratic Party (with a smirk on his face nonetheless), why should I, or any other democrat, feel sorry for Lieberman as all we're doing is holding him accountable for his history of undermining the party?

Poor Joe? Let's roll the videoclip again...

As you can see from the clip, it's clear why Joe is in his present desperate situation. Now, it's so bad for Lieberman in Connecticut that many of his political friends who support him publicly, are singing a different tune privately. Most democrats in Connecticut have had enough of Lieberman with his close relationship with conservatives and his willingness to undermine the Democratic Party any chance he gets. To further prove my point, I'll refer you again to the following videoclip featuring Bob Tendler, chairman of the Southbury DTC. He shares the view of many in the state regarding George Bush's favorite Democrat.
It seems like the views Mr. Tendler has towards Joe is being echoed across the nation.

Mr. Gore declined to comment for this article. Privately, other leading Democrats have been quick to catalog what they consider to be Mr. Lieberman's slights to the party over the years - including his mild-mannered performance in his vice-presidential debate against Dick Cheney in 2000; his rejection of a filibuster that would have opposed the nomination of Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the Supreme Court; and his on-air chumminess with Sean Hannity, the conservative co-host of "Hannity & Colmes" on Fox News. His willingness to run for re-election as an independent is merely the latest offense.

Remember Senator Lieberman, this political freefall that you're in, is all due to your years of undermining the Democratic Party and not listening to the people you swore to represent.

Joe, you've betrayed the party, the party did not betray you. This is not personal, it's about the future of the Democratic Party and how the party would be stronger if you weren't in it.

MAJOR UPDATE: 8:30 P.M. This post has been updated and modified as I had a chance to reflect on what I really wanted to say here (and because the original post was too much of a rant). I think this revision properly represents my true feelings about Lieberman and this race.