Which End Is Leading The Donkey?

I’ve deliberately stayed out of the fray in Connecticut between Joe Lieberman and Ned Lamont because it’s being covered so well by my lefty “betters” in the blogging world, as typified by this fine L.A. Times piece by Duncan Black that lays out the case against Lieberman pretty well.

When you read about Lieberman’s life and career, you can see how he made a name for himself in Democratic politics by working for RFK’s presidential campaign in 1968, meeting his wife while they worked as summer interns for Senator Abraham Ribicoff (D-CT) before they married in 1965, and then serving as state Attorney General for six years in the ‘80s.

I’m sure it’s hard to imagine this, but there must have been a time when Lieberman once possessed the fire and idealism currently owned by those who are seeking his exit from public life.

The problem in Lieberman’s case, of course, is that somewhere along the way, something went terribly wrong, as Duncan’s column articulates so well. Somehow the desire to do good and serve his constituency metastasized into holier-than-though self righteousness and smug condescension, which manifested itself into a truly awful voting record, as well as some hideous moments such as the now-infamous "kiss" from Dubya and Lieberman's "car ride" comment...

"...when Lieberman was asked to explain why he opposes a statewide law mandating that hospitals provide emergency contraception to rape victims even if they oppose it on moral grounds, Lieberman said 'In Connecticut, it shouldn't take more than a short car ride to get to another hospital.' Lamont pounced on that idiotic statement and won the backing of the National Organization of Women."

It’s actually funny, by the way, that Lieberman sough censure of Bill Clinton after the Repug impeachment inquisition over Monica Whatsername failed, particularly because, as Kos noted yesterday, Clinton chose to stick up for Lieberman anyway, which to me shows that Dubya’s predecessor has more character than anyone imagined. And Al Gore, who of course was Clinton’s vice president, gave Lieberman the biggest boost of all by choosing him as his running mate in 2000 (a move that was an exquisite bit of political calculation by Gore, I thought, even though it helped distance Gore from Clinton which, as far as I’m concerned, sealed Gore’s fate, along with a heaping dose of electoral fraud).

So at this point, Ned Lamont has forged a slight head-to-head lead over Lieberman, but what is intriguing me is the spectacle of the DLC hangers-on coming to Lieberman’s last-minute defense (such as Barbara Boxer, and I DEFINITELY thought SHE knew better). And as I mentioned, Clinton is trying to save Joe also (which is his right – I’m not going to criticize Clinton on this because, without him, there probably would be only one political party anyway; he grabbed the Dems by the scruff of the neck, so to speak, in the 90s, and dragged us along with him through eight years of a pretty successful presidency that interrupted the Repug reign on behalf of the investor class).

But I still have to wonder whether or not the DLC crowd truly understands what is going on.

When you still have people like Evan Bayh stating that, gee, the Democrats have to state a position on something to get elected instead of just STATING WHAT THAT POSITION IS (as Chris Bowers noted so well here), I end up getting this slightly sick feeling that the party is poised to suck defeat from the jaws of victory once again. And this post from the usually-reliable Ari Melber indicates to me that there are still some Dem apologists out there who think they understand why Lieberman is in trouble, but really don't.

The movement to oust Lieberman is not about political triangulation or capitulation or wondering what Democrats have to do to suck up to “values voters” or anyone in the South or “the heartland” who will NEVER VOTE DEMOCRAT(IC) ANYWAY. It’s not about some long-since-tarnished “Third Way” myth that Democrats can somehow govern on behalf of the constituency that truly supports the party and also make life as painless as possible for enough Repug benefactors who would graciously allow the Dems to continue to wield power.

No, this is full-throated cry to oust someone who has completely lost touch with his reason for political existence.

And I’m sure the narrative is playing out in some quarters to the tune of, “oh, there go those Democrats again, fighting among themselves. How can they be expected to govern when they can’t even define what they are?”

This fight for Ned Lamont in his quest to can Lieberman is part of the process of definition for the party, and it’s a healthy exercise that is LONG overdue. It concerns me to see a lot of party resources used up now on this that could be distributed for other general elections, but this is the case because of Lieberman’s petulant and almost deranged refusal to recognize reality. I don’t think it’s overstating too much to call this a battle for the heart and soul (or head vs. butt, possibly) of the party.

(And by the way, speaking of “the heart and soul of the party,” Mr. Casey Jr., happily, is showing signs of life in PA.)

So, with 14 days to go, let’s help Ned Lamont to send Joe packing by clicking here.

Now, if only we could do something about Ben Nelson...

Update: I think the fact that it has come to this is truly sad (but at least Howard & Co. get it...have to sign up for Sirius one of these days).