There’s word today that Senator Lieberman is saying he won’t join a Republican filibuster of the health care bill after all. Harry Reid and Lieberman have reached a “private understanding” on the matter, Alexander Bolton says at The Hill. Steve Benen says that in fact Senate Democrats and the White House never thought he would support the filibuster, even when he was saying he would, because they believe Lieberman to be totally insincere.
So how do they know he’s not lying now?
And what would the “private understanding” be? Nice little chairmanship you’ve got there, Senator. I’d hate to see anything happen to it.
That leaves us with wondering what Senator Lieberman was trying to accomplish by saying he would support the filibuster. The consensus seems to be he was just trying to get attention.
If he runs again–as he says he will–he needs another coalition of dems, independents, and repubs. This kind of stuff helps limit the potential damage from a Republican challenger, I guess.
Like I said in a previous post, he is representing his constituents, the just happen to be corporations rather than people with no health care. Our country is such a disaster its tough to understand anything… I do with he would lose his chairmanship just for being such a douche bag.
Joe is an self important attention whore.He got a buzz off of the idea that he might be more powerful than the pres because he felt as though he was the deciding factor. I wondered how long it would take him to realize he wasn’t the only game in town and with all of the attention Snowe is getting how long it would be before he threw a temper tantrum.Being the self important attention whore that he is it didn’t take very long. I suspect he has been stomping his little feet for awhile now…demanding his cut of the importance, flailing on the floor like a child at the market when no one pays attention to his demand for attention. We all know someone needs to pick him up and give him a nice swat in the ass, yet no one does.I don’t believe anyone threatened his standing in committee but I believe it is more likely Joe got offered something more than he already has.And the really sad part is, whatever he was offered won’t do a damn thing for the people Joe “represents” because it is NOT about them.. it’s all about ego Joe and what he can get personally. ONE good thing came out of the circus that was bush. vs. Gore….we didn’t get stuck with Joe as our vp..I shutter to think how close he was to holding that office and I think America would be better of hunting with cheney than having joe as a vp.
Giving Joe the benefit of doubt, my guess is that Lieberman has to make the right noises to satisfy the insurance cos headquartered in his state. I suspected some heavy duty kabuki going on when 1) Joe said he’d join the Republican filibuster, and 2) Reid said “not to worry”.
Joe just thinks it’s emasculating that Hadassah is the only corporate whore in the family, and is sweetening his resume for when he starts interviewing in 2012.
Lieberman needs to be relegated to the Congressional broom closet.. Put ol’ thirty pieces of silver Joe’s office in with the slop sink and cleaning supplies.
The Senator from Israel would never filibuster legislation which provided affordable health care coverage for all Israelis.
Somebody pointed out to Leiberman that he casting himself as the ONE person who made health care reform FAIL in the Senate. If he enables a GOP fillibuster, he ALONE becomes the lightning rod for all the broad-based anger that would result from reform not passing. Joe would love to get back at progressives, and this would do it, but he’s not prepared to commit political suicide yet. For those who wanted to strip Joe naked after he supported McCain, consider where we might be if Leiberman thought he had nothing to lose.
“For those who wanted to strip Joe naked after he supported McCain, consider where we might be if Leiberman thought he had nothing to lose.”
Doug,
That’s a good point but what is right is right, to have an effective majority the leadership has to believe in and stand up for the causes it is progressing. Continuing to appease a neocon thug crybaby like Lieberman will only encourage this behavior in the future and cheapens the debate. The only thing that stops a little crybaby like Lieberman is a good ass-woopin. I say they should cast him off into obscurity and expose him for what he is: an Israel firster, neoconsuperfratboy, Xenophobic, anti-Arab, race baiting, wing-nut shill, insurance industry corporate whore!
Well then, he will try to get even more attention as “the man who stopped the best chance of health-care reform in 60 years”.
That would indeed be something!
It would even impress Beelzebub.
C
Uh, didn’t Reid’s office deny this categorically? I know you’re busy but you need to keep your stories updated.
I think you’re all being a little unfair to Lieberman. I’m going to give him an honest hearing before I make a judgment on his sincerity. I’m going to wait and read his upcoming interview in the December issue of The American Zionist Magazine. I hear it was a no holds barred interview, and they questioned his association with the JDL during his formative years in the political arena way back in the early 60’s. I bet Joel will adamantly deny any involvement with them..Ya think!
So it should be informative and beneficial to help make an impartial judgment about Lieberman. It’s important to keep an open mind!
I’m not sure but didn’t a certain political party run this tart to be VP a couple of years ago? Gore and a whore to go. Wasn’t that the slogan?
Just an FYI since you’ve been following Lieberman this week.
http://blogs.usatoday.com/onpolitics/2009/11/nine-protesters-arrested-at-liebermans-office.html