Tuesday, January 06, 2004
Shameless Joe
The election season approaches and we're not yet settled on which Democratic candidate we like the best. But there's no question that our antipathy for Joe Lieberman grows with every debate.
The joke around 201k for months has been that Lieberman's support runs from one end of K Street to the other. Yeah, we're a funny bunch. But seriously, who other than lobbyists for insurance companies thinks this guy should be president?
On that subject here's the hilarious MWO's take on the only known photo of a Lieberman supporter.
Lieberman has only himself to blame for this. His constant attacks on Dean are so lame, so shallow, and so desperate that he makes himself sound even more marginal than he is -- no mean feat given his poll standings.
In fact, Lieberman hasn't mounted this vigorous an attack since he led the charge against (Bill Clinton's SEC Chairman) Arthur Leavitt's attempts to clean up accounting practices (in 1994, 1999, and 2000).
In yesterday's debate Lieberman was incensed -- incensed! -- that Dean hadn't released his private papers from Vermont. We wish we could remember Joe being as incensed at George Bush's locking up of HIS papers. Or Dick Cheney's.
Actually, Dean has said he'd be happy to give all the papers to a judge, and would release any the judge allowed, which sounded reasonable to us, and probably to everyone else on earth -- except Joe, of course, who has so very little to say in this campaign that he can't afford to let go of any bone he digs up, no matter how little meat is left on it.
In this instance he was left shaking the bone by himself in the corner, like a little dog snarling to itself while the family has dinner. The debate moved on without him -- which is actually a better response than the outright booing he's received in several of these debates -- so perhaps his team was encouraged.
Pretty much all he has to offer Democratic voters (the ones that don't run investment banking or insurance businesses) is that he's kind of in the same clique as Bill Clinton -- even though Clinton's VP tossed him over for Dean faster than Lieberman himself threw in Gore's towel during the 2000 Florida recount.
Lieberman has so little to offer beyond his Clinton association that in one debate he actually said his favorite song was "Don't Stop Thinking about Tomorrow". The guy is even using Clinton's theme music.
Given his record his theme song should be "There Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens".
Why should Dean have to respond, in debate after debate, to pot-shots from a guy who's pulling single digits in the polls? What the heck is Lieberman even doing on stage? Rather than give him the time of day, Dean should simply say, "I don't have to answer to a guy who isn't competing in this caucus, and is routinely booed by audiences of Democrats".
Obviously Lieberman would love the boost he'd get if Dean returned fire like that, and we doubt Dean will do more than politely defend himself. But the constant, fratricidal attacks are tiresome, and around here we've found ourselves wondering if Joe is only in this thing to torpedo Dean.
The joke around 201k for months has been that Lieberman's support runs from one end of K Street to the other. Yeah, we're a funny bunch. But seriously, who other than lobbyists for insurance companies thinks this guy should be president?
On that subject here's the hilarious MWO's take on the only known photo of a Lieberman supporter.
Lieberman has only himself to blame for this. His constant attacks on Dean are so lame, so shallow, and so desperate that he makes himself sound even more marginal than he is -- no mean feat given his poll standings.
In fact, Lieberman hasn't mounted this vigorous an attack since he led the charge against (Bill Clinton's SEC Chairman) Arthur Leavitt's attempts to clean up accounting practices (in 1994, 1999, and 2000).
In yesterday's debate Lieberman was incensed -- incensed! -- that Dean hadn't released his private papers from Vermont. We wish we could remember Joe being as incensed at George Bush's locking up of HIS papers. Or Dick Cheney's.
Actually, Dean has said he'd be happy to give all the papers to a judge, and would release any the judge allowed, which sounded reasonable to us, and probably to everyone else on earth -- except Joe, of course, who has so very little to say in this campaign that he can't afford to let go of any bone he digs up, no matter how little meat is left on it.
In this instance he was left shaking the bone by himself in the corner, like a little dog snarling to itself while the family has dinner. The debate moved on without him -- which is actually a better response than the outright booing he's received in several of these debates -- so perhaps his team was encouraged.
Pretty much all he has to offer Democratic voters (the ones that don't run investment banking or insurance businesses) is that he's kind of in the same clique as Bill Clinton -- even though Clinton's VP tossed him over for Dean faster than Lieberman himself threw in Gore's towel during the 2000 Florida recount.
Lieberman has so little to offer beyond his Clinton association that in one debate he actually said his favorite song was "Don't Stop Thinking about Tomorrow". The guy is even using Clinton's theme music.
Given his record his theme song should be "There Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens".
Why should Dean have to respond, in debate after debate, to pot-shots from a guy who's pulling single digits in the polls? What the heck is Lieberman even doing on stage? Rather than give him the time of day, Dean should simply say, "I don't have to answer to a guy who isn't competing in this caucus, and is routinely booed by audiences of Democrats".
Obviously Lieberman would love the boost he'd get if Dean returned fire like that, and we doubt Dean will do more than politely defend himself. But the constant, fratricidal attacks are tiresome, and around here we've found ourselves wondering if Joe is only in this thing to torpedo Dean.
