Lieberman: Some Bloggers Bigoted, No Dem Can Dissuade Him From Indie Run

GMA-Today Show/NewsBusters ^ | Mark Finkelstein

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on August 9, 2006 - 08:06.

Howard Dean's 2004 presidential primary run was largely fueled by internet-driven support orchestrated by campaign manager Joe Trippi. That campaign fell famously short in the echoes of Dean's Iowa caucus-night scream. But with Ned Lamont's win, the left wing blogosphere can this morning claim perhaps its first major victory . . . at least in a Democratic primary if not in a general election.

And that, in turn, raises the real question. Does the same left-wing blogosphere that can influence the outcome of Dem primaries foist on the party candidates so extreme that they stand little chance of winning in November? We are about to see a test case in CT, and indications are that by appealing to moderate Dems and Republicans, Joe Lieberman might well defeat Lamont and Republican Alan Schlesinger [perceived as a less-than-A-list candidate].

The influence and nature of the blogs were an important focus of Lieberman's interview this morning by Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America:

Sawyer: "Some of your supporters have gone very far on the bloggers. They said this is the first for the anti-war bloggers and some of them have called them names like extremists, saying that they have engaged in everything from dirty tricks to even bigotry was a word that was suggested. Do you think that the the extremists hijacked your party in your state; will you agree with that statement?"

Lieberman: "The blogs are a form of expression. There's nothing wrong with a blog. It depends on how you use it. I will tell you that the bloggers who came after me - - some of them were so full of hatred that it is the just not good for our politics. Frankly, on some of those blogs, there was the kind of bigotry that has no place in American public life. So I worry that this victory yesterday by Ned Lamont, which was a narrow victory, will send a message across our state and our country that the Democratic party has taken -- has been taken over by people who are not from the mainstream of America."

Continuing, Lieberman sought to tie himself to a man who campaigned for him in the primary but could well now be supporting his opponet.

Lieberman: "[The left-wing blogs] are going to make this not Bill Clinton's Democratic party anymore. Remember, Bill Clinton was a mainstream democrat who was elected twice and governed with great success."

Over at the Today show, Matt Lauer questioned Joe's party loyalty, and Lieberman made clear no Dem could dissuade him from pursuing his independent candidacy.

Lauer's first question out of the box: "I imagine your phone will start to ring pretty early this morning. The likes of Frank Lautenberg and maybe Bill Clinton saying step aside. The voters have spoken. Will you take their calls or screen them?"

Lieberman: "I will always take the calls of friends, but my mind is made up."

Lauer returned to the theme: "There a lot of Democrats who think you're putting your own personal ambitions ahead of the good of the party."

Lauer's closing question: "Is there any phone call you could receive, is there anyone in the Democratic party who could call you today and ask you to drop out that you would listen to?"

Lieberman: "Respectfully, no. I am committed to this campaign, to a different kind of politics, to bringing the Democratic party back from Ned Lamont, Maxine Waters to the mainstream."

Now that the netroots have their man, will they modify their message to appeal to the broader electorate? Or might the left-wing bloggers hold Lamont's feet to the radical fire, preferring to commiserate over a principled loss rather than work toward a possible win?

[governsleastgovernsbest]

Today Show-GMA/NewsBusters ping.

[conservativecorner]

So I worry that this victory yesterday by Ned Lamont, which was a narrow victory, will send a message across our state and our country that the Democratic party has taken -- has been taken over by people who are not from the mainstream of America."

Joe should be worried about the Rat Party. This is a dream scenario for Republicans.

[newconhere]

Maybe we are beginning to see the split of the Democratic Party.

[TomGuy]

Lieberman is just hurting himself. He ran on a party ticket. He lost. He should accept that.

Running as an Independent is sour grapes.

Conjecture is that, if he did win, he would caucus with the Dems. Isn't that a tad hypocritical, since the Dems were the ones who voted him out?

Come on, Joe, show grace and accept your loss, not sour grapes.

[johnny7]

Lauer returned to the theme: "There a lot of Democrats who think you're putting your own personal ambitions ahead of the good of the party."

”Lay down stubborn Jooo... the Dhimmi-Reich demands it!”

[gridlock]

Lieberman's statement last night that he can not and will not let his party be taken over by partisan radicals is definitive, IMHO. There is no way he can go back on that. Unless he was fully committed to an independent run, he would not have said that.

This is a three-way race. Frankly, I think it is Lieberman's to lose.

If the Republicans in Connecticut were smart (yeah I know... IF), they would drop the loser they have and cross endorse Lieberman. It's time to put down these Moonbats like a rabid dog.

[HawaiianGecko]

33% of registered voters in CT are Democrats. Only 50% of them show up to vote yesterday, or 16.5% of registered voters. Then only 50% of them voted for Lamont, dropping the count to only 8% of registered voters elected this guy. When you consider that registered voters make up about half of the population, we're down to about 4% of CT residents involved in this tragedy.

Personally, as I have posted previously I was hoping Lamont would win by a small margin because it would put the party into an absolute snit. Dems in close races and those without a chance to begin with, will be moving to the left of Karl Marx by November and this bodes very well for the GOP.

[longtermmemmory]

Old democrats have found a new insult for those that unseated liberman. They are saying "they are a FEW democrats who are acting like ALL republicans."

[Sax]

Lieberman: "[The left-wing blogs] are going to make this not Bill Clinton's Democratic party anymore. Remember, Bill Clinton was a mainstream democrat who was elected twice and governed with great success."

I see what he's trying to say, I'm not really sure this statement is really helping Joe's case.

So the Dems choice is being hijacked by the waaay radical left, or being Bill Clinton's party. Just smashing!

[rhombus]

Lieberman's statement last night that he can not and will not let his party be taken over by partisan radicals is definitive, IMHO. There is no way he can go back on that. Unless he was fully committed to an independent run, he would not have said that.

Nah, there's always ways to go back..."spend more time with my family", "spare them the strain of a nasty campaign", blah, blah, blah. I would expect that the urging will get quite extreme and maybe even resort to nasty threats. The coallition of MoveOn.org, Answer, Code Pink and other Moonbat organizations play hardball and are basically not very nice people. Joe may want to take a vacation and hope for a "reunification" cabinet position if the Dems hope to win in '08.

[Sooth2222]

I posted this in the Moore thread below, but I think the numbers are worth reading.

Connecticut has 2,086,609 registered voters: Republican - 453,715; Democrat - 699,502; minor parties - 4,387 and independant 929,055.

The Republicans decided to run a relative unknown "sacrificial lamb", since Lieberman was an obvious shoo-in for the Democrat nomination and the general election. ("Everyone" knew that the Democrats couldn't possibly be so stupid as to do what they did!)

Lieberman changed his affiliation from the second largest group of Connecticut voters to the largest!

Lamont can expect at least, ummmm, 52% x 699,502 = 363,741 votes, or Lamont can expect to attract at least 17.4% of the Connecticut electorate.

My guess is that in the November election it breaks something like Lieberman gets 2/3 of the independents, 1/3 of the Republicans and 48% of the Democrats. Maybe 52%, but I'll be conservative and say just over 50%. Howie Dean drives the bus right over the cliff.

[cinives]

I think you are very wrong. Let the Dems elect the moonbats and expose themselves for the fellow travellers of the terrorists they are.

Lieberman voted 90% with the left wing of the Dem party. The only reason he's "better" is because he's for a strong foreign policy. I don;t consider that a gain to the country. Maybe we get our troops overseas but we also get the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, rabid environmentalism and more. Which will hurt this country more in the long run ?

[McGavin999]

Hmmm, what to do, what to do. Do the dems destroy this kook movement up front before it totally destroys their party permanently, or do try to wait it out until after 2008 when it has become too strong to destroy?

Hillary thinks she can switch messages, but the kooks won't forgive her. They may be kooks, but they are NOT stupid.

[OldFriend]

Now LIEberman has to walk a very thin line. If he bashes republicans as he campaigns he risks losing their vote in the election.

[jwalsh07]

Lieberman: "Respectfully, no. I am committed to this campaign, to a different kind of politics, to bringing the Democratic party back from Ned Lamont, Maxine Waters to the mainstream."

Joe is sprinting toward the middle!

[Pharmboy]

Agreed. If a pubbie did what Joe's about to do, we would be p*ssed. This is about Joe now, not about his party.

[ClarenceThomasfan]

"Come on, Joe, show grace and accept your loss, not sour grapes."

Are you kidding? We want ole Joe to hang on in there as long as possible. This is the best scenario for Republicans. In a three way race, we finally have a shot to win that Senate seat. Also the Democrats will have to pump money there to defend a blue state that they would have put into a swing state. Let us count our blessings here.

[Cringing Negativism Network]

America needs a third party - two are in reality an oligopoly.

Lieberman could just be kick-starting the libertarian party.

Depends how he plays this.

GO JOE.

[EQAndyBuzz]

"Running as an Independent is sour grapes.'

Nahh, running on an independent ticket is revenge.