I think you're right--for arguably the following reasons:
1. Lieberman wasn't far left enough for what now passes as the Democratic Party. Any..."capital" that he built up in his great support for the President and the War on Terror (such as it is) cannot overcome his complicity in that recount/revote abomination from 4 years ago (that Kerry, ironically enough, smartly avoided).
2. I don't know that Gore won any southern states in 2000. I know that they got swept this year. The underlying causes for this have not changed one iota, and they probably will not change between now and 2008. Barring a radical shift to the CENTER, what the heck makes them think that the next election will be any different than this one? Only by then, we could have 60, plus a few more conservative justices on the SCOTUS.
3. I may be wrong, but this election may forever put to bed the thought that the average person's voice means nothing, and that their vote doesn't count. My gosh, over 110 million Americans voted in this election! Even if 10% of that was fraudulent (I'd have no way of knowing), that's still over half of America's voting-age population! So if the President has a mandate, I would argue that the conservatives, and even the moderates, have a mandate also.
4. The information and education factor is in play. If the purportion of media bias was a pinprick in the wall in 2000, the wrecking ball blasted through that wall this year. We see right through it now. New media is here, and now that we have a voice in the arena of ideas, there is no reason to believe that we will retreat. Not as long as I live, anyway.
5. As a rider to the last point, everyone better get those Hillary expository books, before the "free speech party" tries to get them banned. So far, I only have Gary Aldrich's "Unlimited Access" (which the X42 WH banned), and Freeper BKO's "Final Days" (God rest her soul). Start getting them now, study them, get ready.
And now you know...the REST of the story! (sorry, couldn't resist)
They will still go after the younger voters, the ones who are 14 now and will be voting age by the time the next election rolls around, plus the sour-grapes-liberal-college-types. Brainwashing is their stock in trade. They will poison many minds. Stay vigilant in prayer. This is a just reprieve from disaster. We have to instruct our high school age children not to fall for the lies.