One cannot simply depend on "conservative" democrats- there IS no such animal. It's the old threat "say anything you have to to get elected, but remember your place when you get here. I don't care how "conservative" some democrat may sound. Sooner or later, he/she MUST pay homage to the democratic platform. And he sure as h*ll better vote the way he is told by Pelosi and Kennedy if he wants more than one term.
Yep, just ask Joe Lieberman who wouldn't have won if it wasn't for Republicans.