Lieberman: It’s nice to be needed
Let’s talk for a minute about this situation with Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman.
Lieberman is not just any other former Democrat. He was the party’s vice presidential nominee in 2000. But as you probably know, he’s gotten himself in deep doo-doo with his former party after he endorsed and traveled with John McCain during the general election. Not only did Lieberman endorse and travel with McCain, he also made comments calling into question Barack Obama’s preparedness to be president and ability to perform as commander-in-chief.
He took his lashes in a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid yesterday. Reid wants to strip him of his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Lieberman basically told him to shove it.
This isn’t uncharted territory for Lieberman. After he split with his party on his support for the Iraq War, he was defeated in the Democratic primary in 2006 and forced to run for re-election as an independent (technically, as the nominee of the Connecticut for Lieberman Party). He was re-elected after withstanding criticism and calls to drop out of the race from fellow Democrats, including Howard Dean. Lieberman retained his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee by making a deal with Reid to caucus with the Democrats and vote with them on procedural matters. The deal actually did more for the Reid and the Democrats than for Lieberman himself: As a result of Lieberman’s participation with their caucus, the Democrats held a 51-49 majority – and the deal enabled Reid to maintain control of the Senate.
Lieberman finds himself in a similar situation now. Although Democrats now enjoy an expanded majority – 57 to 40 over Republicans – in the Senate, three races remain undecided:
In Alaska, Anchorage Mayor and Democratic challenger Mark Begich trails longtime GOP Sen. Ted Stevens, who was recently convicted of five felonies for falsifying information on Senate financial forms, by . If Stevens is returned to the Senate, the Senate Ethics Committee could vote to remove him, but then the governor of Stevens’ state would presumably appoint his replacement.
And you know who that is. Here’s a hint: After Tuesday, she’s totally available.
Sarah Palin has had a taste of the national stage, and it’s left her wanting more. She’s looking for some Washington experience between now and 2012, so don’t be surprised if people start to talk about the possibility that she could appoint herself to that seat.
In Minnesota, Democratic challenger and “Saturday Night Live” alum Al Franken trails GOP incumbent Norm Coleman by a little more than 200 votes. A statewide, mandatory hand recount is underway, and Franken could pick up enough votes to win. Franken is the Democrats’ best chance for another pickup.
In Georgia, Democratic challenger and State Sen. Jim Martin will face a runoff with GOP incumbent Saxby Chambliss Dec. 2 after neither candidate garnered a majority of the vote in a three-way contest with Libertarian Allen Buckley. Martin trails Chambliss by more than 100,000 votes, and it’s safe to assume that most of the 123,000 or so who voted for the Libertarian Buckley won’t vote for Martin – if they vote in the runoff at all. The runoff will come down to turnout, and Chambliss looks likely to hang on to the seat.
So that leaves the Democrats with 57 seats, and the reality is that they may only win one more. But even if Franken and Martin both prevail, Democrats will still find themselves sitting at 59 votes – still one shy of the filibuster-proof promised land of 60.
Enter Lieberman.
As it was becoming apparent that Democrats would likely fall short of the magic number of 60, I remarked to some folks last week that Lieberman is quietly becoming one of the most powerful men in the country. Think about it: Reid can rattle his saber and threaten Lieberman’s chairmanship and slap his wrist all he wants, but he will need him. Democrats will need Lieberman to ensure that the agenda of the new president will move through the Senate. They will need him to ensure that the GOP cannot filibuster the president’s nominees to the federal judiciary. They will need him for a host of reasons.
This is why he can tell Reid to go take a flying leap.
Democrats will need Lieberman less, of course, if Martin wins, because they can almost always count on the vote of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent and self-described “democratic socialist.”
So while they are undoubtedly furious with Lieberman and he won’t be winning any awards at next year’s Jefferson-Jackson dinners, Democrats don’t want to alienate him – at least not until they know what happens with Franken and Martin.
Meanwhile, the GOP, fresh from its lashing across the country, sees these things developing and sees in Lieberman a chance to harness his dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party for their own purposes. Without the ability to filibuster, Republicans are at the mercy of Barack Obama’s good humor. So they’re making nice and inviting him over to their side of the island.
Because Republicans need Lieberman, too.
Politics sometimes produces for us curious situations where elected officials who didn’t necessarily seek it unwittingly wind up with a lot of power.
Joe Lieberman’s situation in the Senate is one example.
