Nbadan
12-10-2005, 06:03 AM
Lieberman's Iraq Stance Brings Widening Split With His Party
By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ
and WILLIAM YARDLEY
Published: December 10, 2005
WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 - Five years after running as the vice-presidential nominee on the Democratic ticket and a year after his own presidential bid, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut has become an increasingly unwelcome figure within his party, with some Democrats seeing him more as a wayward son than a favorite son.
In the last few days, the senator has riled Democratic activists and politicians here and in his home state with his vigorous defense of President Bush's handling of the Iraq war at a time some Democrats are pressuring the administration to begin a withdrawal.
Joseph I. Lieberman has angered fellow Democrats, in one instance by reminding them that President Bush is commander in chief.
Mr. Lieberman particularly infuriated his colleagues when he pointed out at a conference here that President Bush would be commander in chief for three more years and said that "it's time for Democrats who distrust President Bush to acknowledge that."
"We undermine the president's credibility at our nation's peril," Mr. Lieberman said.
Much of the open criticism has been from liberal groups and House members. But his comments have also rankled Democrats in the Senate. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the minority leader, phoned Mr. Lieberman this week to express concerns with his views, Mr. Reid's aide said.
"Senator Reid has a lot of respect for Senator Lieberman," said Jim Manley, a Reid spokesman. "But he feels that Senator Lieberman's position on Iraq is at odds with many Americans."
An aide to another leading Democratic senator who insisted on anonymity said the feelings toward Mr. Lieberman could be summed up as, "The American people want to hold George Bush accountable for the failed policy in Iraq, and Senator Lieberman doesn't."
Mr. Lieberman, who remains immensely popular in his home state, is aware of the hornet's nest he has stirred.
"Some Democrats said I was being a traitor," he said in an interview on Friday, adding that he was not surprised by the reaction, "given the depth of feeling about the war."
Although some Democrats are upset with Mr. Lieberman, Republicans are embracing him, with President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld singling him out, and his support for the war, for praise in speeches this week.
"He is entirely correct," Mr. Cheney said on Tuesday at Fort Drum, N.Y. "On this, both Republicans and Democrats should be able to agree. The only way the terrorists can win is if we lose our nerve and abandon our mission."
Concerns about Mr. Lieberman's coziness with the administration grew this week when he had breakfast with Mr. Rumsfeld at the Pentagon. Later, rumors spread that Mr. Bush was considering asking Mr. Lieberman to join the administration to succeed Mr. Rumsfeld next year as defense secretary.
"It's a total fantasy," Mr. Lieberman said. "There's just no truth to it."
In the interview on Friday, he said the two sides were making too much of his comments, and he argued that the overreactions reflected how politically polarized the debate over the war had become.
Mr. Lieberman noted that his positions on Iraq had not changed over the years, dating from 1991, when he supported the first Persian Gulf war. In 1998, he and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, proposed the Iraq Liberation Act, which made the overthrow of President Saddam Hussein official American policy.
"The positive and negative reactions may have less to do with the substance of what I said than with the fact that a Democrat is saying it," Mr. Lieberman said. "It reflects the terribly divisive state of our politics.
NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/10/politics/10lieberman.html?hp&ex=1134190800&en=a05a3618d4469a01&ei=5094&partner=homepage)
From the DLC website:
There's currently an orchestrated effort underway to make Sen. Joe Lieberman into some sort of a pariah because of his views on the Iraq War. That's wrong. Republicans may try to impose strict litmus tests, but an inclusive Democratic Party should not.
There's plenty of room for debate on how to succeed in Iraq and in the war on terror. We should be a party that leads that debate, not stifles it.
Joe Lieberman is a man of utmost integrity who speaks and governs by his values and principles, even when they lead him against the popular tide. He is a man who always puts his county above his party or his personal interests. Those are qualities we should cherish, not disdain, in today's far too polarized politics.
We need more, not fewer, people with Joe Lieberman's character in the Democratic Party, and I'm proud to call him my friend.
DLC.ORG (http://www.dlc.org/)
The corporate-controlled DLC would like nothing better than to see this war continue, and Liebermann has his eyes set on the Sec. of Defense position when Rummy retires early next year. None-the-less, it is very damaging for Democrats for Liebermann to side with the WH while Republicans are running away in droves even though Liebermann has been a DINO, or democrat in name only for a long time. Reid, Pelosi, and other party leaders should not put up with this betrayal. It's time to expunge the Democratic party of politicians like Liebermann who think that the WH should not be held accountable for its actions in Iraq.
By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ
and WILLIAM YARDLEY
Published: December 10, 2005
WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 - Five years after running as the vice-presidential nominee on the Democratic ticket and a year after his own presidential bid, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut has become an increasingly unwelcome figure within his party, with some Democrats seeing him more as a wayward son than a favorite son.
In the last few days, the senator has riled Democratic activists and politicians here and in his home state with his vigorous defense of President Bush's handling of the Iraq war at a time some Democrats are pressuring the administration to begin a withdrawal.
Joseph I. Lieberman has angered fellow Democrats, in one instance by reminding them that President Bush is commander in chief.
Mr. Lieberman particularly infuriated his colleagues when he pointed out at a conference here that President Bush would be commander in chief for three more years and said that "it's time for Democrats who distrust President Bush to acknowledge that."
"We undermine the president's credibility at our nation's peril," Mr. Lieberman said.
Much of the open criticism has been from liberal groups and House members. But his comments have also rankled Democrats in the Senate. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the minority leader, phoned Mr. Lieberman this week to express concerns with his views, Mr. Reid's aide said.
"Senator Reid has a lot of respect for Senator Lieberman," said Jim Manley, a Reid spokesman. "But he feels that Senator Lieberman's position on Iraq is at odds with many Americans."
An aide to another leading Democratic senator who insisted on anonymity said the feelings toward Mr. Lieberman could be summed up as, "The American people want to hold George Bush accountable for the failed policy in Iraq, and Senator Lieberman doesn't."
Mr. Lieberman, who remains immensely popular in his home state, is aware of the hornet's nest he has stirred.
"Some Democrats said I was being a traitor," he said in an interview on Friday, adding that he was not surprised by the reaction, "given the depth of feeling about the war."
Although some Democrats are upset with Mr. Lieberman, Republicans are embracing him, with President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld singling him out, and his support for the war, for praise in speeches this week.
"He is entirely correct," Mr. Cheney said on Tuesday at Fort Drum, N.Y. "On this, both Republicans and Democrats should be able to agree. The only way the terrorists can win is if we lose our nerve and abandon our mission."
Concerns about Mr. Lieberman's coziness with the administration grew this week when he had breakfast with Mr. Rumsfeld at the Pentagon. Later, rumors spread that Mr. Bush was considering asking Mr. Lieberman to join the administration to succeed Mr. Rumsfeld next year as defense secretary.
"It's a total fantasy," Mr. Lieberman said. "There's just no truth to it."
In the interview on Friday, he said the two sides were making too much of his comments, and he argued that the overreactions reflected how politically polarized the debate over the war had become.
Mr. Lieberman noted that his positions on Iraq had not changed over the years, dating from 1991, when he supported the first Persian Gulf war. In 1998, he and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, proposed the Iraq Liberation Act, which made the overthrow of President Saddam Hussein official American policy.
"The positive and negative reactions may have less to do with the substance of what I said than with the fact that a Democrat is saying it," Mr. Lieberman said. "It reflects the terribly divisive state of our politics.
NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/10/politics/10lieberman.html?hp&ex=1134190800&en=a05a3618d4469a01&ei=5094&partner=homepage)
From the DLC website:
There's currently an orchestrated effort underway to make Sen. Joe Lieberman into some sort of a pariah because of his views on the Iraq War. That's wrong. Republicans may try to impose strict litmus tests, but an inclusive Democratic Party should not.
There's plenty of room for debate on how to succeed in Iraq and in the war on terror. We should be a party that leads that debate, not stifles it.
Joe Lieberman is a man of utmost integrity who speaks and governs by his values and principles, even when they lead him against the popular tide. He is a man who always puts his county above his party or his personal interests. Those are qualities we should cherish, not disdain, in today's far too polarized politics.
We need more, not fewer, people with Joe Lieberman's character in the Democratic Party, and I'm proud to call him my friend.
DLC.ORG (http://www.dlc.org/)
The corporate-controlled DLC would like nothing better than to see this war continue, and Liebermann has his eyes set on the Sec. of Defense position when Rummy retires early next year. None-the-less, it is very damaging for Democrats for Liebermann to side with the WH while Republicans are running away in droves even though Liebermann has been a DINO, or democrat in name only for a long time. Reid, Pelosi, and other party leaders should not put up with this betrayal. It's time to expunge the Democratic party of politicians like Liebermann who think that the WH should not be held accountable for its actions in Iraq.