Lieberman Cries Foul Over Iowa Debate

[Rose Siding]

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Sen. Joe Lieberman wants to debate after all. And he's crying foul at the Democratic National Committee for excluding him from a presidential faceoff Monday.

The Connecticut senator, who is not competing in Iowa's caucuses, had rejected an invitation to attend the Des Moines debate sponsored by the DNC. Eight other candidates had agreed to attend.

Later, Sens. John Edwards of North Carolina and John Kerry of Massachusetts said they could not be here because the Senate is debating a GOP-backed Medicare bill they both oppose. The DNC agreed to allow them to participate by satellite from a Washington studio. Two television screens will show Edwards and Kerry on stage, alongside six rivals who will be there in person.

Lieberman, who also opposes the Medicare bill, asked to participate by satellite as well. The DNC consulted with the other campaigns, at least two of which said he should not be allowed to take part.
more......................

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-democrats-debate,0,3099093.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

[wryter2000]

1. Oh, for pity's sake

Let the man debate. I don't even like him, but there's no reason for him to be excluded. It only makes us look petty.

[MrMonk]

2. What he said ^^^^^

[Catholic Sensation]

4. he's not doing it because he wants to win Iowa

he's doing it because he discovered he can do it from the comfort of DC, Kerry and Edwards should be allowed because they had accepted the invite. He rejected their invitation to debate and isn't even campaigning in Iowa, why let him debate?

[Terwilliger]

6. like Nader?

Lieberman wasn't worried until the Kerry/Edwards thing came up. If he was running in Iowa it might be different.

[JI7]

17. ralph nader is running for dem nomination for pres ?

?

[CMT]

3. for goodness sake let him

I don't know if Dean is one campaign favoring excluding him or not, but if he is they are wrong.

[tsipple]

9. Ain't the Dean Campaign

Definitely not the Dean folks. The two campaigns are from among these four (in alphabetical order):

Clark
Edwards
Gephardt
Kerry

[Renew Deal]

15. How do you know this?

It would be sweet revenge by the Clark people, but I doubt it's them. I don't think Clark would stand for it. Then again, it's politics. Excluding Lieberman helps people forget him.

[KittyWampus]

18. Tsipple Must Be Omniscient

:eyes:

[Nashyra]

5. As much as I don't like Lieberman

if they can do it for Kerry and Edwards they should do it for Joe but only because he is an outspoken critic for the medicare bill. I know that he did not want to particpate at an earlier time but the fact that this bill is so critical any airtime against it is valuable and Lieberman has the trust and the support of a large segment of the elderly population. I clearly don't think this will help or hurt any other candidate but it will certainly help the movement towards the fillabuster.

[dfong63]

7. tough luck

Lieberman's not competing in the Iowa caucuses... why waste time on him? with so many candidates running, time in the debates is a crucial factor. why not give the real candidates a few seconds more time to make their points?

[vi5]

8. Wait I don't get it....The DNC?....why I thought they LOVED him?

I mean he's the most right wing candidate, right? And since the DNC wants us to move in a right wing direction, as we hear on these pages on a daily basis, wouldn't they WANT him to debate?

Help......platitudes and rhetoric not matching reality.......does not compute....danger......danger.........

[Rose Siding]

12. Maybe you are thinking of the DLC?

I don't know that the DNC has shown any preference.

[Fleshdancer]

10. He "rejected an invitation to attend the Des Moines debate"

It's not like the DNC got together and decided Lieberman can't play...the man rejected an invitation! If he wants to change his mind, fine, but to make it sound like the DNC is excluding him is childish.

edit: fast, careless typing = many typos

[dolstein]

24. So did Clark

Clark was allowed to change his mind, Lieberman wasn't. If you're going to let Clark participate, how can you exclude Lieberman?

[wtmusic]

11. WAHHH....WAHHHH....

Crybaby! :nopity:

[hayu_lol]

14. Agree Gloria...

Joe could have accepted the invitation and then backed out because of the medicare bill and he would have been automatically accepted for remote participation.
He rejected the invite...and then brays dirty politics. Poor Holy Joe...how does one spell loser?

[9119495]

13. I thnk only Democrats were invited to the debate (n/t)

[dolstein]

21. How does that explain Kucinich and Sharpton?

Kucinich is a socialist. Sharpton belongs to a party of one.

Seriously, if you're going to make wildly innacurate statements like that, then so can I.

[dolstein]

22. This doesn't make much sense to me

Lieberman rejected the invite because the rules initially required that candidates had to be there in person. Those rules were changed to allow Edwards and Kerry to appear via satellite. If they're going to change the rules, they should have offered Lieberman the opportunity to participate via satellite as well. Honestly, Edwards, Kerry and Lieberman are all in Washington to oppose the Medicare bill. How hard could it be to add one more person?

If they're going to let Clark back into the debate after he rejected the invitation, then they should have allowed Lieberman back in too. Besides, as the only moderate in the field, Lieberman clearly has something worthwhile to contribute.

I suppose the next time around, Lieberman should just accept the invitation knowing that he can always back out at the last minute.

[robbedvoter]

16. Holly Joe choses to blame Clark for it too:

Lieberman's spokesman Jano Cabrera called the decision unfair and singled out the Clark campaign for standing in the way.

"We think it's pretty ironic that the only candidate who seems to be objecting is Wesley Clark," Cabrera said in a statement. "After all, it was Clark who changed his mind about participating in the New York and New Hampshire debates. Clark should explain why he wants to prevent Joe Lieberman from participating in this debate."

Cabrera had argued that the rules of the debate were changed when Kerry and Edwards were allowed to participate remotely.

.

[JI7]

19. just let him in

i understand the reasons for not including him.but i feel sorry for him now.

[DoctorMyEyes]

20. I don't feel sorry

for that waste of oyxgen!

He's not running in the Iowa caucus, he turned down the invitation - NOT because he thought he would be busy conducting "the peoples business" in DC - but because he had other campaign obligations in the NE.

Fuck him!

Are we going to penalize Edwards or Kerry for doing their jobs and standing up against the medicare bill?

Maybe I wouldn't hate the useless bastard so much if he had EVER, EVER stayed anywhere near his time limits in the previous debates. He has no regard for the rules or the other candidates - or the voters who are trying to hear them either, for that matter.

I'm sorry about the language, but FUCK JOE - that's all I can say. And I write to him and tell him that personally after every debate.

[LoneStarLiberal]

23. Don't Like Lieberman But This Is Stupid

I have never liked nor do I currently like Joe Lieberman, but I think it's a stupid move by the DNC to lock him out in this manner. If you are going to lock out Lieberman, then depending on your rationale, you either need to lock out the other Senators who are in D.C. for the Medicare speed bump or you need to lock out the other "long shot" prospects for the nomination.