Centrist Democrat Lieberman struggles - BBC Coverage

[Screaming Lord Byron]

Here's what the BBC makes of Joe Lieberman.
Hint - not much.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3238536.stm

'He's selling himself as the least left-wing of all the Democrat candidates. He likes to joke he's from the electable wing of the Democratic party.

He campaigns as a centrist who he says will appeal not only to the base of his party but also to independent voters and even some Republicans.

"I know I can defeat George W Bush because I can match him where some people think he is strong on defence and values, and I can beat him where we know he is weak on the economy on his divisive, right-wing agenda," Senator Lieberman often says on the campaign trail.'

[Catfish]

1. Centrist?

I don't see much difference between Lieberman and Bush. I'd label Lieberman as right wing and I'm not really on the left. Lieberman is as much of a crony capitalist as Bush. From what I remember he's one of the Senators who blocked reform for the accounting industry and he's in the pocket of the insurance companies. I despise him and have never understood why Gore choose him.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

2. Lieberman does absolutely nothing for me, either.

I don't even know why he's in politics. He's the least inspiring politician I've seen this side of John Major, and he's not much of a Democrat. Still, it's not as if he'll win the nomination anyway.

[Catfish]

3. You're right

He doesn't have a chance of winning the nomination. I wonder why he's bothering to even run.

[Tinoire]

6. Uninspiring. No fire, no passion. Just drones on & on & on...

Lieberman could be telling us that the world is coming to an end and I would fall asleep.

[Tinoire]

5. I don't like Lieberman but he is socially progressive

on a domestic front and I am beginning to see that he's no more a crony capitalist than most of the other Democrats- he's simply been exposed. Weshouldn't take his good points away from him. Also he's not a waffler or a liar.

I dislike him for many, many reasons and would be hard-pressed to vote for him but I think we beat him up too much while going really easy on others who aren't that much different than him.

Gore was as DLC as Lieberman. He just got a little carried away with the Clintonian populist rhetoric at times so he needed Lieberman to follow closely behind to call all the corporations in the morning and say "Don't worry, he didn't mean that". Gore chose him because their philosophies were more similar than we want to admit. It's real easy to blame Lieberman but Gore, as much as some of us loved him, was no Superman Angel.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

7. I'm no Gore fan either, myself, though I certainly prefer him to Holy Joe

[Catfish]

9. You may be right

about crony capitalism and other Dems but I remember Lieberman's activities more because it seems that he consistently is against regulation that has been proposed to clean up some of the worst corporate abuses. I have to admit though that I just don't like the man and I see him as too cozy with Bush.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

10. Lieberman was the chosen scapegoat

Lieberman grew up working class - so as is typical, he's held up to a higher standard than the wealthy candidates. Aside from his obnoxious moralizing, Lieberman is just as "socially liberal, fiscally conservative" as Dean and Kerry. To hear some on DU, obnoxious moralizing, and not the class war, is the major threat facing us.

Some of the resentment is left over from Gore choosing Lieberman as a transparent cover for his "populist" campaign - while Gore was giving us speeches ("I ... will fight ... for you!") Lieberman was busy assuring Wall Street that Gore didn't mean it - they were OPEN about this - didn't Lieberman even say in an interview that Gore's populism was just "rhetorical flourishes"?

Lieberman is hardly different than most, but because of Gore's campaign, Lieberman is a huge insult to the intelligence of liberals and the left, and that's probably why he's been made the scapegoat.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

11. Yeah, but Joe's views on censorship are pretty authoritarian.

And that's the number one reason I don't like him.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

12. putting stickers on records in censorship?

This is exactly what I mean - you can make a great case that putting Parental Advisory stickers on records marketed to kids is censorship - but in a world of corporate media, it's just not the biggest issue. Lieberman, along with Tipper, used parental shock at the violent, mysoginistic, homophobic, and violent lyrics being marketed to 12, 13, and 14 year olds by media corporations to score some "family value" points.

Distastful? Sure. The biggest threat facing our constitutional liberties? Hardly.

[Screaming Lord Byron]

13. Like I say, that's my personal reason, but not really about CD's

more the 'Appeal to Hollywood' for self-censorship, his appeal in 1993 to ban all 'violent' video games, and the fact that he expounds so much time and energy on these subjects that you rightfully suggest are trivial. That really bothers me.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

15. I'd rather have a pro-parental advisory, anti-NAFTA candidate

than the other way around. I see what you're saying, and I don't like it either, but I've had to forgive Democrats for much worse than censoring the f-word, or appealing to Hollywood for self-censorship.

In any case, I'm glad Lieberman won't win the primary :)

[Cascadian]

16. Lieberman is the embodiment of Republican Lite.

And he even said as much. He said he was just like Bush except for some economic issues. Well, hell, Joe. Why are you even running??? You seem to get along with the Republicans a lot better than people in your own party anyway. You should just bow out and endorse Bush and join the GOP.

John

[Zynx]

4. Lieberman would be our weakest candidate against Bush.

That's why he's not doing well. He would get KILLED in a debate with Bush among other problems.

[Tinoire]

8. A damn shame too

that Bush, such an inarticulate MF, would score over Lieberman. Just goes to show you what we prefer- snappy one liners and a good-ole boy physique.

We're in serious trouble because not enough of us value or even look for substance.

On edit- Not that I'm saying Lieberman has that much substance but he certainly has more than Bush!

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

14. "Lieberman struggles.." Good.

The ONLY thing that one can say for Holy Joe is that, unlike the other Rose Garden Heroes, he isn't trying to squirm out of his BushLicking war vote.

[Cascadian]

17. I am not worried about Holy Joe.

He has as much of a chance of winning the nomination as the Mongolian National Soccer Team winning the next World Cup. Nil! It would take something diabolical and Rove-inspired for Joe to get the nomination.


John

[Bill of Rights]

18. The only thing Lieberman can do

is take votes away from General Wesley Clark.

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

20. welcome to DU Bill of Rights

Lieberman has been popular among many southern Democrats for his long history fighting for civil rights, and Clark is doing well in places like SC, so I can see them competing for the same Democratic votes.

[Cascadian]

19. Found this while internet surfing! Check this out!

It just says it all!


John

[Cascadian]

21. Damn tripod!

Here is the URL....


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