Weicker endorses Howard Dean for president

[dajabr]

Associated Press

July 24, 2003


WASHINGTON -- Former Connecticut Gov. Lowell P. Weicker Jr., who lost a close Senate race to Joe Lieberman in 1988, plans to endorse one of Lieberman's rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination - Howard Dean.

Weicker, who was a Republican when he served three-terms as senator from Connecticut, will make his endorsement during a conference call Thursday, the Dean campaign announced.

More: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/state/hc-24091209.apds.m0937.bc-ct-brf-djul24,0,2972027.story?coll=hc-headlines-local-wire

[On the Road]

1. This is the Kind of Voter Dean Can Win

the moderate, Eisenhower-style Republican. Lots of them in New England.

[Cha]

2. That's good! I recognized his name even though I just started politics

in 2000! I wonder how he did as govenor of Conn.?

[wakfs]

8. People in CT

Hate Weicker, mostly because he created the state income tax.

[CMT]

3. this is incredible news for Dean!!

Lowell Weicker was defeated by Lieberman in 1988. Weicker was the more liberal candidate and Joe was running on Weiker's right even though Lowell was a Republican. Weicker was also one of Nixon's top foes during Watergate.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

4. Weicker is a good man.

My parents who are card carrying Democrats voted for him for Senate as a Republican and for Governor as an Independent in 1990.

1976: President: Carter(D)
Senate: Weicker(R)

1982: Governor: O'Neill(D)
Senate: Weicker(R)

1988: President: Dukaukis(D)
Senate: Weicker(R) (Lieberman won/was state Attoney General at the time and very conservative)

The Republicans never liked him much after he went after Nixon during the Watergate hearings in 73'.
During the eighties he critisized Reagan's fiscal and social policies and was one of the first politicians to take issue
with AIDS at a time when it was considered to be a stigma.

He lost in 1988 when many Republicans supported Lieberman, including William Buckley. They saw him as someone who while not as conservative as they would like, he would be better than Weicker for them. They also wanted revenge on Weicker for what he had done to the Nixon administration. The Repugs thought they could take the seat back in 94' with a conservative but Lieberman moderated his views and won with 70%!

By the way, he supported the Dem's in 2000 and 2002. In 1990 he left the party for the same reasons that Jim Jeffords did. That is both of them were strognly opposed to the party's hard right agenda. I should mention that as governor he instated the State Income Tax and as a result of this being unpopular, he did not run again 1994. He had several death threats (from the hard right wingers) made against him for his controversial views (the income tax being one of them). In all fairness, the state income tax kept this state in great condition for many years and now our Repug Gov. John Rowland has screwed everything up! This endorsement may win independents but will give CT state republicans another reason to HATE Dean as CT Repugs despise this man for having a mind of is own. On the other hand, don't all Repugs just hate the idea of independent thought?

[genius]

5. Of course the Republicans would endorse Dean

It's time for the Democrats to wake up.

[CTLawGuy]

6. CT pugs are....

Disney Channel Republicans... meaning they're not very hard core. Weicker became an indpendent and then became gov. CT is also the land of Chris Shays of Shays/Meehan fame. The article said that Republicans and conservative Dems backed Lieberman. I find that telling.... If im in Ct in 2006, im voting Libertarian.

[Khephra]

7. He ended his career as an Independent

Just like Jeffords is doing right now, who, I might add, also supports Dean. You going to bash Jeffords for being an ex-Republican who turned Independent? Hmmmmmm?

[CMT]

9. did you read the article?

Weiker is more liberal than many Democrats especially in his day in the senate. Also, Lieberman was supported by conservative Republicans who wanted to defeat Weiker in 1988 because he was so liberal. Finally, Weiker denounced the GOP like Jeffords and became an Independent.

[Larkspur]

10. Weicker was a pompous a** as well

Howard Dean has great people skills, that is he relates to the average Joe and Jane Q Public, like you are a newfound friend and he's excited to meet you. Weicker's people-orientated skills sucked.

I remember when he was governor and a major snow storm hit Connecticut. Weicker was vacationing in the Bahamas or some other island down there. He didn't even bother to fly back to the state prior to the storm hitting to "take charge" of state resources needed to work through the storm. He was like Bush during the Sep. 11, 2001 tragedy -- MIA. Weicker made it back after the storm left, but the political damage had been done and the people of Connecticut remembered that incident at election time.

Weicker may have been more liberal than Lieberman, but he came across to the average Connecticut resident, like me and the ones I know, as a pompous rich man a**hole. Think of Ted Kennedy and his car accident that killed his then girlfriend. I like Ted, but I think he can be a pompous a** as well.

I only met Howard Dean in-person once, and he came across to me as a person sincerely concerned about people and where this country is headed. I got that impression from the videos too, but meeting Dean in-person allows one to get that feeling spontenaeously. I may not agree with all his ideas, but his judgment in the past in Vermont and the campaign strategy he devised prove to me that he won't make half-cocked decisions that a mentally retarded person could tell you will cause major trouble for everyone, and his people skills will help him win the trust of Americans, who may be unsure of his decisions.

Weicker lacked that ability to relate to people and win their trust. That's why he acted like a bully and why alot of people, Democrats included, hated him.

[CMT]

11. I know nothing of his people skills

but I know he had a strong liberal record in the Senate. To me it is still a good endorsement along with that of Howard Metzenbaum which Dean got last week.

[arcos]

13. Has any current Senator...

... endorsed Dean? (not counting Leahy and Jeffords)

[arcos]

14. Has any current Senator...

... endorsed Dean? (not counting Leahy and Jeffords)

[Larkspur]

12. Also, when I moved to Connecticut in 1983, CT had a surplus

and before Weicker's term, that surplus had disappeard. Bill O'Neill, a Democrat, was governor when the surplus disappeared by the end of his term, and that mismanagement or appearance of mismanagement fueled the Republican party to challenge the governorship.

I can't remember all the reasons for the loss of that surplus, but the surplus loss plus increasing taxes on middle class CT residents created taxpayer revolt. Of course, the Democrats fumbled the ball and could not get a clear message out because they had been the party in power of the Governors office and State Legislature when the surplus turned to deficit. The Republicans had a field day with "tax and spend" Democrats when Weicker was trying to ram through the income tax through the Democratic controlled state legislature.

[Egnever]

15. Awsome!

Even republicans see the healing power of this man !