Well, Joe Lieberman was renominated by the Connecticut Democratic Party, but his challenger Ned Lamont won 33% of the delegates. Lamont has now forced a primary.
I claim no special knowledge of Connecticut politics, so I won't venture a guess as to what will happen in the primary. On the one hand, the delegates will represent the core of the core - probably the most liberal Democrats. On the other hand, they also represent the 'soldiers' of the party - those predisposed to support the institution. Surely there aren't many 'DailyKos' folks in this crowd. So is 33% for LaMont a sign of strength, since it's among real liberals, or a sign of weakness, since it's the institution?
I don't know. But it shows a lot that today Republicans look at their most prominent apostate - John McCain - and are thinking of whether to nominate him for President. The Democrats look at theirs on the other hand, and are trying to decide whether tarring and feathering is too good for him.
Update: The folks at the Hotline report that the convention outcome seems to have the Lieberman folks nervous and the LaMont team elated. That means the NRSC is probably elated, too.
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Saturday, May 20, 2006
Circular Firing Squad: Ready... Aim...
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2 comments:
I don't quite understand this, don't conservatives argue about the problem with RINOs all the time? Lieberman represents a very blue state yet is seen to carry water for the administration (though his actual voting record is fairly liberal). If he represented a redder state I think people would give him a pass.
I would say that yes, conservatives argue forcefully against RINOS. But apart from Iraq, where is Lieberman out of the liberal mainstream? He's pro-choice, pro-affirmative action... pretty much down the line. If conservatives were to run a primary against an incumbent who strayed on one issue, I would argue against it. As it is, the only Republican Senator facing a primary for being too liberal is Lincoln Chafee - who is nowhere near as loyal to the GOP agenda as Lieberman is to that of the Democrats.
Thanks for the comment.
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