Salon: "Why is Bill Clinton in Connecticut?"

[flpoljunkie]

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2006/07/24/clinton_lieberman/print.html

Why is Bill Clinton in Connecticut?

It helps his wife, and it helps Joe Lieberman connect with a group of long-neglected voters.

By Colin McEnroe

Why is Bill Clinton stumping for the man who famously rebuked him from the floor of the Senate during Monica-gate eight years ago? Part of the reason is personal. Clinton and Lieberman have known each other nearly 40 years. They met in 1970, when both were Kennedy disciples involved in a Connecticut-wide liberal insurgency that won Lieberman a state Senate seat.

Part of the reason is selfish. Lieberman may have chastised Clinton, but he has also provided a template for the other politician in the Clinton family. Hillary Clinton has undergone a gradual but very public transformation into a kind of Bride of Lieberman, hawkish on the war, adamantly pro-Israel and tracking right on social issues. She even likes to bash video games, just like Joe.

Hillary's politics are Joe's politics. If Lieberman sinks, it will raise a lot of questions about the current Clinton strategy, which is really just a post-millennial version of that old-time DLC religion. When I asked Waters why she thought Clinton was coming to Connecticut, she said there were rumors in Washington that he and his wife are freaked out by the sudden progressive insurgency. The DLC is putting down a small rebellion before it spreads. Thus, Bill, the DLC's greatest success story, will be standing alongside former DLC chairman Lieberman in Waterbury mere hours after Hillary gives the keynote speech at the DLC's annual national convention in Denver.

But if you lose that many votes that fast, chances are you're bleeding from more than one place. Lieberman's handlers have been looking around for somebody, anybody, who might, you know, vote for him -- some untapped bloc of loyal Democratic voters. How about, um, black folks? And to appeal to those black voters, how about calling in the white politician they like and trust above all others? Instead of, you know, Joe Lieberman.

[msongs]

1. exercising his rights to free speech, assembly, and association? nt

[AtomicKitten]

2. I have no problem with this.

IMO calling in the Big Dog is proof-positive of desperation and the last throes of Lieberman's almost extinct political career.

[FrenchieCat]

3. With that, I agree! (n/t)

[ShockediSay]

4. The Israel Lobby was one reason given by an NPR news show

"new roundup" panelist this morning.

The panelist indicated Clinton felt the Dems had some kind of lock on contributions from the Lobby and thinks the loss of Lieberman would damage that lock.

This might also explain why Hilary is so reluctant to condemn the war in Iraq.

I do remember when Dean was a candidate saying we should be more even handed as regards Israel and our Mideast policy, reportedly he was taken aside by Clinton and advised to 'tone it down.'

The panelist also alluded to the early political experience Bill Clinton had in working for Lieberman's campaign for the Senate in the 70's.

[flpoljunkie]

5. CNN article re Dean's "we should be more even handed as regards Israel..."

We all know what happened when Dean had the temerity to say this...the sh*t really hit the fan! Unsurprisingly, Lieberman "pounced on Dean."

What is Dean saying today about the current crisis? I wonder.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/09/10/elec04.prez.dean.mideast/

Lieberman kept up the pressure Wednesday in a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

"When you start to say, in very loaded terms -- particularly when Israelis are under assault by terrorists, not unlike the situation we find ourselves in -- that America shouldn't take sides in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, that's a break in more than half a century of the American foreign policies carried out by presidents of both parties, and it's very harmful," he said.

"I bet the Palestinians are more surprised than anyone else when they heard Howard Dean say this."

Several Democratic leaders of Congress, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, also circulated a letter Wednesday taking issue with Dean's comments.

But Dean insists that what he was saying was that the United States should serve as a impartial broker between the two sides in order to reach a peace deal -- the same policy pursued by Clinton.

"When you're at the negotiating table, you don't sit down and blame people when you're negotiating," he said. "There's a difference between our policy in Israel -- which has always been supportive, including the willingness to defend Israel -- and what you do at the negotiating table, which clearly has to have the trust of both sides."

[ShockediSay]

6. thanks for the link/info

http://ksgnotes1.harvard.edu/Research/wpaper.nsf/rwp/RWP06-011

[LincolnMcGrath]

7. "Bride of Lieberman"

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Totally Committed]

8. That was the line that not only made me laugh out loud...

but explained Bill's presense more than anthing else in the article.

TC

[LincolnMcGrath]

10. I agree

[jonnyblitz]

12. that gave me a scary visual!!

don't ask. :rofl: :rofl:

[Totally Committed]

13. Do you really think you can say something like that,

and NOT have to tell us about that "scary" visual???? C'mon, spill it! :rofl:


TC

[jonnyblitz]

14. that would be a thread hijack..

i saw a flash of hillary clinton with bride of frankestein hair. silly, I know. :smoke:

[IndianaGreen]

9. Billary agrees with Lieberman on the war

I wonder if Billary will continue to support Lieberman if he loses the primary.

[Totally Committed]

11. Billary agrees with Lieberman on a lot more

than just the war! It's sad that they are as close on as many issues as they are. It's the product of their cynical triangulation to the right, but still.... it sucks.

TC

[JerseygirlCT]

15. I thought they'd both said they would support the winner of the

primary.

Which is probably why Clinton is campaigning for Lieberman now. In two weeks, it will be done.

[madville]

16. Barbara Boxer was there campaigning for Joe today also

Barbara Boxer was in Connecticut campaigning for Joe Lieberman also. From the article I read she was saying that except for the war he is a solid Democrat.......

[AtomicKitten]

17. Shrum was chewing the fat with Matthews and Buchanan

today on Hardball. Of note, Shrum flat-out said Bill Clinton should lighten up about this primary, that people are entitled and have good reason to vote for the anti-war candidate, and that Bill Clinton forgets he supported Robert Kennedy a long time ago.

Anybody listening? I think it's important to acknowledge when someone says something you wouldn't expect to hear from them.

[Cobalt-60]

18. If BIll's in town

I know there's a party somewhere.
Bill's the man!
Unfortunately, Joe isn't.
I suspect a lot of military contractors in his stock portfolio!