So, this is not just a situation where Obama is playing with only his own risks. The risks are all too real and all too human, though outside the protected confines of Beltway Washington.

great point

Lieberman will undermine absolutely necessary over site, which he has done in the past and will do in the future

he will also undermine any Democratic consensus, think of this;

if he was tossed on his butt, then when opposing democrats it looks like retribution and he does not get any “voting his conscience” air time, if however we accept him (which we have) it means his “vote of conscience” actually has our endorsement

We will all pay the price of Lieberman’s treachery — we already have done.

And how will we know he’s betrayed us again? In the world of secret no-bid contracts, there’s no oversight but his. Which is worthless.

It also sets a terrible example for other Democrats, some of whom will be “off the reservation” very quickly once the Obama Administration is underway.

When will it be appropriate to start referring to the damage done to the Democratic party and the nation as “The Lieberman Effect”?

Because, if the pain in my gut is any indication, it’s real, it hurts, and something tells me it ain’t gonna go away anytime soon!

Politico has the following up

“Critics complain he got off with a “slap on the wrist,” but Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman said Wednesday that he doesn’t regard his loss of a spot on the Environment and Public Works Committee as any kind of punishment for backing John McCain over Barack Obama in the presidential race.

“I don’t view it as a sanction,” a relaxed and genial Lieberman told Politico as he walked through the Capitol. Instead, the Connecticut independent suggested he relinquished his seat on the committee voluntarily — “in the spirit of cooperation” — after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) asked him to help free up room for the committee for incoming senators..”

Time will tell.
I ain’t holding my breath.

it’s a good thing Busted, or we’d be givin’ ya CPR

Yesterday was the 30th anniversary of the assassination of Rep. Leo Ryan (D-San Mateo) who was shot dead on an airstrip in Guyana. He was investigating whether or not relatives of his constituents were truly free to leave the People’s Temple and the grip of the “rev.” Jim Jones.

Congressman Ryan continually put himself on the line for his constituents and cared deeply about the people he represented and the issues at stake.

I can think of no one who more aptly represents the antithesis of Rep. Ryan, than the selfish and self absorbed Senator Joseph Lieberman. Lieberan has only one constituent. Himself.

I really liked Shuster’s kudos to Jane!

And how about Alison Stewart as a sub for Rachel Maddow? IMHO, Perfect! She fits the format of Rachel’s show, with its temperament and snarkiness, just perfectly. Not as good as Rachel her-own-self, however, but very good, IMHO.

Bob in HI

Hey, I had to DIGG a great post by pach citing a great woman, so please be kind and do so as well, “ALSO”.

It’s about 1,836 confirmed dead, 705 missing

The chairmanship of the Governmental Affairs committee is a matter for the entire nation to address, on behalf of the 1,836 confirmed dead, 705 missing in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Those people no longer have a voice, and we owe it to them to replace him with an effective chair who will not only investigate why the levees failed, why the federal government responded in advance, during and after the storm so poorly.

And we, the living, owe it to ourselves that a Senate committee chair not fail to do their job ever again.

It’s not about revenge or retribution. It’s about doing the job one’s agreed to do, or getting replaced for failing it. It’s about getting to the bottom of unnecessary loss of American lives, and making sure that the miseries that felled them do not happen again.

That’s hot! Jane Hamsher should have her own show. I’m afraid this issue will be forgotten by Jan. 20 but we at the lake will never forget. Joe thinks he got away with murder, but these crooks always do it again, and end up getting caught and brought to justice, just like Orenthal James Simpson.

absolutely Rayne, would make a great diary *hint-hint*

Agreed, Jane should have her own show. Enough of the same old same old. New voices are needed and I can’t thing of someone more insightful and deserving than Jane but then there is also Marcy Wheeler, David Sirota, Christy Hardin Smith, Bob Cesca, hay wait a minute there are plenty of new voices deserving to be heard!

Interesting post.
A little stretchy there for me.
Shuster’s mentioning Jane.
Obama’s not the Holy Great Messiah.
It’s cool with me. It’s your post.
I’m really glad that I don’t have George Bush as my president for long. And, I’m also glad Palin/McCain are not going to be there for the next 4 years.
I do acknowledge that our mileage may vary, depending on our own unique situations. Gosh, they are various aren’t they.
As long as there is space for the naive pollyanas like me to mingle with the other perspectives shared here, I’ll be happy.
Many gifts, much work.

Bob Cesca had an interesting piece on Huffington Post on Obama’s treatment of Lieberman. Says that in the grand scheme of things Obama’s non vindictive approach just makes Lieberman that much smaller. If Lieberman gets any smaller he’ll be invisible. One can hope.

WE NEED TO SAVE EVERY possible job now for workers,not big biddness slackeres

I can only conclude that David Shuster and MSNBC have more class than Time magazine.

slackers?

in a way i agree….Obies turning the other cheek is Christ like,and what a REAL Xitian would do

Lieberman oversees 50 billion dollars in no bid Homeland Security contracts, a system rife with graft, abuse and corruption. Seems to me some real oversight in that position could free up some money to help save three million automobile industry jobs.

Holy Smokin’ Joe Lieberman! No wonder he wants the job. Reid and Lieberman need to go. This is a sick joke.

kagro X has a brief tutorial on Senate Mechanics wrt Chairs: Selection, Confirmation processes, etc.

oh, and a question for Senator Bayh as well

Loserman probably feels like he won a game of Gotcha! with Obama, Reid, and the Senate Democratic caucus.

He’s gloating.

OT, sorry — but it bugs me the MSM never tells us what the actual content of al qaeda messages is. The latest one from al zawahiri today comments on Obama’s presidential win. The MSM all say it refers to Obama with a racial slur, except that it doesn’t. It praises Malcolm X and quotes him indirectly referring to Rice and Obama as ‘house slaves” (literal translation) and ‘House Negroes” (MSM version). Harkening back to Malcolm X’s quote,( which I mentioned here coupla days ago referring to disappointing choices by the O transition team, expressing my hope that O wouldn’t think he’d win folks over by being a good …..) : “When the massa sick, house niggah say ‘we sick’”.

here’s the video for anyone interested. I always find it informative to actually watch what al Q actually has to say in full.

http://www.latimes.com/news/na…..7724.story

yeah, and the new satellite surveillance system they (incl. blackwater) are trying to get additional funding for. This is such a serious thing ready to sideswipe us. It’s enough to make you wanna just go suck an egg.

Watch out, baby. That kinda talk could get you a reputation.
Hi.

Yesterday I was really pissed about the handling of Lieberman. Today I’m thinking that perhaps Obama’s intent is to get Lieberman’s real constituents–the wealthy and powerful who I imagine are right behind every senator–to give his policies a chance to turn things around without a fight every little thing.

As far as his control of the committee goes, it may be easier to pressure him, and the other members, from here on out. I hope they’ll find a brighter light shining on their activities, or lack of…

agree. he’s running true to type.

the breadth and depth of the pain he will bring is the only unknown at this time.

How Joe feels at this point doesn’t matter to me at all.

I am sorely tempted to leave this all alone for two months and check back after the inaugural. Trying to second guess the O team is exhausting, not to say disappointing at a time when we all need to hold onto ideals of fairness, justice, kharma even. The other day when the ‘fake’ ny times came out from the wonderful Yes Men they had a chart depicting HOW we got to that front page. It was all about progressives pressuring the O team after the inaugural to get real things done.

RRRAAAWWW!!!111

I sent this letter on 18-Nov-08
No response yet!!

Dear Joe Lieberman,My name is Charlotte, and I am writing to you to express my complete and utter disgust with your actions throughout the general elections. As a (true) democrat I can not believe you even call yourself one of us. Your actions at the RNC, are completely unforgivable and reprehensible. As someone who campaigned day and night for weeks in a battleground state. I often had to defend against your remarks to citizens who believed your pathetic rhetoric. It was a difficult argument, and I was often taken off message just to make people understand that President-Elect Obama was not the person you, John McCain and Sarah Palin painted him out to be. That Sir was by far one of the most difficult challenges that I faced in this election. While I was working to elect Obama, you were systematically undermining my efforts. Mr. Lieberman, I walked door to door, got chased out of yards, spit at, cursed out, had things thrown at me, dogs chase me and people threaten me. All the while I believed that what I was doing was the right thing for this country and for my family. Yet you Sir seemed to feel that I and countless others were on the wrong side.Given the fact that Obama campaigned for you and helped you in your time of great need, one can only wonder why you couldn’t do the same. You were able to keep your coveted Chairmanship, only because your comrades were too afraid or perhaps too sensible to listen to the will of the people. Were it not for the very one you turned your back on, you would have surly received what you deserved. The very thought that you were able to retain a chairmanship in the (Democratic Party) makes me physically ill. Because of what I had to go through campaigning I am completely offended and totally against the vote. However, since the public had no say or vote in this matter then all I can do is to write you myself. You may have won this round and yes perhaps you did get the last laugh. I am sure it gives you great fulfillment to shun and trot over the efforts of hard working people, by campaigning for the other side, then turning around and smugly ask us to look past it and move forward. I am sure it is easy for you to say these things when you have spent no time in the shoes, homes, or presence of those you spurned. Maybe if you could take one moment to talk to the people who were affected by what you did then possibly you would understand how far reaching your words and actions were. In the halls of Washington, you won’t see the disappointed faces, or hear the discouraged voices of the public, that you swore to represent. If you are really interested in moving forward, then why don’t you do this, “Call” me and let’s have a one on one conversation about my concerns. Call me, let’s talk about how “we” can move forward and put the past in the past. Because to be quite honest, Mr. Lieberman at this point in time the only thing I am interested in doing is literally assisting in anyway possible the Democrat that will campaign against you. Oh, and trust me from the many blogs out there I am not alone in my sentiment. But, I am a sensible person I do want this new administration to work very badly because I am truly vested. I want to move past my anger, my frustration and my distrust of you. So, I am willing to talk and listen to anything you have to say. You can contact me anytime via any means. I don’t want some scripted email I want to hear from you, Senator Lieberman. I will be posting this letter on the many blogs and websites with a daily calendar counter for number of days with no response from you. There are many people who would like some answers, not some generic statement written by a staffer. I am a professional writer, ghostwriter and speechwriter myself so I know when words come from a person’s heart and soul. We (I) want to know what you have to say for yourself. You may reach me at the number below anytime of any day. I will make myself available for an in person meeting should you desire. I am ready to listen, I am ready to understand and I want help moving forward. Thank you for your time and attention in this matter. Feel free to post wherever you like

Can the Democrats still restrain Lieberman?

In the current (lame-duck) congress, the Senate Homeland Security committee has 17 members: 8 Dems, 8 Repubs, and Lieberman. But that was in an evenly divided Senate.

If the Democrats get an additional seat and the Republicans lose one, then even if Lieberman votes with the Republicans, the Democrats still have the majority. Even better is if they go for a larger majority; presumably Reid can control committee assignments.

Question for those of you familiar with Senate rules: how much can Lieberman do as chair if a majority of the committee disagrees with him? Would he have real power, or would his position become ceremonial if Democrats voted to overrule his decisions?

still, why can’t the corporate media mention lieberman’s poor job performance as chair?

Reid especially. He’s up for reelection in 2010. Hopefully there will be a real challange in the primary to dump his sorry, saggy ass. Lieberman is finished in 2012. He’ll never win reelection.

Can’t Carter shag his sorry ass?

I think America might like to consider, given Lieberman’s record of appointing such individuals as Michael Brown to FEMA, and thus creating an element to disaster…Just who Lieberman might like to appoint to such positions next.

Signed, Curious

;>)

sorry ass is such a wonderful phrase, don’tcha think? i mean, just picture it.

Sure hope so. Reid is the weakest majority leader in the history of the Senate since the turn of the century, the 20th Century. He’s a member of the cult of Mormon so not really surprised he has divided loyalties.

ye gads man, you didn’t even have to render pixels!

Dear Pach, Jane, Selise and others.

I hope you don’t take the comments by those of us who perhaps appear more compliant than you, at the moment, to mean we don’t support you guys on the front lines. Some of us don’t dare take the risk of being so venturesome, either by personal nature, incurring inadvisable risk, or courting personal burnout after doing so in the past.

I hope that makes some sense. I get the feeling our numbers may outweigh yours unless you realize you HAVE our support, no matter what we say in threads here and there.

IMO, Obama was and is our best bet, and I certainly plan to trust but verify; but all my nature and training tells me to give him a chance before pounding him with both feet.

I will react, and I will lean on the principals and state my views, but I’ll be darned if I am going to go out and attack on the basis of brand new appointments, much less rumors floated from heaven knows where.

I think Obama’s a fantastic guy. I think that, if he experiences a steep learning curve, he can adjust and accommodate. I plan on giving him some slack. Who among US is perfect?!

If you corner a dog and smack it on the nose, then immediately try to tell it you would like it to do something…..

If you encounter a dog and choose not to trap it but, instead, approach with respect as an equal. (yeah, even with a dawg)…..

I choose to try the 2nd option as a goal which, itself, might be hard to achieve, given the wretched and complicated circumstances of the dubya/bigtime legacy.

Can’t some of us work that way without being shouted at? It takes all of us, working within our own personal limits and standards regarding our own limitations. We’re not all reincarnated warriors, after all.

We haven’t given up. We just might be choosing a different path toward the same end.

P.E.A.C.E. and promise of prodigious efforts for the good of all!!!

I hope this serves for the moment…

Reid has been an EPIC FAIL!

(((Adie)))

need a hug?

Beg to differ. Not even close. He smells the singed hair on his bum. and we can help keep dry powder available.

Very nice, Adie. Thanks

what is the origin of that phrase?

Not really, but I never turn one down. *g*

I’m angry, just like everyone else.

I don’t want my anger to spill over to the point that I can’t get anyone else to work with me.

Yes, Sen. Voinovich. I see you under that rug. Comfy?

mission accomplished?

same here, i’m trying not to pay attention for the honey moon.

had a smile on there;

dam wordpress regex suckage.

<3

Retribution is a dish best served cold….

Did anyone see little Joey LIEberman on with Katie Couric this evening? Well, Joe said he wasn’t punished at all and now feel closer than ever to the Dems. This man is so small, has not a shred of decency, let alone dignity.

He doesn’t even realize just how ridiculous he appears to all that pay attention to this stuff. The man is a national joke that should be turned into a national punch line. You know, like whenever someone make a complete dick out of themselves, that shall now be referred to as, “hey, that guy made a completer Lieberman out of himself.”

You. Rock. Period.
There are a lot of commenters here who do not appreciate being shouted at. And, also, are a little tired of the cynical, snarky, every time you turn around there’s someone turning up the heat.
I thank you for your comment. You are more literate than I.
((adie))
as always, ….demi

imo, there was no honeymoon.

not that Obama was expecting one.

He didn’t take on this task on a whim.

Surely he knew it would be rough.

I’m not saying slack off. Just realize he’s been through an incredibly long, exhausting effort just to win the election. And he’s landed on his feet, not just treading water but striving to make quick progress while – let’s face it – as we quibble, the ground is crumbling under his feet along with everyone else’s.

Please take some time to watch and be sure what we are reacting to. This is no time to strike out blindly.

Even cabinet appointments can be changed when circumstances change. E.g., Might it NOT be a bad idea, when dealing with cantankerous, panicky, egotistic CEOs, to have cabinet temps in place who know precisely how to push their buttons in order to steer a course that might carry us through these awful times with a minimum of permanent damage to the nation and the world?

[disclaimer: foregoing is just a random example, blindly flung into the ethers by an idjet]

Good point.

I thought Obama was going to can Traitor Joe. Now I think different. Here’s what I think now. Barack is going to push to get universal health care through in the first few months of his administration. He has a pot of money (what’s left over from the $700 billion party gift) to play with, and can make a plausible case that bailing out people’s health care anxieties will get them to spend more money on other stuff. Hey! It works for me. Traitor Joe’s vote will be crucial. Martin is a very long shot in GA, so that leaves us with 58 if Franken slips through. Figure two votes from the Maine Republiks, and you have filibuster proof bill with Traitor Joe’s vote. I think that’s the play. Joe is temporary. The universal medical care is forever. Seems like a good trade-off to me.

Anyway, that’s how I read his reprieve.

I’m surprised at the extent to which the Democratic Party line on this has been that the Senate kept Lieberman in his Committee Chairmanship because it’s what Obama wanted.

I can understand that they want to hide behind Obama’s current popularity. But I haven’t heard anything that makes me think Obama was pressing hard on this. I would have preferred he stay out of it. But it was the Senate Democrats’ decision, so he may have figured he had nothing to lose by expressing his preference to keep Lieberman.

But even if Obama was pushing the Senate Dems hard on this, it seems to me there was a time not so long ago when the Senators would have at least felt it necessary to act all huffy and offended that they would let the President-elect tell them how to do their Senate business.

It’s probably one more symptom of the Senate Democrats’ general timidity that they’re so happy to use Obama as an excuse.

Thanks Pach.

In response to cinnamonape @ 80 (show text

Get over Iraq. It had to happen sooner or later. Remember the Democrat congress and Senate voted for it. Were they that naive or did they change their opinion when it was politically necessary? We have won that conflict but fear not Bambi Obama has plenty of time to insure a defeat to a war we already one.

Again, the only way to save the US auto companies is to break the back of the UAW. Hopefully, the top auto executives will do this after they receive the bailout.