Left Behind–The Moderate Democrat
Ah, to be Senator Joe Lieberman. In 2000, he was the Democratic Party’s Vice Presidential nominee. Along side Mr. Internet, Lieberman spoke to a different part of the Democratic party. Lieberman, an Orthodox Jew, was seen as a person who could captivate the “moderate” independent vote for the Gore campaign. Upon learning of the VP nomination, CNN called Lieberman a “moderate Democrat” and portrayed Lieberman as a “style-styled moral crusader.” How times have changed.
Now, Lieberman is in the fight for the right to keep his party’s nomination in his (perhaps) final run for the Connecticut Senate. This change in direction–from running on a presidential ticket to running for his political life– is politically salient not only because of the raucus anti-war crowd mustering Democratic Party support against Lieberman. The ostracism of Lieberman is symptomatic of the takeover of the Democratic Party by the Hard Left, who are anti-war, anti-democratic, and social nihilists–in short, they reject American nationalism, the source of our liberty and freedom.
Lieberman, unlike “genuine political superstar ” Harry Reid and John Kerry, has rejected the Hard Left’s modality of thinking. Lieberman has supported the war effort from the beginning but, unlike most Democratic Senators and most House Democrats who now oppose the War on Terror, Lieberman has not yielded to the pressure of liberal bloggers to give Bush the middle finger.
Today, Lieberman’s fear of retaining his seat forced his decision to vote “No” against the nomination of Judge Samuel Alito. However, his peace offering will not fool those who oppose his re-election. Rather, it signals that 2006 marks the death of the moderate Democrat.