Joe Lieberman may be many things, but a tone-deaf politician isn’t one of them. He’s won three U.S. Senate races, was a two-term state attorney general, and was even the Majority Leader of the Connecticut Senate back in the ’70s. Lieberman is savvy and shrewd when he needs to be.<\/p>\n
Which is why I’m confused about his latest tactics. Lieberman is making lots of moves, but all of them seem to be in the wrong direction.<\/p>\n
A year after failing badly in his presidential campaign, Lieberman is eyeing re-election next year in a state Bush lost by a wide margin. Indeed, considering the fact that the president currently enjoys an abysmal 32% approval rating<\/a> in Connecticut, you’d think Lieberman would see no reason to move further to the right — especially with rumors circulating<\/a> about a serious challenge from the left next year.<\/p>\n And yet, Lieberman keeps cozying up to the Bush White House. Last week, it was a Wall Street Journal op-ed defending Bush’s Iraq plans<\/a>. This week, it’s defending Bush against criticism in general<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lieberman, whom the Bush administration has praised repeatedly for his war stance, defended the president. “It’s time for Democrats who distrust President Bush to acknowledge he’ll be commander-in-chief for three more years,” the senator said. “We undermine the president’s credibility at our nation’s peril.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n For most of us, Bush doesn’t need much help in undermining his own credibility, but perhaps that’s beside the point. What is Lieberman getting at? Yes, Bush has three years left in the White House, but why should the president’s critics stop pointing out Bush’s mendacity? For that matter, why would a Democratic senator up for re-election in a very “blue” state make the argument?<\/p>\n Naturally, the White House is thrilled with Lieberman. Scott McClellan sang his praises<\/a> yesterday during the press briefing, noting that Bush aides “work very closely with him in the war on terrorism, and we appreciate his leadership, and we appreciate his ideas.”<\/p>\n