Labels vs. Issues

Even though it's clear that the Republican challenger in Connecticut poses no perceivable threat to either Lamont or Lieberman, Bill Clinton, who is set to campaign on Lieberman's behalf today, remarked in regards to the election that it's "nutty" for democrats to fight each other, arguing that the focus should be on republicans. But, what is at stake is not a contest between labels, but one of issues. They could call the candidate a dildo for all i care, and so as long as he stands for the issues that will lead this country in the right direction, then he is ok with me.

We're talking about the Lieberman who was one of the only democrats who refused to support the filibuster of Samuel Alito, widely referred to as "Scalito" for the similarity of his views to the most conservative member of the Supreme Court, Justice Scalia. During his tenure on the Supreme Court Alito will be one of nine votes who will get to vote on a range of issues that include Civil Rights, the Environment, and Abortion. This is the same Lieberman who has constantly praised the president for his handling of the war in Iraq, and who refused to rule out the possibility of setting up permanent bases in the country. This is the Lieberman who was the only democrat not to vote against a bill [that bareley passed 52-47] that laid out Bush's tax plan, which included a 10 billion cut to Medicaid. This Lieberman supported school vouchers, which is destroying the education system by withrawing funding that would go to public schools for parents who send their kids to private schools. He supported the nomination of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who called the Geneva conventions "quant" and "obsolete," and who was widely tied to abuses of detainee treatment in Guantanamo Bay.

This election is about far more than just labels Mr. Clinton.

What good is it to be a democrat if it the term rings hollow? As Maxine Waters says, " a win by Mr. Lamont would “shake up,” “focus” and “reshape” the Democratic Party and would help it choose a “progressive candidate” for the 2008 presidential election."