Lieberman Irrevocably Demonstrates His Stoogehood (Katrina docs)

[RTFirefly]

His latest post-election switch: giving the Bush Administration a pass on handing over Katrina-related documents.

Sen. Joe Lieberman, the only Democrat to endorse President Bush’s new plan for Iraq, has quietly backed away from his pre-election demands that the White House turn over potentially embarrassing documents relating to its handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster in New Orleans.

Yep. Now that he won’t face the voters again for another 5 years and 10 months, he no longer feels the need to demand accountability of the Administration.

Last year, when he was running for re-election in Connecticut, Lieberman was a vocal critic of the administration’s handling of Katrina. He was especially dismayed by its failure to turn over key records that could have shed light on internal White House deliberations about the hurricane, including those involving President Bush.

Asserting that there were “too many important questions that cannot be answered,” Lieberman and other committee Democrats complained in a statement last year that the panel “did not receive information or documents showing what actually was going on in the White House.”

Among the missing material: the record of a videoconference in the White House Situation Room in which former Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Michael Brown said he warned senior officials about the dire situation in New Orleans, but was greeted with “deafening silence.” Also missing: records believed to include messages and conversations involving the president, Vice President Dick Cheney and their top aides during the days in late August and early September 2005 when the Katrina disaster was unfolding and thousands of city residents were flocking to overcrowded shelters and hanging onto rooftops awaiting rescue.

That was then. This is now.

But now that he chairs the homeland panel—and is in a position to subpoena the records—Lieberman has decided not to pursue the material, according to Leslie Phillips, the senator’s chief committee spokeswoman. “The senator now intends to focus his attention on the future security of the American people and other matters and does not expect to revisit the White House’s role in Katrina,” she told NEWSWEEK.

Lieberman’s habit of being more critical and less hawkish on Iraq when running for office, and being less critical and more hawkish when not facing the voters, was already well established last summer, and he’s only added to that track record since. But at least with Iraq, one can make at least a weak devils’-advocate argument that Lieberman was sincerely concerned about the war, and the timing was just extremely coincidental.

But with this, there’s no big principle involved. He’s just cozying up to Bush.

He’s a Bush stooge, pure and simple.

[Captain_Carrot]

You know, in October and early November, I didn’t care who won in CT, because either way a Democrat was going to Congress. Now I wish Lamont had beaten him.

[RTFirefly]

@Captain Carrot

You know, in October and early November, I didn’t care who won in CT, because either way a Democrat was going to Congress. Now I wish Lamont had beaten him.

I suspect that a lot of Connecticut voters are going to wish they could have a do-over on this one. Lieberman was able to hold onto his seat by basically lying to his constituents about who he was and what he stood for. And even then, he couldn’t have pulled it off if he hadn’t been the de facto GOP nominee, while still convincing enough Dems that he was still really a Dem.

[tdn]

Every now and then I still get pissed off that Bush stole the 2000 election and ruined the universe. My anger is only assuaged by remembering that at least Lieberman isn’t in the White House.

WTF was Gore thinking?

[Steve_MB]

[QUOTE=RTFirefly]
In 2008, the Republicans are defending 21 Senate seats; the Democrats are defending 12. In 2009, if he continues this foolishness, I expect the allocation of office space to look like:

Democratic Party*: 53-55 of the nice spots
Republican Party: 44-46 of the so-so spots.
Connecticut for Lieberman Party: 1 spot that used to be a men’s room stall.

*and Bernie Sanders

[kaylasdad99]

@tdn

Every now and then I still get pissed off that Bush stole the 2000 election and ruined the universe. My anger is only assuaged by remembering that at least Lieberman isn’t in the White House.

WTF was Gore thinking?

Maybe he was thinking, “If we can get Joe Lieberman into Blair House, we can have a REAL Democrat in that Senate seat.”

[Steve_MB]

Oops – I meant to excise that quote tag along with the rest of RTFirefly’s commnets.

[RTFirefly]

@Steve MB

Oops – I meant to excise that quote tag along with the rest of RTFirefly’s commnets.

Hey, I just figured that in that first sentence, you were quoting me from another thread for some reason. I know I’ve said essentially the same thing in a couple of other threads.

[El_Cid_Viscoso]

@kaylasdad99

Maybe he was thinking, “If we can get Joe Lieberman into Blair House, we can have a REAL Democrat in that Senate seat.”

Good show, old top!

Harumph harumph harumph good show yes right good show harumph.
More likely “if I can cozy up to an as-yet not unamerican Zionist fuckbag, maybe I can snag some of that sweet, sweet PNAC vote!”

[gazpacho]

@RTFirefly

I suspect that a lot of Connecticut voters are going to wish they could have a do-over on this one. Lieberman was able to hold onto his seat by basically lying to his constituents about who he was and what he stood for. And even then, he couldn’t have pulled it off if he hadn’t been the de facto GOP nominee, while still convincing enough Dems that he was still really a Dem.

I haven’t followed this a lot but Lieberman has been a senator from Connecticut for quite some time his stance and voting record are there for people to see. Have his opinions and actions changed recently?

[Squink]

@gazpacho

Have his opinions and actions changed recently?

Like many Americans, he went nuts after the events of 9/11. Like some, he has not recovered.

[RTFirefly]

Here’s how Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-LA) responded:

“I’m just disappointed that he’s not going to pursue it, particularly pursue it in terms of — I can understand that there’s a whole lot of things we haven’t had oversight on in six years — but Katrina is a major national occurrence.”

Melancon voiced his frustration at the lack of overall accountability that would result from Lieberman’s backing off. “I would like to see — I’m not looking for a witch hunt — but I’d sure like to find out what’s going on with the recovery,” he said. He added that even though he is from an area hit by Katrina, even he is still left uncertain about everything that has happened. “It’s as though our government has information and doesn’t want to share it with its elected officials.”

So even a Congressman from one of the areas hit by Katrina can’t find out what the government’s been doing in the way of Katrina reconstruction. But to Lieberman, that’s no big deal; besides, it’s just water under the bridge - why bring up old unpleasantness?

@The King of Swamp Castle

Please! This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let’s not bicker and argue over who killed who!

[kaylasdad99]

Actually, it’s more like water over the – errr, place where the bridge used to be…

[DirtyHippy]

@kaylasdad99

Maybe he was thinking, “If we can get Joe Lieberman into Blair House, we can have a REAL Democrat in that Senate seat.”

We probably would have had a Republican in that Senate seat. The governor at that time, John Rowland, was Republican, and has since resigned and spent (not enough) time in jail. The Lt governor who took over and just won re-election is a Republican. Lieberman’s opponent, Phil Giordano, is currently in jail for having sex with young girls, which was found out while he was being investigated for corruption.

[Chefguy]

@tdn

Every now and then I still get pissed off that Bush stole the 2000 election and ruined the universe. My anger is only assuaged by remembering that at least Lieberman isn’t in the White House.

WTF was Gore thinking?

He was thinking “old guard homey-looking centrist Jew who will appeal to a broader range of people and maybe make me not look like I have such a huge stick up my ass.” Seriously, Lieberman looks like a humanoid version of a shar-pei.