Max: Joe Lieberman

I don't like Joe Lieberman. Joe Lieberman was the only reason I didn't vote for Al Gore in 2000. He's a cynical opportunist who works mainly for his own power and aggrandizement. In other words, he's a typical US Senator. But should he be punished for his support of John McCain by being stripped of his Chairmanship of the Homeland Security Committee, perhaps even by expulsion from the Democratic Caucus?

Consider this; Jim Jeffords was a loyal Republican until the Spring of 2001. He supported Shrub and his fellow R's through the 2000 elections, much as Lieberman supported McCain and several other Republican candidates in 2008. Yet he was welcomed into the Democratic Caucus when he changed his (R) to an (I). Why? Because he's a nice guy? Because he's a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and he threatened to kick Tom Dascle's ass? No. He was accepted because his lack of partisan loyalty gave the Dems control of the Senate from 2001-03. And he's a nice guy and a black belt.

I will admit that this is a different situation. The D's control the Senate and will do so even without Lieberman. But simple majorities don't always carry the day in the Senate. Even though he's been a Neocon on foreign policy and Shrub's extra-Constitutional power grabs, he has a solid record of voting with the Dems on domestic issues; and we have a shit load of domestic issues that need to be dealt with. We may not like Joe Lieberman, but can we honestly say that we'll never need his vote? Are we so certain that the help average Americans desperately need, and most R's oppose, will never be filibustered? Or that enough R's will cross the line to invoke cloture?

Now let's consider further the few remaining members of the Senate Republicans' Mod Squad -- moderate Republicans --, or as the right calls them RINO's -- Republican In Name Only. What if, unlikely as it is, Olympia Snowe, Arlen Spector or any other member of the Mod Squad came knocking on the Dem Caucus door? Would they be cursed for having supported fellow Republicans in the past? Would the be mocked for the obvious partisan disloyalty that led them to switch sides? Or would they be welcomed with open arms, maybe even rewarded with a Chairmanship?

And what would we have the Republicans do with members of their party who supported Obama? Would you applaud the sanctioning of them by their party for their disloyalty? No? Then to call for sanctions on Lieberman is the epitome of hypocrisy.

If Lieberman wants to continue to caucus with Senate Democrats, then he should be allowed to. If he does the job well, he should keep his chairmanship. To punish him for supporting the candidate he felt was best qualified would be to shit all over President-Elect Obama's message of bipartisanship, healing and national unity.

Joe, this independent Democrat of questionable loyalty who stands far to the left of you and finds you to be an unpleasant human being wants to welcome you back to the winning team. I hope most of my fellow D's agree.