A inquiring Moose wonders whether Mr. Ned is not the anti-establishmentarian he makes out to be.
Last night, Mr. Lamont attempted to pose as the scourge of the establishment. However, he strangely demurred when Joe asked him to reveal his tax returns. What was up with that? We thought that Mr. Ned would certainly want to champion transparency as the tribune of the grassroots.
However, like some of his blogosphere comrades, Mr. Ned apparently goes mute when he is asked to show the people what his finances are all about. Sure, a multi-millionaire heir to a robber baron fortune probably has rather complicated returns. But, for the sake of the people, he surely can get his accountant to provide an assist.
So, nutroots, where is the outrage? Don't you want to hold the politicians accountable? Or have you discarded you principles for the sake of crass political opportunism?
Mr. Ned, let the people see your returns! -- | 
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The Moose reacts to the Connecticut Senate debate.
As the Moose saw the debate last night, it was a stark clash of two traditions within the Democratic Party. Ned Lamont pathetically presented the McGovernite case that reflects an upper middle class, highly educated, anti-war wing of the party. He proved that he is truly the candidate of kos and the McGovernites with Modems. One almost expected the Berkeley blogger to pop up from behind his man as he did in the campaign commercial.
It is no accident that Lamont voted with the Republicans when he served in local government, and now is comfortable with the nutroots and the left wing of the Democratic Party. This multi- millionaire revealed that he cares less about the economic concerns of everyday voters and more about the anti-war pose of the left. He is the candidate of what was known three decades ago as the New Politics. These are the folks that drove the Reagan Democrats out of the party.
Joe Lieberman delivered a superb, stellar, feisty and tough presentation for the John F. Kennedy hawkish, blue collar, bread and butter wing of the Democratic Party. Indeed, at the outset of the debate, Joe quoted the words of JFK - particularly on national security. Do those words still matter to contemporary Democrats?
For eighteen years, Joe has delivered for the state. But, that matters little to the left and their candidate, the upper-crust Lamont. They do not care of what Joe has accomplished on consumer issues, civil rights, the environment or delivering vital funds for the state. All the left desires is ideological purity on the issue that is everything to them - withdrawal and the defeat that will follow in Iraq.
Ultimately, the question in this race is what vision will prevail - JFK or McGovern? -- | Email
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Thursday, July 06, 2006
The Moose comments on the not so hidden agenda of the left.
Over and over again, the lefty bloggers contend that their major objective is not an ideological one but rather a partisan one. They claim that they want to win. Badly.
The Moose begs to differ. It is not the goal of the left to prevail, but rather to purify. That is what the Lieberman Purge Attempt is all about. Actually, this is very much an ideological movement that is driven by a neo-isolationist, MoveOn.org, Pat Buchanan-lite imperative to rid the Democratic Party of the centrist hawks.
Of course, they do not intend to defeat them all, but rather send the Party leaders a message for the 2008 Presidential Primaries. By defeating Joe, they hope to intimidate the '08 wannabees into becoming compliant doves. They have already been successful with Kerry and Edwards. Who will be next?
The left is now precipitating a civil war within the Democratic Party. But, maybe not. Some centrist leaders who know better are already striking the colors. They are showing no fight. Some are caving in the hope of appeasing the fever swamp as they pursue other ambitions.
Other Democratic colleagues are astutely standing with Joe,
"Sens. Joe Biden of Delaware, Barbara Boxer of California and Ken Salazar of Colorado plan to campaign in Connecticut for Lieberman between now and the Aug. 8 primary. Their goal is to reassure the party faithful of the three-term senator's loyalty to Democratic causes, including women's issues, labor and the environment."
Senator Biden is particularly deserving of praise for campaigning for Joe. He has expressed interest in running for the White House '08, but his ambition has not deterred him from defying the nutroots and taking a stand for the vital center. Bully for him!
Make no mistake, if the left is successful with Joe, they will be coming after other centrists. They will be emboldened.
All of this is grand news for the Republicans. One would think that the big political story would be the GOP holding onto power for dear life. Instead, the new narrative that is emerging is about the national Deaniac left telling Democratic hawks to beat it. The lefties' goal is a McGovernite party without the Scoop wing.
Let's be clear - these bloggers are the left-wing equivalent of the Freepers. And, the leadership class of the Democrats is according deference to this left wing Freeper contagion.
The left's agenda is not to defeat the Republicans, but to purify the party. That is their great conceit. -- | Email
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Wednesday, July 05, 2006
The Moose muses about Green Joe.
The progressive community is abuzz about the dangers of global warming - and rightly so. Unfortunately, one of the leading fighters in Congress against this threat to the environment is under attack by the loony left.
Like the Moose's hero, Scoop Jackson, Joe Lieberman is a hawk who has a stellar record on environmental issues. However, that means little to the left who is determined to purge him. Forget global warming - they want to turn the heat on Democratic centrists. And brother Al Gore is more dedicated to selling his movie that defending his former running mate who can actually take action on climate change.
Joel Connelly, a columnist in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer makes a fascinating comparison of Scoop to Joe (hat-tip Real Clear Politics),
"He has kinfolk in the Puget Sound area, displays a healthy interest in Northwest issues and takes as his model for public service longtime Sen. Henry Jackson, D-Wash...
"Democratic Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut is, like Jackson long ago in 1970, being challenged for re-election by anti-war forces in his own party...
"Nobody has stood more strongly against the Bush administration -- both Bush administrations -- in trying to curb buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and fighting to keep drilling rigs out of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
And Connelly makes a point that the Moose offered recently,
"Former Vice President Al Gore should be rallying to the man who was his vice presidential nominee in 2000.
"Instead, the global warming guru has turned a cold shoulder. "I am not involved. I typically do not get involved in Democratic primaries," said the star of "An Inconvenient Truth..."
"Gore is a fair-weather friend, but he's also a weather vane."
Progressives should not make Al Gore's error. If one truly cares about the environment, Joe Lieberman is your man.
Joe Lieberman - Green in the tradition of Scoop and T.R.! -- | Email
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The Moose argues that the Joe Lieberman is invaluable to the donkey as a Democrat or independent.
Much of the left's animus toward Joe Lieberman is driven by the view that his partisan credentials are suspect. However, if anyone has paid his progressive dues it has been Joe Lieberman.
Back before many of his left wing critics were born, Joe Lieberman was in Mississippi defying the racists and registering African-American voters. He was the consumers' friend as Connecticut's Attorney General. He has a Congressional voting record that reflects his centrist-progressive perspective. He is pro-choice, pro-civil rights, pro-union and pro-environment. He was the party's Vice-Presidential standard bearer as the first Jew on a national ticket.
Indeed, the characteristics that irritates the left about Lieberman are the attributes that could make Democrats a majority party. He is not a defeatist on Iraq and is tough on national security. He understands that values matter most. And he stands for something more than mere loathing of Republicans.
Yes, the left also indicts Joe for being too chummy with Bush. Well, Lieberman possesses the quaint notion that politics stops at the waters edge during wartime. Clearly, a felonious and punishable offense in the modern Democratic Party.
If the nutroots are so inflamed with those who collaborate with the GOP enemy, what do they make of the distinguished senior Senator from Massachusetts? He might not have received a peck on the cheek from W, but he helped seal the deal on the two major legislative achievements of this presidency.
The truth is that Joe is not just a good Democrat. He is the best Democrat in the tradition of Truman and JFK. There is no doubt that those two historical figures would be more comfortable in the Party of Lieberman than the Party of Kos.
Here's some straight talk from the Moose to the donkey. If a narrow slice of the Democratic primary electorate propelled by a coordinated leftist campaign shows Joe the door, it will haunt the Democratic Party for a generation. The Moose might have miscalculated the donkey. He thought that, after Clinton, the Democrats had found their vital center. Maybe, the Moose was grievously wrong - we will see.
Republicans will exploit a Lieberman loss as a symbol that the Democrats do not welcome centrists or hawks. Republicans have enjoyed some degree of success among Jews particularly in the Orthodox community. Expect the GOP to accelerate their efforts in the wake of a Lieberman defeat. And count on a major Orthodox backlash.
No group has been more loyal to the Democratic Party than America's Jewish community. However, it is common on comment sections on left-wing blogs to see charges of dual loyalty leveled against Joe. Indeed, many of these bloggers and their "community" are merely Pat Buchanan lite who share the paleo-conservative animus toward America's special relationship with the Jewish state. And, just contemplate the specter of the first Jew on a national ticket defeated in a primary by a narrow slice of the electorate.
At a moment when Democrats should be picking out the drapes to hang in the Congressional leadership offices, a small slice of the party's left is organizing a purge of its most visible centrist.
Unfortunately, the leadership of the party either does not see the import of the moment or is actively collaborating with the lefty takeover.
By running as a Democrat and/or an independent- Democrat, Joe offers Connecticut a genuine choice. Joe Lieberman is attempting to keep alive the proud Democratic tradition of Truman and Kennedy.
And that makes Joe Lieberman the best Democrat, even if he has an "I" by his name on the ballot. -- | Email
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Tuesday, July 04, 2006
The Moose wishes all Mooseketeers a Bully Fourth of July!
We honor our Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen and their families who sacrifice so much so that we may enjoy our freedom. We are deeply indebted to them. Show your support Here.
The Moose offers these thoughts from T.R.,
"We know that self-government is difficult. We know that no people needs such high traits of character as that people which seeks to govern its affairs aright through the freely expressed will of the freemen who compose it. But we have faith that we shall not prove false to the memories of the men of the mighty past. They did their work, they left us the splendid heritage we now enjoy. We in our turn have an assured confidence that we shall be able to leave this heritage unwasted and enlarged to our children and our children's children. To do so we must show, not merely in great crises, but in the everyday affairs of life, the qualities of practical intelligence, of courage, of hardihood, and endurance, and above all the power of devotion to a lofty ideal, which made great the men who founded this Republic in the days of Washington, which made great the men who preserved this Republic in the days of Abraham Lincoln."
- Theodore Roosevelt, Inaugural Address, March, 1905 -- | Email
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Monday, July 03, 2006
The Moose salutes Joe Lieberman for a taking smart stand.
Joe Lieberman is giving the voters of Connecticut a choice. By collecting signatures to run as an independent and a Democrat, Joe is sending the message that a narrow slice of the electorate and a left wing ideological cabal are not going to decide who is going to be representing the state in the U.S. Senate.
Of course, the Moose is an independent mammal and he welcomes the company - whether Joe is a Democrat or an independent-Democrat. But, the national Democratic Party should be deeply concerned. An organized national campaign is now underway to purge the party of centrist hawks. Howard Dean did not win the party's nomination, but the Deaniacs, kossacks and the MoveOn crowd are in the ascendancy - for the moment. And that fact should make the Republicans gleeful.
There is a need for a Truman, JFK, Scoop wing of the Democratic Party. America needs leaders who are strong on national security and support social justice. Unfortunately, many in the party are turning their back on that proud tradition.
The American people are tired of petty partisan politics as usual. That is why independent leaders such as Joe Lieberman are so critical to our Republic. Good for Joe for making the tough decision.
America needs your leadership. -- | Email
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The Moose wonders how JFK would fare in his Party today?
The Moose stipulates from the outset that it is impossible to completely project a historical figure into the current political situation. However, it is fair to suggest that both parties have radically changed over the past half century. They are now far more ideologically homogeneous. Back in 1960 there were far more Republican liberals and Democratic conservatives.
As a result of this dynamic it is very difficult to be a genuine centrist Democrat (or, for that matter, a centrist Republican) particularly in the northeast. So, how would JFK fare today in Massachusetts or in another state in that part of the country? Kennedy was a hawkish, pro-growth progressive who certainly was not the darling of the liberals.
In fact, in 1960, the true blue libs supported Humphrey or even longed for another run by Adlai. However, compared to today's left, yesterday's liberals were down-right centrist. Since the Viet Nam war, liberalism has shifted leftward particularly on the use of force and on the social issues that emerged in the seventies.
Joe Lieberman, more than any other national Democrat represents the JFK tradition in the national Democratic Party. And that tradition is now being challenged by the left in the party.
More HERE. -- | Email
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