May 14, 2008

Lieberman still cheerleading for the next war in the Middle East

Last week, the campaign to connect Iran to violence in Iraq ran into a few snags. In the wake of recent fighting between Iraqi and U.S. security forces and Shiite militiamen, we found an enormous list of uncovered weapons and munitions — none of which came from Iran. U.S. officials announced a press conference to show Iranian-supplied explosives used in Karbala, and then cancelled the event when they realized none of the weapons came from Iran.

But don’t tell Joe Lieberman that. He doesn’t want to hear it.

On Monday, Pat Buchanan asked Lieberman whether he believed “the United States should conduct air strikes on the Iranian Quds force in Iran if they do not stop” interfering in Iraq. Lieberman replied that he “hoped” the U.S. would not have to strike at “the people who are responsible for killing Americans,” but said that the Iranians should “have in mind that it’s a distinct possibility.”

OK, that was relatively tempered rhetoric, at least by Lieberman’s standards. He’s accusing Iranians of acts of war, but he wasn’t actively talking about U.S. military strikes.

That is, until this morning.

On right-winger Bill Bennett’s radio show this morning, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) expressed his openness to bombing Iran, saying that there is “an appeal to it.” Discussing the West Virginia primary results, Bennett praised what he claimed was Sen. Hillary Clinton’s (D-NY) transformation into his “style” of politician, which he said is someone who “throws down a shot of liquor and bombs Iran.”

Lieberman whole-heartedly endorsed the “appeal” of the hawkish caricature Bennett had created.

We’re going to take away this guy’s committee chairmanship soon, right?

ThinkProgress has the audio clip, but here’s the transcript:

BENNETT: Listen, I give her credit. She has found her … three things. She’s found her voice. He is very much in the background now, it’s not this, you know, ventriloquial thing, it’s definitely her voice.

LIEBERMAN: That’s true.

BENNETT: And Joe, you know, this is my style. This is a girl who puts on her pearls, goes down, throws down a shot of liquor and bombs Iran, you know. This is … lookout Mrs. Bennett, this is my kind of girl.

LIEBERMAN: Hehehe, it does have an appeal to it.

Yeah, Joe, hilarious.

 
Discussion

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18 Comments
1.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:03 pm, little bear said:

Sounds to me that LIE-berman is just looking for attention. He must want more of dur chimpfurher’s hot tongue down his throat or perhaps he was on the “receiving end” of homosexual prostitute jeff gannnon/guckert when he had fake ID and press credentials to get him in and out of the White House on overnights.

How the hell did Al Gore ever end up with this loser on his ticket in 2000? That election was stolen - the world knows it. What role did LIE-berman have in undermining Gore’s campaign.

But LIE-berman’s latest rants in the media advocating for the military-industrial complex (of which OIL is a major component) are just too strange.

Clearly he wants chimpy’s attention - the real question is what for?!?!?!

2.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:13 pm, entheo said:

LIEBERMAN: Hehehe, it does have an appeal to it.

here’s the picture that goes with the above caption…

3.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:13 pm, Book of Virtues, Revised said:

Bennett likes a “girl who . . . goes down” - a little TMI, but ok.
He did, however, leave out gambling. If she can count cards, that is a big plus in Bill’s, um, book.

values. its always about the values with Bennett.

4.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:14 pm, Leslie said:

Clinton said she’d nuke Iran, she’d destroy the entire country. There’s a big difference between bombing and nuking.

Bennett and Lieberman are nuts. While Clinton’s comments were reckless.

5.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:18 pm, MsJoanne said:

Can someone please tell me why the people of CT are not recalling this idiot? I mean, really.

Come on, Connecticut…get off your collective asses and recall this nut who wants more than anything to start World War III.

Un-freaking-real.

6.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:19 pm, Former Dan said:

Lieberman is the Cato of The US. If they’re going to war with Iran then I suggest he be given a front row to the armageddon he so wants, strapped to a nuclear armed cruise missile. And if they hopefully aren’t going to war then I still hope he’s strapped to a nuclear armed cruise missile.

7.
On May 14th, 2008 at 4:24 pm, NB said:

You know why the US doesn’t want to talk about those insurgent weapons they found?

It’s because they very well could have been ours at one point…

8.
On May 14th, 2008 at 5:06 pm, chascates said:

What’s stopping Joe from just switching parties? Isn’t he hoping McCain will appoint him Secretary for Israel?

9.
On May 14th, 2008 at 6:48 pm, Katy Hill Prescott, Az. said:

Joe Lieberman is another old fogie that needs to go and Connecticut should be ashamed for once again inflicting his hatered of Islam upon America.

10.
On May 14th, 2008 at 7:18 pm, libra said:

Lieberman is the Cato of The US. — Former Dan, @6

You mean Cato the Elder and his perennial bee in the bonnet (Carthage delenda est)? I just hope Lieberman will have less influence on the final outcome than Cato did…

11.
On May 14th, 2008 at 7:19 pm, ff11 said:

Leberman proves once again that he’s second to none when it comes to sadistic glee over death and destruction.

12.
On May 14th, 2008 at 7:59 pm, little bear said:

ff11 - shillary seemed to get a lot of joy over OBLITERATING Iran - talking 65,397,521people (June 07 est.). Even LIE-berman has enough sense not to advocate that type of holocaust.

13.
On May 14th, 2008 at 8:27 pm, Capt Kirk said:

Amazing the way the conversation could be just any couple of sleaze bags swapping lies at the bar. Throwing down shots of whisky and bombing anything at hand.

But I think anyone, especially any fellow senator would have to notice that, in fact, these are both Republicans. Any doubt as to Lieberman’s true allegiance is long gone.

These guys are both very very very sick puppies. It’s just Lieberman that hasn’t been busted yet.

14.
On May 14th, 2008 at 9:31 pm, mishanti said:

Lieberman is such a jackass and should be immediately stripped of his Chairmanship once the new Congress is in there. He does NOTHING for the Democratic party as he is so up McCain’s butt.

15.
On May 14th, 2008 at 10:06 pm, Rich said:

The Senator from Jerusalem is merely establishing his bonifides to become ambassador to Israel in a McSame administration, or is it Secretary of State or Defense? One way or another he will be out of the Senate or definitely neutered. He knows he’s toast if the Dems increase their majority in the Senate, and if a Dem takes the White House too he’ll just have to go to work for AIPAC. How could you tell the difference. We have the late, and unlamented, William F. Buckley to thank for Lieberman, and I think they should spend eternity together. And soon.

16.
On May 14th, 2008 at 11:26 pm, libra said:

Rich (@ 15) and others,

LIEberman is *not* “a Senator from Israel”; calling him that is like calling McCain’t a representative of US. A Likudnik (rhymes with “paskudnik”), maybe. But the majority of Israelis are suffering as much from buyers’ remorse as as the Repubs who’d voted for Bush twice…

17.
On May 15th, 2008 at 1:46 am, Redshift said:

A couple of points:

1. There are no recall elections for federal office. A state (like California) can set whatever rules it wants for state offices, but federal offices are governed by the Constitution and the federal government, so states cannot establish a recall procedure. (And in addition, for all you Californians, few states have recall elections at any level, so stop blaming us for not initiating them.)

2. The committee chair assignments are actually written into the organizing resolution of this Senate session, so if I understand correctly, Lieberman cannot be stripped of his chairmanship until January without opening the whole organizing resolution up again, which would allow him to threaten to switch parties and throw control of the Senate to the GOP. (Since writing them into the resolution is pretty unusual, I’m betting this was his condition for caucusing with the Dems, so he didn’t immediately become irrelevant once the organizing resolution passed.)

Much as we’d all like to be rid of him (including CT voters, if polls are any indication) this is one case where the lack of action isn’t just because of a lack of backbone.

18.
On May 15th, 2008 at 3:30 pm, Jan Davis said:

I am very disappointed in Senator Lieberman. I liked him when he ran with Al Gore. He seems to have some sense then. Now I think he should just join the Republican Party and get it over with. He needs to learn the value of PEACE!

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