I'm from CT and I know that the insurance companies employ a lot people from the state and that may be one of his thoughts (that and the fact that they contribute in high numbers to his campaign and his bitch of wife works for them.) However, for him to think that he's doing a Connecticuter (stop calling us nutmeggers!!!) any favors by voting against the public option or trying to dilute its effect in the long run is just stupid and wrong. He's totally buying into the bullshit that all these people are going to be left without either jobs or insurance or both. His job is to work for the people of the state and their employers, and I know that no New Englander worth his or her salt would be against the public option even if they currently have the best health insurance. Then again, he was voted back in so what the hell do I know about Connecticuters living there?! I can only hope that his actions and his words will turn against him and he loses the next election, if only so I don't have to hear about him or look at his ugly mug anymore and be reminded that he represents by home state. #joelieberman
His wife works for one of the major health insurers, and thus Joe is bowing to one of the oldest Jewish stereotypes in the book: the pussy whipped hen-pecked hubby.
@Mediahohoho: Someone very close to me worked for him after his divorce back in the 80s and had nothing but sweet things to say about him and his politics. Then he got married... #joelieberman
He may be polling terribly now, but the last time he won, he was running against a "real Democrat" and still managed to pull it off. Now you know how we feel about Arlen Specter and Olympia "Vispish Applebottom" Snowe. #joelieberman
@ChillbearLatrigue: I would be happier if members of both parties were "allowed" to vote off of the party line in accordance with their beliefs and those of their constituents. If we only wanted two points of view we could have a two-member legislature.
Also, if voting your conscience was more common then pretending to do so wouldn't get you attention like a child acting out at the grocery store.
ChillbearLatrigue promoted this comment
Edited by The Curse of Millhaven at 10/29/09 11:55 AM
The Curse of Millhaven was starred
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1. This post should have been in all caps.
2.Sen.Reid and President Obama are to blame for this asshole. I could care less what Lieberman calls himself, he damn near was an usher at the Republican Convention. The fact that he supported McCain doesn't bother me as much as the lies he said about his beloved "Baruch".
3.Lieberman is such a despicable "human being".
4. If only the Holy Trinity-Pelosi/Frank/Grayson-could get to Lieberman it would make me deliriously happy. #joelieberman
He's not a Democrat, he's an independent. He LOST THE DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY and was elected by Republicans remember. Thus, he feels like he doesn't owe us a thing. #joelieberman
@Grandpapular: Nine years ago he was in the Democratic presidential ticket, his ticket won the popular vote, but he "feels" he doesn't owe you a thing? Of course not, because politically he's Joe Hooker.
The author missed the main issue: how did Lieberman grow a face that perfectly matches his personality? And his voice. It's like he walked right off a cartoonists drawing board.
I'm really missing something here - what on earth is so awful about the public option??? Aside from keeping insurance companies honest by, you know, giving people options about which insurance provider they choose? Is it so wrong to tell private insurers that they're no longer the only game in town?
I had no idea that providing freedom of choice was such a bad thing. #joelieberman
@OrneryBabe: Um. Obviously you missed the part about American Democracy where narrow special interests control large, mountainous piles of moola. I suggest Federalist Paper #10.
Many Americans may support the public option, but, unfortunately the Senate is flawed because some Senators represent a tiny amount of people giving those people a hugely disproportionate amount of influence. Yet, more importantly, it takes away the influence of the ginormous amount of us other Americans (who support the public option), allowing these special interests with gobs and gobs of money to sway these Senators without them having to worry about any sort of backlash from their backwoods country bumpkin constituency.
And that, my friend, is why the public option is "so awful." #joelieberman
Also, what a state is Connecticut: Lieberman in the palm of the insurance interests, Dodd in bed with them and the banking interests. They are nutmeggers without the nuts to represent all the people, not just the rich. Joe, here's a phrase you will understand: It's a shonda. Tom, look it up. #joelieberman
Joe Lieberman is actually fairly popular in Connecticut...He had damn near 50% of the vote in '06 running as a pro-Iraq war independent. The poll you're quoting from is 9 months old, when Democrats were still very upset with his support for McCain.
Whatever the rest of the country thinks of it, straddling the middle makes you very popular with Connecticut voters. Combine that with the fact that the insurance companies employ a lot of people in Connecticut, and this makes Lieberman's move potentially a smart one.
Plus, Harry Reid can't do much to him because if he does defect, then the Democrats lose 60, which will mean that Reid will end up having to go to beg, well, Lieberman, everytime he wants to break cloture. #joelieberman
@The Captain Was Here: The poll cited is the most recent one out there. Do you have some new poll that shows Joe's popularity increasing? I ask because I haven't seen one.
Also, I would be surprised if Joe gets a bounce by opposing the public option favored by a large majority of voters in CT. #joelieberman
If AIPAC and the rest of the Israel lobby came out and said Israel needs $100M for missile defense and bunker busting bombs because they're afraid of Persians, Joe Isadore Lieberman would have absolutely no problem standing before the Senate on their behalf and beseeching its unqualified support.
Seriously, the Senate needs a Alan Grayson-type ball-buster to call out motherfuckers like Lieberman on the Senate floor in front of C-SPAN: "With all due respect to the Senator from Connecticut, haven't you received close to the $4M dollars from the insurance and healthcare sector during your career? Doesn't your wife work as a lobbyist on behalf of the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries? Isn't your state the epicenter of the health insurance industry in this country? Doesn't this represent a conflict of interest, Senator? And, doesn't Connecticut have a public option? Do you support that system? If so, and again with all due respect Senator, doesn't that make you a grovelling hypocrite for deciding to filibuster this bill because - according to you - it contains a public option? You, sir, are an epic tool. I yield the remainder of my time."
10/29/09
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Also, if voting your conscience was more common then pretending to do so wouldn't get you attention like a child acting out at the grocery store.
10/29/09
2.Sen.Reid and President Obama are to blame for this asshole. I could care less what Lieberman calls himself, he damn near was an usher at the Republican Convention. The fact that he supported McCain doesn't bother me as much as the lies he said about his beloved "Baruch".
3.Lieberman is such a despicable "human being".
4. If only the Holy Trinity-Pelosi/Frank/Grayson-could get to Lieberman it would make me deliriously happy. #joelieberman
10/28/09
10/28/09
10/28/09
Hadassah #joelieberman
10/28/09
10/28/09
@Grandpapular: Nine years ago he was in the Democratic presidential ticket, his ticket won the popular vote, but he "feels" he doesn't owe you a thing? Of course not, because politically he's Joe Hooker.
10/29/09
10/28/09
10/28/09
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10/28/09
I had no idea that providing freedom of choice was such a bad thing. #joelieberman
10/28/09
Many Americans may support the public option, but, unfortunately the Senate is flawed because some Senators represent a tiny amount of people giving those people a hugely disproportionate amount of influence. Yet, more importantly, it takes away the influence of the ginormous amount of us other Americans (who support the public option), allowing these special interests with gobs and gobs of money to sway these Senators without them having to worry about any sort of backlash from their backwoods country bumpkin constituency.
And that, my friend, is why the public option is "so awful." #joelieberman
10/28/09
10/29/09
10/28/09
10/28/09
Whatever the rest of the country thinks of it, straddling the middle makes you very popular with Connecticut voters. Combine that with the fact that the insurance companies employ a lot of people in Connecticut, and this makes Lieberman's move potentially a smart one.
Plus, Harry Reid can't do much to him because if he does defect, then the Democrats lose 60, which will mean that Reid will end up having to go to beg, well, Lieberman, everytime he wants to break cloture. #joelieberman
10/28/09
Also, I would be surprised if Joe gets a bounce by opposing the public option favored by a large majority of voters in CT. #joelieberman
10/28/09
Seriously, the Senate needs a Alan Grayson-type ball-buster to call out motherfuckers like Lieberman on the Senate floor in front of C-SPAN: "With all due respect to the Senator from Connecticut, haven't you received close to the $4M dollars from the insurance and healthcare sector during your career? Doesn't your wife work as a lobbyist on behalf of the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries? Isn't your state the epicenter of the health insurance industry in this country? Doesn't this represent a conflict of interest, Senator? And, doesn't Connecticut have a public option? Do you support that system? If so, and again with all due respect Senator, doesn't that make you a grovelling hypocrite for deciding to filibuster this bill because - according to you - it contains a public option? You, sir, are an epic tool. I yield the remainder of my time."
10/28/09
10/28/09
To build Joementum. Lots and lots and lots and lots of Joementum. #joelieberman
10/28/09