Washington – Today marks the end of Senator Joe Lieberman’s 24-year career in Congress.
In its editorial, The New York Post (http://bit.ly/VTsypa) pays tribute to Lieberman, calling him “nothing less than a giant” and lauds him for “putting his beliefs and strongly held positions ahead of political self-interest.”
The “first Jewish candidate on a major-party national ticket,” Lieberman was once considered the darling of the Democratic Party after his unsuccessful vice-presidential bid in 2000. He would later endure the betrayal of his Democratic friends and allies when he sought the nomination for president in 2004.
According to The Post, his only “sin” was supporting the war in Iraq. Lieberman faced an ugly re-election battle in 2006 and lost the Democratic primary for Senate, but won on the Independent line. “People didn’t just disagree with me,” Lieberman said of that time. “There was a personal hatred. To me, that’s a cancer that’s eating at our politics.”
Despite the Democratic disloyalty shown to him, Lieberman took the high road and immediately pledged to caucus with his former party if the Senate ended up being tied. He went on to endorse GOP candidate John McCain for president in 2008 and was a speaker at the GOP convention.
“Joe Lieberman, in other words, has always marched to the beat of his own drum, with little thought for the possible political consequences,” The Post writes. “There aren’t many like that in Congress. And now, sad to say, there’s one fewer.”