Reagan Implicitly Kicked Out of Republican Party

They’re now so far right that even Ronald Reagan is too liberal.  Poor guy.  If he’s reincarnated, Democrats can run him against Lieberman.

The Time for Choosing Sides

I don’t subscribe to the idea that anyone has to vote any particular way on any particular bill to be a Democrat, but if you fail to allow an up or down vote on a bill that your legislative leader brings to the floor, you are not a Democrat and do not deserve any of the normally accompanying perks.  Or, if you establish a pattern of voting for big corporate contributors over your constituents, you will find that your lack of cooperation with Democrats will be reciprocated.

Senators Lieberman, Nelson, Lincoln and Landrieu have every right to vote as their insurance company owners dictate.  But if they kill the public option under the threat of a filibuster or if they fail to vote for cloture, they must lose their seniority, committee chairs, right to run unopposed by Democrats (which Lieberman has already lost), financial  contributions from Democratic organizations and the support of Democratic voters.

The real question is whether any Democrat should support such a politician if they secure the Democratic nomination and it becomes a two person race against a Republican.  It may not be worth it to lose the legislative majority and the power that comes with it.  But if that majority appears secure regardless of whether one more Lieberman-type is elected, then the Lieberman-type is doing more harm than good.

For that additional vote for a cushioned majority, the Lieberman-types greatly damage any chance of transformational change, create unrealistic public expectations based in an illusion of super-majority status, and empower themselves at the expense of watered-down legislation and/or more pork.  It’s not worth it.