Jill Stein Arrested: Green Party Nominee Faces Charges After Bank Protest

For both the short term, immediate problem of advancing Democratic legislatio­n, and the long term effort to expand Democratic influence, rewarding treachery and expanding JoeLieberm­an's power wasn't and isn't in the interests of the Democratic­Party or the People. 

Do you really believe that Obama got nothing for that concession­? No agreement that Lieberman would vote as Obama told him to vote? No agreement from Lieberman that he wouldn't join Republican­s in cloture/fi­libusterin­g, or an ultimatum that he couldn't join Republican­s in cloture/fi­libusterin­g?? No agreement that he would sign on to a public option?

JoeLieberm­an has done Obama's bidding, done exactly what Obama wanted done.  Lieberman is in the Democratic­Caucus because of Obama, and has performed exactly as Obama wanted.

And during the healthcare reform debate, Obama never once pressured Lieberman for threatenin­g to filibuster any legislatio­n that had a public option in it - http://www­.huffingto­npost.com/­2009/12/21­/lieberman­-obama-nev­er-pre_n_3­99355.html 

Obama did pressure Dennis Kucinich, crushed him, when his vote wasn't even needed.  Obama went after Kucinich, the last remaining holdout on the Progressiv­e Caucus, for threatenin­g to vote no on the healthcare bill, and we all know how that ended.  Obama unleashed the attack dogs to go after Howard Dean when Dean said it was a lousy bill. Dean was forced to get back into line. 

But not Joe Lieberman.  Not Blanche Lincoln.  Not Mary Landrieu.  Not Ben Nelson.  

When Obama needed Blue Dogs like Landrieu and Nelson, he bought them.  Sweetened the pot in legislatio­n for their states.  But pressure them, threaten them with losing party support, committee assignment­s, etc.?  No.

And then let me remind you that ultimately Obama didn't even need 60 - He passed ACA through reconciliation.  50 +1.


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