Obama Targets Core Constituencies In Midterms Home Stretch

So what about healthcare reform, a public option? Where was Lieberman on the subject? First, where was Obama?:



Obama now says he didn't campaign on the public option. The Google (and my ears and eyes) says he did. A lot:

http://www­.americabl­og.com/200­9/12/obama­-now-says-­he-didnt-c­ampaign-on­.html



From Politico, 11/19/09 -- "Joe Lieberman Says The Public Option Wasn't Part Of Health Care Reform Until After The Presidential Campaign" -



==According to Politico, Sen. Lieberman said of the public option: "It's classic politics of our time that if you look at the campaign last year, presidential, you can't find a mention of public option...It was added after the election as a part of what we normally consider health insurance reform - insurance market reforms, cover people, cover people who are not covered." ==



But it's not true:



Numerous Outlets Reported On The Inclusion Of A Public Option Or Plan During The 2008 Campaign

http://pol­iticalcorr­ection.org­/factcheck­/200911190­006



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Obama Targets Core Constituencies In Midterms Home Stretch

So what would be the benefit of Lieberman remaining as chair on this committee?:



Candidate Obama certainly implied he'd be investigating Katrina -

http://www­.politico.­com/blogs/­jonathanma­rtin/0608/­McCains_Ka­trina_clai­m_gets_rap­idly_factc­hecked.htm­l



And Obama busted McCain for NOT only not voting for it, but for lying about it and saying that he had supported investigating Katrina:

http://fir­edoglake.c­om/2008/06­/05/hopefu­lly-a-prev­iew-of-oba­mas-campai­gn-strateg­y/



On 2/2/06, Obama voted yes, along with Lieberman, to establish a congressional commission to examine the Federal, State, and local response to the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region of the United States especially in the States of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and other areas impacted in the aftermath and make immediate corrective measures to improve such responses in the future.

http://www­.senate.go­v/legislat­ive/LIS/ro­ll_call_li­sts/roll_c­all_vote_c­fm.cfm?con­gress=109&­session=2&­vote=00006



But once Obama got in office, once Lieberman got into the Democratic Caucus and resume his chairmanship of the Governmental Affairs & Homeland Security Committee, "We're looking forward, not back."



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Obama insisted Lieberman keep the chairmanship of the GovernmentalAffairs & HomelandSe­curityComm­ittee, over REAL Democrats. That's the committee that whitewashed the BushAdmini­stration's failure during Hurricane Katrina, some that Obama rubberstamped once Democrats took over control of government after the 2008 election. That committee is also the means by which all investigations into no-bid contracts & contractor abuse within the Department of Homeland Security have been blocked.

http://www.huf fingtonpos­t.com/jane­-hamsher/o­bama-wants­-lieberman­-to_b_1432­99.html



Chairing committees is what Senators aspire to. After the leadership posts, it's where the only real power exists in the Senate. Incumbents have been known to retire when they've lost their chairs or their path to chairs, so mind-numbingly boring, ego-denying, being 1 of 100 can be for these characters.

http://www.huf fingtonpos­t.com/2008­/11/06/lie­berman-tri­es-to-clin­g_n_141876­.html



Without the chairmanship, Lieberman wasn't interested in being in the Democratic Caucus.

http://www­.politico.­com/news/s­tories/110­8/15401.ht­ml



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I'm not counting Lieberman as a Democrat, nor am I arguing with you about that, although you might want to take it up with Lieberman's spokeswoman Leslie Phillips, who told Newsweek in early 2007 (after he'd left the Democratic Party after losing the Democratic nomination in 2006), "The senator is an independent Democrat and answers only to the people who elected him to office and to his own conscience." http://www­.newsweek.­com/2007/0­1/10/bush-­s-best-dem­ocratic-bu­ddy.html



I've already explained 'party government' to you, & how that translates into the actual functioning of the Senate: Through a hierarchy, defined by Caucuses, what it means to be in the majority's caucus. As a general rule, for all votes having to do with cloture & filibusters (particularly when it comes on landmark or 'centerpiece' legislation that the parties have just run on), every senator can be counted on to vote with the caucus that he's in.



Obama insisted Lieberman remain in the DemocraticCaucus, in spite of multiple betrayals by Lieberman before & during the 2008 election (Lieberman endorsed McCain, campaigned FOR McCain) & over the objections of the members of the DemocraticCaucus.



http://www.huf fingtonpos­t.com/jane­-hamsher/o­bama-wants­-lieberman­-to_b_1432­99.html



http://www­.thedailyb­east.com/b­logs-and-s­tories/200­8-11-10/li­ebermans-e­mpty-promi­ses/1/



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I'm not counting Lieberman as a Democrat, nor am I arguing with you about that, although you might want to take it up with Lieberman's spokeswoman Leslie Phillips, who told Newsweek in early 2007 (after he'd left the Democratic Party after losing the Democratic nomination in 2006), "The senator is an independent Democrat and answers only to the people who elected him to office and to his own conscience." http://www­.newsweek.­com/2007/0­1/10/bush-­s-best-dem­ocratic-bu­ddy.html



I've already explained 'party government' to you, & how that translates into the actual functioning of the Senate: Through a hierarchy, defined by Caucuses, what it means to be in the majority's caucus. As a general rule, for all votes having to do with cloture & filibusters (particularly when it comes on landmark or 'centerpiece' legislation that the parties have just run on), every senator can be counted on to vote with the caucus that he's in.



Obama insisted Lieberman remain in the DemocraticCaucus, in spite of multiple betrayals by Lieberman before & during the 2008 election (Lieberman endorsed McCain, campaigned FOR McCain) & over the objections of the members of the DemocraticCaucus.



http://www­.huffingto­npost.com/­jane-hamsh­er/obama-w­ants-liebe­rman-to_b_­143299.htm­l



http://www­.thedailyb­east.com/b­logs-and-s­tories/200­8-11-10/li­ebermans-e­mpty-promi­ses/1/



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Obama Targets Core Constituencies In Midterms Home Stretch

"Now you're trying to say something else about caucuses, which means you're counting Joe Lieberman as a Democrat, which he's not, as well as several others, which they're not."

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HP doesn't grant as much space as is obviously necessary to hold informed discussions between people of wide-ranging educational & informational backgrounds. Shorthand is therefore necessary; readers with less knowledge & perspective are going to get left behind.



I try to be mindful of the space limitations & not override it with multiple-part posts unless I think it's necessary, in which case I'll provide background, history with reference citations, to support my point. But it can be, has been, 'unappreciated', & usually by the very people who need to read it most, i.e., the least informed.



I think now is one of those times where it's called for.



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"Now you're trying to say something else about caucuses, which means you're counting Joe Lieberman as a Democrat, which he's not, as well as several others, which they're not."

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"Several" others?



Aside from Lieberman and Bernie Sanders (who is an actual socialist, self-proclaimed), everyone else in the Democratic Caucus is a Democrat.
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