In democracy big shots sometimes lose, Senator Lieberman

One of the more troubling aspects of Joe Lieberman’s defiance of the will of Connecticut’s Democratic voters is his clear sense of entitlement.  Joe thinks he has a right to be a senator — that the voters owe it to him. 

And why not, some might argue: After all, he’s held the office for 18 long years; just six years ago he was the Democratic nominee for vice president, for Pete’s sake.  Why shouldn’t he feel betrayed?  Why shouldn’t he look for any possible way to fight back?  

The problem with this line of thinking, of course, is that this isn’t supposed to be primarily about Joe Lieberman — it’s supposed to be about democracy; and in a democracy, no one, not even Joe Lieberman, is too big to take a fall when the voters decide the time is right.

It’s also worth remembering that Lieberman is far from alone: Bigger men (and women) than he have gone down to defeat under circumstances where they might be forgiven a twinge or two of feeling betrayed. 

Walter Mondale is an icon in Minnesota politics.  He served in the United States Senate for over 16 years before being tapped to be Jimmy Carter’s vice presidential candidate in 1976.  He later ran as the Democratic presidential nominee in 1984.

So when, in 2002, the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party picked Mondale to replace Paul Wellstone, following Wellstone’s tragic death in an airplane crash, he looked to be a pretty solid bet to win. 

But he lost. 

And he didn’t cry in his beer or attack the voters; instead, he demonstrated a grace in defeat Lieberman would do well to study.  In his concession speech he said, “At the end of what will be my last campaign, I want to say to Minnesota, you always treated me well, you always listened to me.”

You see, Fritz Mondale, even in that moment of disappointment — and yes, embarrassment, too — understood who the boss was.

George McGovern served South Dakota as a senator for a full 18 years, as well as being the 1972 Democratic presidential nominee.  But he was voted out of office in the Reagan landslide of 1980.

Richard Nixon had a political resume a mile long, including eight years as vice president, when he ran for Governor of California in 1962 (just two years after losing the presidency to JFK by a whisker).  He still lost (“you won’t have Dick Nixon to kick around anymore”).

Margaret Chase Smith (Republican) was a legend in the State of Maine; she deserves the nation’s gratitude for being one of the very first people to have the guts to stand up to Senator Joseph McCarthy’s red-baiting.  But in 1972, after 32 years in the House and Senate, she was abruptly booted out of office.

J. William Fulbright had served as a senator for Arkansas for 30 years, chairing the Foreign Relations Committee during the crucial hearings on the Vietnam War, before being beaten in the Democratic primary by Governor Dale Bumpers in 1974.

There are, of course, numerous other examples of important politicians and statesmen losing elections here in the United States, but visiting the biggest shocker of them all requires traveling across the pond.  The story needs a little background: On May 8, 1945 the Allies celebrated Victory in Europe Day, formally marking the defeat of Nazi Germany.  Winston Churchill was forever enshrined in the hearts of the British people as one of history’s greatest leaders.

Two months later — yes, two months — the British public, anxious for rapid social progress, voted Labour into office by an overwhelming margin, thereby tossing Churchill out as prime minister.

Historians (and others) have often (and understandably) chastised the British voters for ingratitude, given that Churchill played such an indispensable role in saving England from the unthinkable fate of Nazi domination.  But even in this most extreme of cases, the bottom line remains that in a democracy the voters have the right to choose the candidate (or in Great Britain the party) they believe will best serve their needs. 

No political leader, not even a Winston Churchill, has the right to demand the loyalty of the electorate.

And to state the obvious, Senator Lieberman, you’re no Winston Churchill.

So I think it’s fair to ask: Just who is Joe Lieberman to be pouting stubbornly in the face of all of this greatness?  And by what right does he place his personal ambitions ahead of the good of the very political party that carried him into office for so many years, even to the point of denigrating that party and its voters, especially in a year as critical as this one?

Stop crying over your broken toys, Joe.  Better people than you have suffered your fate.  It’s time to go home


association national student loan

This resulted in association national student loan of charging callers for outbound calls and also for receiving calls.

loan certification officer online

The phones have loan certification officer online transceiver that transmits voice and data to the nearest cell sites, normally not more than 8 to 13 km (approximately 5 to 8 miles) away.

loan officer oh steubenville and

Mobile phone use can be loan officer oh steubenville and matter of social discourtesy: phones ringing during funerals or weddings; in toilets, cinemas and theatres.

loanmaxx

Mobile phone usage on local public transport is also increasingly seen as loanmaxx the city of Graz, for instance, has mandated a total ban of loanmaxx s on its tram and bus network in 2008 (though texting is still allowed).

lone star loans

Approximately the size of lone star loans postage stamp, the SIM Card is installed underneath the battery in the rear of the unit, and (when properly activated) stores the phone’s configuration data, and information about the phone itself, such as which calling plan the subscriber is using.

loan mortgage arizona

The first commercial mobile loan mortgage arizona s were created and delivered in Finland in 1998 when loan mortgage arizona mobile operator Radiolinja (today Elisa) started their downloadable mobile loan mortgage arizona service called Harmonium.

no doc business loans

The dialogue between the handset and the cell site is no doc business loans of digital data that includes digitized audio (except for the first generation analog networks).

loans north lot carolina

The use of loans north lot carolina s by people who are driving has become increasingly common, either as part of their job, as in the case of delivery drivers who are calling loans north lot carolina or by commuters who are chatting with a friend.

in loans day tempe pay az

Each SIM Card is activated by use of in loans day tempe pay az numerical identifier; once activated, the identifier is locked down and the card is permanently locked in to the activating network.

secured personal cardiff loans

If, in this case, Bell Mobility did not use secured personal cardiff loans then they may lose the $300–$400 difference that is paid in the monthly bill, since some customers would cancel their service and take the phone to another carrier such as Telus, or Verizon.

One Response to “In democracy big shots sometimes lose, Senator Lieberman”

  1. Again Says:

    it’s supposed to be about democracy; and in a democracy, no one, not even Joe Lieberman, is too big to take a fall when the voters decide the time is right.

    yes, and exactly that’s the reason why elites hate democracy - and they have the power to shape reality, “when they act, they create their own reality”…

    justice is not for the strong - the strong don’t need it, justice is simply protection of the weak
    decency is not for the strong - decency is the knowledge of the weak that “united we stand”
    democracy is not for the strong - it’s simply the only way to allow justice and decency

    we allow democracy to die since decades by adoring the strong, but as Salman Rushdie said: “This is the problem with politicians who by nature tend towards being authoritarian: When they are given the chance, they go too far.”

    and by that we allow justice and decency to die - to be seen in the carelessness about torture and murder and war crimes, but also about New Orleans after Katrina, the “disappearing American vacations”, the exploding disparity between the assets and income of the wealthy compared to the rest of society…

    it’s all about democracy - and about “us”, not “them”. Elites don’t need democracy

    poor Joe, it seems to be, that he doesn’t belong to the true Aristocracy

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.



BUZZFLASH PROGRESSIVE MARKETPLACE:  BOOKS, MOVIES, AND MUSIC - FOR PROGRESSIVES, BY PROGRESSIVES