"GIVE 'EM HEAVEN, JOE!"

“...A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.”  (from Matthew 13:57).

I feel bad that Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman lost his Democratic Primary race on Tuesday of this week.  I’m a registered Republican, and I’m conservative on MOST issues, but I still feel bad.  Lieberman was first elected to the Senate in 1988.  You may remember that he was the Democrat’s Vice-Presidential candidate in 2000.  Listeners to “Imus in the Morning” regularly hear Joe Lieberman on the air with Don Imus.  After John McCain, Joe Lieberman is probably Don Imus’ favorite U.S. Senator.  

I actually flirted with voting Democrat in the 2000 election.  MY candidate that year was John McCain.  I was deeply disappointed that McCain was not the Republican nominee that year.  Frankly, I was not very impressed with George W. Bush.  Yes, I know he’s a born-again Christian, like me.  But as my sister (also a big McCain supporter) put it that year, “We’re not voting for the preacher, we’re voting for the President”.  Ultimately, I voted for third-party candidate Pat Buchanan in 2000, but it was Joe Lieberman who almost motivated me to vote Gore-Lieberman.

Unlike most American Jewish people, Joe Lieberman is NO worldly, secular Jew.  NO!  Lieberman is an Orthodox Jew.  He takes his faith very seriously.  In the 2000 campaign, he absolutely refused to campaign on the Sabbath.  Joe Lieberman has taken tremendous “flack” because Orthodox Jews make women sit separately in their synagogues and essentially believe the man is the head.  He has never “caved in” on what he believes.  Lieberman is a man I could give my respect to as President, no problem.  Would he make a better President than George W. Bush?  I think so.  Ironically, it was George W. Bush’s “kissing” of him in public earlier this year, and the fact that Lieberman is Bush’s favorite Democratic Senator that did Lieberman in.

Joe Lieberman has angered the ultra-liberal Democrat activists in that he’s now running for his U.S. Senate seat as an Independent.  I know many think an Independent can’t win.  I think an Independent CAN win!  Back in 1972, Massachusetts experienced a unique congressional election in which an Independent won.  I think it was the 9th District.  Whatever the number, it’s the District that includes South Boston,Milton, Canton and a few other communities.  Today, that District is represented by Lynch.  In 1972, the Democrat incumbent was conservative Louise Day HIcks.  The Republican challenger was a guy named Miller.  I forget his first name.  The Independent was Joe Moakley.  Moakley had huge billboards which read, “Give ‘Em Hell, Joe!”  I don’t like that, because I consider it swearing.  But, Moakley did indeed “give it to ‘em”!  Moakley won.  Within a year of being sworn in, Moakley had an epiphany and declared himself a Democrat.  He served as a relatively conservative Democratic congressman for many years and passed away a few years ago.

I want to see a good guy like Joe Lieberman win, so I’ll say, “Give ‘Em Heaven, Joe!”