The New York Times seems so surprised that the G.O.P is for Lieberman, and that they all but left Alan Schlesinger on his own.
Facing Senator Joseph I. Lieberman's independent candidacy, Republican officials at the state and national level have made the extraordinary decision to abandon their official candidate, and some are actively working to help Mr. Lieberman win in November.
Despite Mr. Lieberman's position that he will continue to caucus with Democrats if re-elected, all three Republican Congressional candidates in Connecticut have praised Mr. Lieberman and have not endorsed the party's nominee, Alan Schlesinger. An independent group with Republican ties is raising money for Mr. Lieberman, who has been a strong supporter of President Bush on the Iraq war.
They shouldn't be so surprised. If Schlesinger were to be elected (which isn't happening), it wouldn't do them as much good as having Joe I. LIEberman defeat a critic of their policies. As much as they'd love a Republican in a pretty Blue State, they realize that has little chance and have decided to safeguard their ridiculous foreign policy by campaigning for someone who agrees with them. Doesn't sound so extraordinary to me.
But nothing does with this administration anymore. Nothing surprises me, every trick they pull out of their hats is just another lie, scandal or war. They pull this kind of thing all the time, and now the media finds it shocking. It is incredible to me that people still are "shocked. So while Ken Melhman says he will "stay out of this one" (another lie), he is knee deep in it. And the Times is still shocked.
One strategist for the G.O.P had this to say:
One strategist said the fear was that a hard-fought race between Mr. Lamont and Mr. Lieberman would spur Democratic turnout, which in turn, he said, could harm vulnerable Republicans in the state, like Representatives Christopher Shays and Rob Simmons.
Schlesinger responded to the G.O.P:
"Washington and the media have attempted to hijack this election and turn it into a referendum on the future of the national Democratic Party," Mr. Schlesinger said in an interview yesterday. "Their interest is not in electing a Republican in Connecticut, or anyone in particular in Connecticut."
Well, sort of, they first want to wage war within the Democratic party, and then end up having it their way with the Pro-War candidate in office. Then they can say that the anti-war candidate divided his party and ended up losing anyway. Just another talking point for the Republicans.
Because they are the party in power and are quite good at stirring up fear in the American people, they might have their way. There is no way, however, to tell who will win right now. So if they tell you there is, there isn't. Lamont still has a very good chance, and so does Lieberman. All we know right now is that a Republican will not win, because he has the lowest poll numbers I have ever seen, and he is not all of a sudden going to shoot past 34 percent.
If Lamont wins, they will all look terrible, and then they will not be able to say that the American people are for the war, because they will have voted TWICE between an anti-war and pro-war candidates. The G.O.P is on thin ice, and if it cracks, oh, what a victory we will have.