Does the New York Times hate Jomentum?
If you made it past the jump on their Page One story today (registration required), which was a fairly good description of the status of Jomentum's problems - with one glaring mistake and a couple of faulty assumptions -- you were greeted by this picture of the Senator campaigning in Waterbury on Friday.
My goodness, have you ever seen a candidate, nose-to-nose with one of his constituents, looking so ANGRY!!! That scowl is worse than Darth Cheney's. He looks like he's about to punch the guy in the kisser.
What's more, the caption reads:
Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, campaigning Friday in Waterbury, Conn., spoke with Frank Travisano, who said he would not vote for him. Mr. Lieberman faces an opponent in the Democratic primary on Aug. 8.
Feel free to write your own caption in the comments. Lets have a contest: mojo to the best caption writer.
To add insult to injury, just below was a picture of THE KISS, which is a major part of the story.
This was the lead, on Page One:
On his increasingly difficult path to re-election, Senator Joseph I. Lieberman keeps getting kissed. And not lovingly.
Kisses mock Mr. Lieberman, the incumbent Democrat, all over Connecticut -- on signs, on buttons, even on giant parade floats. They commemorate the one President Bush appeared to plant on his cheek after last year's State of the Union address, a symbol, in the eyes of Mr. Lieberman's liberal critics, of an unforgivable alliance in support of the Iraq war.
Of course Mark Leibovich repeats the canard that it's all about Jomentum's position on the Iraq war. But he does kinda redeem himself a bit later when he adds
Mr. Lamont and Mr. Lieberman's critics on the left say he is out of touch with his party, especially but not solely on Iraq, and cannot be trusted to advance what they say are core progressive values.
If you missed the story, or even if you only read the part on Page One, it was like a body-blow to Joe.
... these are down days for Mr. Lieberman, the onetime Democratic nominee for vice president who, six years later, finds himself fighting to save his career <snip> Mr. Lieberman's physical posture is more hunched than usual these days, his normally deep and lulling cadences more clipped. <snip> ... his predicament has left Mr. Lieberman nervous, dispirited and angry, a portrait of a politician stunned to face opponents as passionate in their loathing of his principles as he is proud of them. <snip> Like the candidate himself, Mr. Lieberman's campaign in Connecticut gives the impression of being caught off-guard, a bit shell-shocked and on uncertain footing.
In spite of this fairly insightful reporting, there was a huge snafu that looks like wickedly bad editing
Mr. Lieberman has voted with Senate Democrats and against President Bush on the vast majority of issues since he became took office in 2001. (emphasis added)
WTF does that mean?
Its that gosh-darned liberal media at work again. Press like this could not have left a smile on his face this morning ... and it'll make perfect fodder for the next round of Lamont campaign commercials.
After seeing this with my breakfast, it was really a pleasant Sunday ... despite the triple digit heat here in Socal.