Ned Lamont is a great candidate. UPDATE: Folks ain't buying this poll.

This diary is prompted by complaints I'm seeing that basically say Ned Lamont is a bad candidate.  The Q poll is out that clearly shows Ned is going to lose, people fear.  So, now they are doing the post-mortem already and complaining about all the things Ned did wrong.  You people are BREAKING LAME!!(Copyrighted to TheC, 2006)  First, this thing ain't over... not by a long shot.  Second, Ned is not a bad candidate.  He is the ONLY kind of candidate that could have brought us to where we are today.  

We would not have knocked off an iconic establishment figure like Joe Lieberman without a real outsider.  But, at the same time, thanks to American Politics - George W. Bush Style and Joe's sleazy fundraisers, the only kind of outsider that could run would have to be a very rich one.  We are damn lucky in CT to have a rich enough outsider candidate who is also a good guy and not an arrogant ass.  Ned Lamont is that kind of candidate.  I met Mr. Lamont last spring and the thing that floored me was how genuine and humble this guy was.  All I knew going in was that this guy was a multi-millionaire who had the guts to take on a three-term incumbent Senator in a primary!!  I figured, he had to be one borderline arrogant son of a bitch.  Nope.  He seems to be about as decent a guy as you could want.  And after he wins, he will be a decent Senator - and that would be a blessing.

I'm not ready to proclaim any moral victories yet, but you still have to stop and reflect on what we've done here.  We've basically purged Joe from the Democratic Party.  If he does go on to win, Joe can go back to calling himself a Dem all day long, but when he's on FoxNews kissing W.'s ass again and the media describe him as a Democrat who agrees with Bush's dumbass idea of the day, there will always be that caveat in the back of people's minds.... Joe's the Democrat that Dems in his own state rejected.  I will never regret anything about this campaign.  

But... that said... this ain't over.  Kos' front page post is excellent and on point.  I'm not saying it won't be a fight.  Right now, we are clearly behind whether you believe the Q poll or not.  We have a lot of work to do.  But, I truly believe all of the intangibles favor Ned.  There is the business of the ballot positions.  There is a Republican who is vastly underpolling and can only go up.  There is the simple fact that Joe is wrong on the biggest issues of the day.  People are saying they will vote for Joe, but don't agree with him.  Those are voters that can still be won over.  Ned has all the people-power.  Joe didn't even have people-power during a Dem primary when he had all the establishment folks on his side.  For all the talk of Joe's GOTV operation, there was no activity for Joe on the ground on primary election day (at least not in Hartford).  The national trend is anti-incumbent.  People want change and Ned is slowly, but surely delivering the message that he is the candidate for change.  Most of all, people want to have hope again.  Only Ned Lamont is the candidate that offers any hope of a better tomorrow in DC and America.  I think folks will be brave on election day and take action for change.   Update: Colin McEnroe ain't buying it. Also, the Lamont campaign claims its internals don't match. And they are certainly not giving up!

•  I know my title...

  reads a bit too Kool-Aidish, but I think the second guessers sometimes forget how Quiotic of a challenge this seemed at the beginning.  We sure as hell aren't going to quite now!

  by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:46:15 PM PDT

  •  Quixotic... dammit

    Me and my stupid big words.

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:47:11 PM PDT

  •  Damn.... I spelled quit wrong too!

    Me and my stupid small words.

    That's it... no more "qu" words for me.  Ever!

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:29:58 PM PDT

•  Ya know

  every election we see alot of bullshit being done to Democratic candidates, by either members of their own party, definitely a ton from the opposition and the MSM.

  But when they lose, everyone just blames the candidate, as if all else was on the up and up and our guy just screwed the pooch.

  When republicans lose, they don't get angry at their guy (well that might be changing) they get mad at the voters, the press and find out what went wrong, and fix it (just in a bad way). I do not want to follow their path step by step, but this side  might learn a little bit about committing to the guy they picked. Have a little more faith?

  Oh and don't do the autopsy, he ain't dead yet.

  by bam bam on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:46:30 PM PDT

•  you are in deep denial if you think

  any of the things you listed in that last paragraph are going to get Lamont elected.
  I have no doubt that he is a great candidate.  I have no doubt that you believe in him.
  But what is the campaign doing differently now that they see they are losing polling points?  What are they DOING?  That is what I want to know. What are they doing to recover from the mistakes they made right after the primary?

  I don't think it's over, but it will be if they don't make some changes.

  by TeresaInPa on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:51:06 PM PDT

  •  Exaclty

    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:54:23 PM PDT

  •  No..

    In and of themselves, those things won't get him elected, but I think they provide a setting where a change in strategy could allow a victory.  Some candidates can be down big at this point and it won't matter what they do, they aren't catching up.  I think the intangibles are such that this can be fixed.  That's my point.  I'm not blindly saying - we're going to win.  We can still win, though.

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:00:06 PM PDT

    •  okay, I get ya

      I hope there has been a change in strategy.  

      by TeresaInPa on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:15:00 PM PDT

    •  They need to challenge Joe on the Iraq War

      and they need to get the message out to Democrats who have not been paying attention, that Joe is not a Dem any more.

      And when Ned is asked about Iran, which he was in an interview last week, he gave the impression that he might support military action there by saying 'nothing is off the table'.

      If he is asked that question again, he should use it to launch an attack on Joe. He should say something like:

      I would not want to make the mistakes we made re the Iraq War.  My opponent, Joe Lieberman who voted for the war based on false information, is, incredibly still defending that decision. I would hope that Congress would never again be asked to make such an important decision without being able to trust the information they are given. I fear that Joe Lieberman may be willing to do that again etc ...

      I don't believe this poll means Joe will win ... there are two and a half weeks left. Someone in an earlier diary pointed out that there are many Democrats who don't tune in until the last few weeks. Isn't it possible that they don't realize Joe is no longer a Democrat?

      I just talked to a friend in NJ, eg. He used to be a Republican (voted for Bush) but is disgusted with Repubs right now. But he didn't know anything about the candidates.  I think I convinced him not to vote for Kean. There must be thousands of people like him in CT also.

      by Catrina on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:57:38 PM PDT

•  Lamont is a great candidate.

  He's getting lukewarm help from the Democratic establishment although Dodds to his credit is helping. I simply don't believe this poll is anywhere near accurate although Lamont may be a few points behind. Stop whining, help the guy, consider the common good. I'm going to call his office and offer to stick stamps or whatever. This guy deserves to win.  

  by otto vb vs on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:51:31 PM PDT

•  The campaign has been poor

  Too much broadening the message, too little Bush and Iraq.

  NOTE: If you think I am a Liebrman troll, look at how th anti-support Lamont with time and money folks attacked me in kos' post.

  by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 12:53:56 PM PDT

  •  I didn't even get a chance to accuse you

    Now I'll have to think of some other mean name to call you.  Hmmmmm...........

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:01:26 PM PDT

  •  Yes, they decided after the primary victory

    ...that they need new consultants for a broad message, and it was all downhill from there.

    They should have stuck with their original people.

    by Eric J in MN on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:06:03 PM PDT

•  The Q Poll is Wrong!

  Well, not really -
  It's just at the outer edges of the MOE.
  The race is more like 49% to 39%.
  But it's been that way since early August.

  by johnnygunn on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:04:21 PM PDT

  •  Not exactly

    there has been some variations. ButI won;t repeat thie disagreement with you.

    Your current take seems right to me.

    by Big Tent Democrat on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:08:31 PM PDT

•  The Q poll is bogus

  and it has been bad all season. Get off the damn ledge, put the towels back on the shelf rather than throwing them in and put on the rally caps. We can win this thing.

  by Lefty the playwright on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:05:04 PM PDT

•  Hate to be a jerk, but

  all I could think of when I read the title was the immortal line, "Mark Kennedy is a GREAT candidate!"

  by brownsox on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:19:03 PM PDT

  •  YOU ARE RIGHT YOU ARE A JERK

    by petercjack on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:25:16 PM PDT

•  Thanks for writing this

  I was going to write a similar post, but mainly one addressed to the ridiculous amount of negativity on this site compared to other blogs. Is this the way we're going to react in 2008 if our presidential candidate is down in the polls? How many of you remember that the night before the election, 18 years ago, when Lieberman ran against Weicker, that Lieberman was down 10 points in the polls and won the next day?
  Ned is Ned. Stop going negative on him. He's a great candidate, and he's getting more seasoned each day. Ned is fighting for each of us, and he's put millions of his own money into this campaign compared to our nickels and dimes. Have all of you so quickly forgotten the anger we felt after the primary when the DSCC and other Dems refused to actively support Ned? Do you think another candidate will have the courage to follow Ned's lead if we don't continue to look at this as a challenge rather than a lost cause at this point? And what about the next phony Dem we want to boot out of office? Who are you going to find to run against that person?
  Give more money, campaign like hell over the next few weeks, and believe that this is winnable, because it is.

  by grayslady on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:21:49 PM PDT

  •  Great Post - grayslady!

    Amen. When the going gets tough ...

    by ronlib on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:47:36 PM PDT

    •  Thanks. Needed to be said. n/t

      by grayslady on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:17:23 PM PDT

•  don;t mind the swarming DLC'ers

  they are using their tactics from 04 still in order to try and push progressives and liberals back down.  They are scared of us and it is showing.

  by lightnessofbeing on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:22:23 PM PDT

•  We've won absolutely nothing if Lieberman wins

  in November.

  In fact, if we pick up six other seats, that hateful troll of a man will be able to hold the Democrats hostage by threatening to caucus with the Republicans.

  by Geekesque on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:25:08 PM PDT

•  if nothing else

  lamont's candidacy highlighted a couple of thing. how conservative connecticut actually is and that liarman is really a repubo/neo-con. even without lamont he probably would have switched sides of the aisle soon anyway.

  by nwskinner on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:25:57 PM PDT

•  If you believe this poll then just shut up

  I agree, Ned Lamont is a fantastic candidate and he is a winner.  He will win.  For non-believers, shut up and stop draining energy.

  He will win because he is the best candidate by far.

  Regarding the poll:

  1.  Impossible to predict a poll with three parties, especially when the "third" party is the Republican party.  Anyway whoever thinks a republican is going to poll in the single digits is crazy.  With any luck he will top 20 percent.

  2.  Joe is at teh bottom of the barrel on the ballot.

  3.  Ground game.  Lieberman?  What ground game?

  4.  Energy.  Lamont's campaign has ENERGY and MOMENTUM.  If those who feel its over, stop saying so.  If you say so then you're just a troll because  anyone who wants Lamont to win, will not put a drag on his candidacy by saying he has already lost because of a stupid poll which has never polled a three party race of this kind before!!  In any case  you would be wrong, because:

  Ned Lamont will win.

  thank you

  by petercjack on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:34:23 PM PDT

  •  If YOU believe what you say

    WE are in DEEP trouble...  cuz you know who you sound like with that  "shut up, sit down, we know what we're doing, don't spread negative energy" routine?  Sort of a cross between Spiro Agnew's "Negative Nabobs of Negativism" speech and one of Condaleez Rice's "Stay the Course" happy-talks.

    Gawd!  "Energy and Momentum" ... Uh, that's exactly what people who aren't campaign insiders are saying the campain LACKS ...

    (Not to mention how much it sounds like sloppy seconds  leftovers  from Lieberman's Primary campaign -- and we know how well that worked out for HIM )

    Counting on Leiberman voters to be too lazy and stupid to find his name at the lower edge of the ballot ... is not a plan.

    "Keeping the Good Thought" is not a plan.

    Counting on Connecticut voters to transfer their disgust with the Republican congress  (-- 20% approval last I looked) all on their own -- is not a plan.

    Yeah, Lamont ought to win without breaking a sweat. And in a 'Just World, ' with "G-d on Our Side"  -- absolutely, he would.

    But rather than snapping at the messenger ... take the message. The candidate and his handlers have to stop campaigning  as if "Victory is inevitable" and more like "Defeat is unthinkable."

    by AdamSelene on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:16:31 PM PDT

•  Bill? Oh Bill, where the hell art thou?

  Where the hell is Bill Clinton? The "I'll be back if Joe goes Indy" Bill Clinton?

  And, I didn't hear much about the debate. Did Lamont call Joe an a-hole and flaming republican, or did he do a Kerry campaign? It seems that Joe's margin actually went up.

  by ronlib on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:36:07 PM PDT

•  i love what the shrub said yesterday

  he's such a pillar of thought and reasoning...
  he said that the democrats have thrown lieberman out of their party.
  now, didn't lieberman start his own party after he lost the primary???
  nobody threw him anywhere. he willingly went out on his own.
  if connecticut voters elect him i don't see him being a democrat, he's not acted like one for a few years anyway so what's the loss.

  by titotitotito on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:38:18 PM PDT

•  All is not Right in CT

  Please quit coming on here and asking for money for Mr Lamont!  He could buy and sell the whole state of CT and never feel it, and his wife has made tens of millions in the venture capital markets in the last dozen years. See the NYTimes magazine piece on her recently?
  Ned Lamont is an idea whose time may not have come.
  He does not come off as a regular guy; he's a prep school kid and talks like one. Who cares if he started a business? I don't. Also tiresome is his rather 'cool' way with voters -- referring to "Ned Lamont" the way Dole referred to "Bob Dole." An abstact man? It should be very easy to beat the awful Lieberman. He is walking rotteness; just the pits. I mean when a tool like Schlesinger shows up at a debate as more informed and truthful than Joe L., holy shit! Take the bastard down!  But seems like the cool, aloof non-regular guy like Neddie ain't gonna do it, and the need for money has nothing at all to do with the problem. The problem is the candidate.
  If he wins, it will be by default - Schlesinger punching down Joe L. I for one hope it happens, but CT needs to hope a whole lot harder. Chemistry where are thou? I don't look for improvement. Mr Lamont is just not a 'natural.'
  JimSantaFe

  by mrmyster on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:38:31 PM PDT

  •  But Lamont won the primary, and everything

    you just said about Lamont was said back then also. Yet, he won ...

    by Catrina on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:05:49 PM PDT

  •  mystery to me

    is why people want their candidates to be warm and friendly. i would rather have a competent person than one who is a good beer drinking buddy in the senate.  

    by nwskinner on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:29:24 PM PDT

•  It's about turnout

  How is Lieberman going to get his voters to the polls?

  How is he going to do lit drops?

  He isn't.

  by stevegilliard on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:49:54 PM PDT

  •  Helping Ned

    The GOTV is all important, of course. Dems just have to beat the repugs at their own game. Does Ned have a volunteer calling program? (See Jim Webb's site.) If so. Do it. If not, somebody start one muy pronto. (I'm in Calif, calling for two others.)

    by ronlib on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 01:57:22 PM PDT

  •  Stop Underestimating Joe's support in the state

    Joe's got a base people. Dems, independents, and increasily GOPers who will make sure he gets the support he needs. And they will get themselves to the polls and will know which lever to pull when they get there.

    As I've said on other CT Sen threads, Joe has support among people who think his seniority is good for the state, and people who believe that his differences with the Democrat establishment is a good thing. It makes him appear independent, which most voters describe themselves as, when we know he's really just out for himself.

    The author of this thread is right. Ned's fight was always going to be a tough one, and its not a bad reflection on the candidate that the advantages of incumbancy are sometimes too big to overcome. Ned could have done some things better, but Joe always knew he could make a smarmy step to the right and grab all the GOP support he needed to keep his seat. That's why he's been the tool he's been for the last 6 years. He knew he could get away with it.

    by Seeds on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:06:35 PM PDT

    •  Support, perhaps.... troops to do groundwork?

      I don't know.  It didn't seem like it during the primary, that's for sure.  Will Republicans really pound the pavement for him?  They may hold their nose and vote for him, but will they go door to door and drag folks to the polls for him?  That is one of the many wildcards at play here.

      by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:23:01 PM PDT

    •  if he is elected

      will he enjoy the seniority of his past as a non-democrat?

      by titotitotito on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:24:23 PM PDT

    •  yes he knew he could get away with it

      but that wouldn't stop a candidate like Bill Clinton

      who would beat Lieberman in less than a New York minute

      by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:54:48 PM PDT

  •  Don't be so sure

    just saw the Dodd ad

    add "lame" to "cool" and "indifferent"

    What happened to primary Ned who had Lieberman by the tail? Nothing happened. Yikes!

    by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:49:19 PM PDT

•  Ned Lamont

  Had everything going for him. Except a taste for the jugular.
  He allowed Lieberman to escape, when he should have pounced. Hard.

  Instead, wasted time waiting to see if Lieberman would drop out of the race.  My God, only a Democrat.

  by Lords on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:02:38 PM PDT

•  Oh, Poo!

  If Ned Lamont were playing basketball, we'd say he was 'shaving points,' or that he was playing for the Washington Generals.*

  If he loses, a lot of us are going to assume 'the fix was in' ... which won't hurt Ned, all that much ... he'll go back to being rich and happy.  But, what that will mean in 2008 for Senators Clinton and Schumer  ... (who are the 2 most probable Fixers) ... and for the Democratic Party -- probably doesn't bear thinking about.

  *Does anyone not know that the Generals are not a real basketball team.  Their job is to go out on the court and make the Harlem Globetrotters look good.  They never win a game, but they never miss a payday either.

  by AdamSelene on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 02:51:28 PM PDT

•  Now is the time for the kissing truck

  to make the rounds

  by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:20:29 PM PDT

  •  Terrible idea!

    ...

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:39:23 PM PDT

  •  Terrible idea!

    xxx

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:39:33 PM PDT

  •  Terrible idea!

    xxx

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:39:36 PM PDT

  •  Never mind

    I was going to make a dumb joke about your multi-posts, but the site was acting weird and now caused me to multi-post.  That's pretty funny.

    by TheC on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 06:06:18 PM PDT

    •  that is too funny

      ;-)

      by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 07:44:02 PM PDT

•  Now is the time for the kissing truck

  to make the rounds

  by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:20:56 PM PDT

•  Now is the time for the kissing truck

  to make the rounds

  by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:21:08 PM PDT

•  Now is the time for the kissing truck

  to make the rounds

  by FelisRufus on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 03:21:32 PM PDT

•  Thanks for posting this

  by ProgressiveFighter on Fri Oct 20, 2006 at 08:21:33 PM PDT