Melber Toast
I honestly don’t know what the Nation’s Ari Melber is on about. Joe Lieberman has the power to hand the entire Senate back to the Republicans. I believe that makes him one of the most powerful members of Congress. Melber dismisses this little fact as:
In fact, the Democratic one-vote majority means to me that Joe will wield considerable amounts of influence over the Democratic agenda.
Melber offers the typical Kos-ian liberal talking points about the emergence of the blogosphere (whose influence ended at the party primary’s edge – meaning that their mainstream influence among mainstream voters has yet to either be felt or demonstrated). The he goes on with how the liberal bloggers are not like New Left in the 1960s, and how the Democrats will not lose a series of elections by running with candidates like George McGovern.
I’m really not sure what Melber’s point is. Lets break down this argument.
Thesis: Lieberman is no longer important.
Statement 1: Lets not talk about Joe Lieberman anymore (though, Melber is writing an article about him well after he slipped from the news cycles)
S2: Lieberman spent his year being attacked by bloggers, and then heralded as important when he won election.
S3: Lieberman produced an ad attacking Markos Moulitsas himself, but refused to air it.
Conclusion to S3: Because he produced the ad at all, bloggers must be important.
S4: Washington insiders consider Lieberman newly powerful.
S5: Lieberman will have no influence with the new Congress because he is not a full member of the Democratic party.
S6: Flirting with changing parties would “petty” (as if politics never got never petty before)
C: Lieberman and Bush will be indistinguishable as the term wears on.
Melber’s deductive logic is pretty off. Lieberman will have extraordinary power – to turn Committee chairmanships, the organization of the Senate and control of the chamber right back over to the Republicans. He owes the Democrats no allegiance, having been ousted in a bruising primary. His only tie to the party now is that he campaigned under the idea of remaining a nominal Democrat. It is only by his grace that the Democrats even retain control of the chamber at all. Melber is off his rocker, but that’s typical of The Nation in a post-Kos era.
He will have little influence or goodwill within the incoming majority, beyond his formal committee chairmanship. Flirting further with changing parties would seem petty, even by Beltway standards, in the shadow of a Congressional calendar that promises to be packed with hearings and legislation on Iraq, terrorism, war profiteering, the economy and healthcare
In fact, the Democratic one-vote majority means to me that Joe will wield considerable amounts of influence over the Democratic agenda.
Melber offers the typical Kos-ian liberal talking points about the emergence of the blogosphere (whose influence ended at the party primary’s edge – meaning that their mainstream influence among mainstream voters has yet to either be felt or demonstrated). The he goes on with how the liberal bloggers are not like New Left in the 1960s, and how the Democrats will not lose a series of elections by running with candidates like George McGovern.
I’m really not sure what Melber’s point is. Lets break down this argument.
Thesis: Lieberman is no longer important.
Statement 1: Lets not talk about Joe Lieberman anymore (though, Melber is writing an article about him well after he slipped from the news cycles)
S2: Lieberman spent his year being attacked by bloggers, and then heralded as important when he won election.
S3: Lieberman produced an ad attacking Markos Moulitsas himself, but refused to air it.
Conclusion to S3: Because he produced the ad at all, bloggers must be important.
S4: Washington insiders consider Lieberman newly powerful.
S5: Lieberman will have no influence with the new Congress because he is not a full member of the Democratic party.
S6: Flirting with changing parties would “petty” (as if politics never got never petty before)
C: Lieberman and Bush will be indistinguishable as the term wears on.
Melber’s deductive logic is pretty off. Lieberman will have extraordinary power – to turn Committee chairmanships, the organization of the Senate and control of the chamber right back over to the Republicans. He owes the Democrats no allegiance, having been ousted in a bruising primary. His only tie to the party now is that he campaigned under the idea of remaining a nominal Democrat. It is only by his grace that the Democrats even retain control of the chamber at all. Melber is off his rocker, but that’s typical of The Nation in a post-Kos era.
