I usually have a bit of sympathy for America's political punching bags. Sometimes frustration with modern politics can lead to unfair accusations of political figures. And while slanderous comments toward political talking heads are not always justified, there is one particular politician who deserves no sympathy.
There's something relieving about hearing that the senior Sen. Joe Lieberman (R-Conn.) will retire rather than seek re-election at the end of his term in 2012. His decision to retire doesn't technically matter since a re-election would result in a sore loss. Republicans, Democrats and even independents in Connecticut want nothing to do with Lieberman anymore. But despite the triviality of his decision, I'm still excited to have a real progressive elected in Connecticut's 2012 race.
The interesting aspect of all of this is that I actually agree with Lieberman on a lot of issues. If you line him up against most Republicans in Congress, I suspect I'd side with him more often than not. So why do I feel the specific need to lash out toward this little old man? Is it because he's smug, self-obsessed and has a general tendency to talk out of his ass? No. It's because he's a perfect example of how there is zero accountability for the abuse of power in Washington.
Few members of Congress have been more vocal of their support than Lieberman for almost every post-Cold
War battle America has fought. He supported wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and endorsed the attacks in Iran, Syria and Yemen. It's become appropriate in today's political atmosphere to label the Iraq War a considerable mistake. Yet, it's forbidden to assign any political leader of Lieberman's status to even a small portion of the blame.
Lieberman was also the most vocal opponent of the whistle-blowing website Wikileaks. His staff is linked to persuading companies like Amazon, PayPal, Visa and Master Card to suspend service to the website. He even suggested that the New York Times and other news organizations be investigated for breaking U.S. espionage laws solely because they reported on what the documents revealed. These are both examples of Lieberman's abuse of power in his position as Homeland Security Chairman and seat on the Committee of Armed Services. He's tried to dictate which websites private companies should be allowed to host, and more importantly, what users should have access to on the Internet.
Lieberman also has a wonderful history in backward bipartisanship. He has had no problem reaching across the aisle to join President Bush in throwing government money to religious organizations. Lieberman has been more than happy to deprive Democrats of the votes needed to pass a single-payer option for the universal health-care law. He's even been generous enough to throw out his support for Republicans in 2008 by supporting Sarah Palin as vice president through statements that said ""everyone should listen to Sarah Palin.""
But despite his incredibly disappointing tenure in office, Lieberman chose to end his career in the most annoying manner possible. He played a significant role in repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell near the end of last year, leaving his position with a bang. Repealing the act was something I didn't believe Congress could do, but with Lieberman's seemingly noble efforts they were able to pull it off.
But a few righteous acts toward the end of his long and bloody career do not justify the praise handed out by U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D- Nev.) and Vice President Joe Biden. They continue to label Sen. Lieberman as a ""Democratic hero."" But I just don't see it. Instead I see the face of political corruption and abusive power on Capitol Hill. A face that certainly won't be missed.
Mike Kujak is a sophomore with an undeclared major. Please send all feedback to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
