I understand why the Democratic leadership extended an invitation to Joe Lieberman to caucus with the Democrats – that is, to maintain their majority-by-a-thread. But in politics, principles matter, and the ends do not justify the means. That’s why it’s high time Joe is kicked to the curb.
This is my rant of the day.
Sure, it’s been gratifying to see Democrats holding leadership positions. But we’ve also seen what it has meant to have a powerless majority – the choice not to pursue impeachment, the inability to pursue substantive oversight, and the functional abdication of oaths taken to uphold the Constitution in light of seemingly endless abridgements of law by the current administration.
The Democratic party’s toothless control of Congress has served nobody well. The abysmal approval ratings of the current Congress do not reflect well on the ability of the Democratic party to manage government, and in some ways only provide talking point fodder for the Republicans ("it’s not our fault things are the way they are, the Democrats are in control of Congress").
Given this, I think we may have been better off, counterintuitively, as a minority party. The Republicans assuredly would have continued digging their own grave – and instead of being dragged down with them, the Democrats could have instead played out the role of principled opposition. It would have been messy and bludgeoning but I think the end result would have been even more singular public disgust at the GOP and the chance that even some Republicans, seeking to save their own skins, may have joined ranks against the Administration. But instead, by compromising our principles and building our house on the shaky foundations of a turncoat, we now also have to admit we, as Democrats, bear some culpability for not delivering on bringing the criminals at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to justice.
For this, and many other reasons, I look forward to the housecleaning that needs to begin on January 20, 2009.