December 15, 2004

PLAYING HARD TO GET:

Lieberman rejects White House overtures (John King, December 14, 2004, CNN)

Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman has twice in recent days said "no" when approached about the possibility of a major job in the second Bush administration, CNN has learned.

The Cabinet vacancy at the Department of Homeland Security was the subject of the latest overture, according to congressional and other government sources. Those sources said the earlier overture was to see whether Lieberman might be interested in becoming the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. [...]

South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham said Lieberman "would be a terrific pick," while New Jersey Democrat Jon Corzine said, "I hope that Joe Lieberman concept flies."


Let's assume he just wants to be wooed for awhile--that cover from Democrats like Mr. Corzine takes care of his only problem, that he'd be replaced by a Republican in the Senate.

Posted by Orrin Judd at December 15, 2004 9:34 AM
Comments

I still think Lieberman would make a poor Cabinet secretary. And I'm not sure about him as UN Secretary given his tendency to avoid making waves. I would like to think Bush would get credit for even offerring but at the end of the day it is the actual appts that will count. It would be nice to get another GOP senate seat but let's not overpay for him (like the Mets did for Pedro).

On a related note the good vibes for Bush and the GOP from the election have faded partially due to the issues surrounding cabinet replacements (the MSM loved Powell) and problems (Snow, Kerik). Let's hope the Bush admin is up and ready to roll in early 2005.

Posted by: AWW at December 15, 2004 10:19 AM

AWW:

Faded? He's in the mid-50s in the polls. Re-run the election today and he wins by an even larger margin.

Posted by: oj at December 15, 2004 10:22 AM

Lieberman has to decide how best to maximize his media buzz: stay in the Senate, or join the Cabinet? Homeland Security is probably not the right choice, but Joe could really rock at the UN if he doesn't like the view on Capitol Hill. He could out-Monyihan Monyihan if he wanted to. With all the scandal (and all the opportunity) coming down the pike at Turtle Bay, being UN ambassador might be worth it.

However, he would have to learn to defer to Condi Rice in all things. He might not be able to do that.

Posted by: jim hamlen at December 15, 2004 12:31 PM
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