Fightin' Joe Becomes Swingman Joe

One of the most compelling stories in Washington is the tremendous amount of power held by just one man in the United States Senate.  I'm talking about Joe Lieberman.  The Senator from Connecticut can single-handedly put the brakes on the ability of Senate Democrats to control their defeatist agenda toward the Iraq War.  The good Senator can, and likely would, present the following ultimatum to Harry Reid and Company:  either drop any and all efforts to pass legislation with the intent of ending or in any way diminishing the war effort, or lose control over the Senate.  What's the Senate Majority Leader to do?

 

Needless to say, the irony is rich indeed.  The rejection of Lieberman by the Democrats' extremist base in Connecticut provided for the initial seeding of the soil that makes Lieberman's possibility of joining the Republicans possible.  After all, what does he owe his Party?  I don't think he wants to officially become a Republican, but he would if he believed that throwing control of the Senate to the Republicans would help preserve the war effort. 

 

Update:  If this were true, why is Harry Reid acting so skittish? If you take this contention to it's logical conclusion, then five Democrats could resign today, five Republican governors could appoint Republicans to replace them, and the Democrats would still control Senate committees and operations despite there being 54 Republican Senators, 45 Democrat Senators and one Independent caucusing with the Democrats.  I challenge the author of the post to provide a link to the "little-known Senate organizing resolution" that provides for Democratic control until the beginning of the next Congress.  I'm guessing he cannot.