Lamont Wins In Connecticut / Lieberman Concedes, Vows Independent Run

Well... it's over.

Hartford Courant: Lieberman Concedes Defeat In Senate Race

U.S. Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman conceded defeat in the Democratic primary just after 11 p.m. in the bitter Connecticut primary.

But Lieberman pledged to continue his candidacy as an independent in the general election in November...

...Challenger Ned Lamont defeated Lieberman by more than 10,000 votes, according to unofficial vote returns...

More good news for Democrats going toward November. May this give them strength to fight.

Lamont thanked all his supporters for a hard-earned victory. "They call Connecticut the land of steady habits," he said. "Today we voted for a big change."

I also finished watching Sen. Lieberman's 'concession' speech on CNN. It completely summarized why he lost... condescending, self-aggrandizing, with a total disdain for Democratic voters. He blamed his loss on those pesky partisan Democrats who just didn't appreciate him (instead of on his record of self-interest or pornographic definition of bipartisanship, natch). Explaining why Connecticut, the Senate, and- heck- all of America needs him to keep running, Lieberman explained "For the sake of our state, our country and my party, I cannot and will not let that result stand."

To quote Charlie Brown, 'Good grief'.

I hope all the Democratic party leaders who stumped for him are happy now. As activists have been trying to explain for months now, Lieberman always planned to stab the Democratic party in the back for his own benefit. They swore he would never do that and blew off the Independent run as a 'hypothetical' too silly to comment on. Well, I hope those who did stump for him- Clinton, Biden, Boxer, etc- will put the same effort into convincing their friend to drop this race and bow out gracefully, as Lamont always vowed he would have if he lost.

Ned Lamont can beat the Republican candidate in a two-way race. There seems to be little question there (it is Connecticut, after all). The Democratic leaders- so quick to rush to Joe's side all summer- need to step up today to support Lamont and stop Joe from sabotaging this crucial election out of fallen pride and ego. It would be dangerous to underestimate the impact on the midterm elections if they fail to do this.

WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Democratic party leaders begin to step up and support Lamont (DSCC leaders Reid and Schumer release a statement, Hillary Clinton cuts a check, and others join as well). Sen. Lieberman vows on ABC News no one will stop his Independent run- he's just that important, you see- and proceeds to subtlely echo GOP/Rove talking points in trashing the Democratic party, while swearing he remains loyal to them. What a mess.

UPDATE #2: Video of Lamont's victory speech and Sen. Lieberman's aforementioned speech.

Those concerns aside... let's enjoy the victory for now. Score one for the little guys.

[PS- In another highly-watched Democratic party, Hank Johnson knocks out Cynthia McKinney. Good riddance... Talking Point Memo's Election Central should have all the results from primaries across the country.

PPS- Andrew Sullivan's blog post on Joe's political downfall gets it exactly right.

As does this NY Times editorial- Revenge of the Irate Moderates]