| | Obama aides: Lieberman would have helped McCain camp
 If Sen. John McCain had picked Sen. Joe Lieberman as his running mate, the election might have been much different, said top advisers of President-elect Barack Obama's campaign for the White House, Politico reported.
Choosing Lieberman over Gov. Sarah Palin for the Republican ticket would have undermined Obama's claimed status as the candidate of change and unity, said Obama-Biden deputy campaign manager Steve Hildebrand.
"I think if he would’ve picked Lieberman or another Democrat, he would’ve taken away an important trademark of Barack’s," Hildebrand said.
As supporters of Sen. Hillary Clinton eventually backed Obama, the GOP's opposition to Lieberman would have leveled off, according to Andre Pineda, an Obama campaign pollster.
"It did have the potential to be a game-changer," Pineda said.
In a recent appearance on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, McCain fumbled when asked about Palin not "staying on message."
"Oh, I’m sure that from time to- well, but she was, look, I- we did a lot of things together a lot of these rallies, and the people were very excited and inspired by her, and that’s what really mattered, I think."
The friendship between Lieberman and McCain might not be over, either. Having supported McCain's run for the presidency, Lieberman can be a valuable supporter in the Senate, Newsweek reported.
"As Obama seeks to build new coalitions in Congress on contentious issues like climate change, immigration reform and energy independence," Newsweek reported, Lieberman and McCain may join forces to fight those issues.
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