| | Reid: 'Serious concerns' over Lieberman's future
Update: Republican leader reaches out to former DemSen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) was still a member of the Democratic caucus and chairman of the Homeland Security Committee as of Thursday afternoon; it remains unclear how long that will continue to be the case.
The Senate's top Republican is working to convince Lieberman, who backed John McCain's presidential bid, to join the GOP converence, Politico reports Friday. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell reportedly approached Lieberman, but he is unable to offer to Connecticut senator any high profile committee spots.
A Lieberman aide tells Politico the Senator wants to remain in the Democratic caucus as long as he is not stripped of his Homeland Security Committee chairmanship.
Lieberman and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid met to discuss the senator's future after a bruising presidential campaign during which Lieberman was a top surrogate for McCain, delivering plenty of sharp attacks aimed at Barack Obama.
"Today Senator Lieberman and I had the first of what I expect to be several conversations. No decisions have been made," Reid said in a statement e-mailed to reporters after their meeting. "While I understand that Senator Lieberman has voted with Democrats a majority of the time, his comments and actions have raised serious concerns among many in our caucus. I expect there to be additional discussions in the days to come, and Senator Lieberman and I will speak to our caucus in two weeks to discuss further steps."
For his part, Lieberman described the meeting as a "very good conversation ... between friends" and said he would take several days to consider his options. He said he viewed his Senate decisions "not through a partisan lens" but based on what he thought would be best.
"We have just finished an historic election. As you know, I decided in that election that partisanship should take a backseat to doing what in this case I believed was best for our country," he told reporters following the meeting. "But the election is over, and I completely agree with President-elect Obama that we must now unite to get our economy going again and to keep the American people safe. That is exactly what I intend to do with my colleagues here in the Senate in support of our new president, and those are the standards I will use in considering the options that I have before me."
Long story short, little new information about Lieberman's future emerged Thursday.
After losing in Connecticut's Democratic primary in 2006, Lieberman was re-elected as an independent. He split with his former party over the war in Iraq and remains a strong supporter of President Bush's neoconservative foreign policy and draconian national security measures.
However, Lieberman continues to vote with Democrats on issues like abortion, education and tax policies, so the party allowed him to continue as a member of the caucus and retain his Homeland Security Committee chairmanship.
After the 2006 election, Lieberman's continued participation in the Democratic caucus was necessary for the party to hold its Senate majority. After picking up at least six more seats Tuesday, the Democrats no longer need Lieberman to hold on to control.
Over the summer, Lieberman stopped attending weekly Democratic caucus lunches as he stepped up his attacks on Obama. Lieberman spoke at the Republican National Convention this year.
If Lieberman loses his Homeland Security chairmanship, the position would likely go to Hawaii's Daniel Akaka, the committee's third ranking Democrat. Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) has more seniority on the committee than Akaka, but he already chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.
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