NewsMax Editorial
Monday, Jan. 26, 2004

We asked ourselves that question of the current Democratic primary contestants and the answer held just one name: Sen. Joseph Lieberman.

Any candidate who seeks the presidency of the United States needs to demonstrate that he or she is first and foremost a person of integrity.

We believe that issues of integrity always trump party and ideological concerns. Only Sen. Joseph Lieberman has demonstrated such integrity. Certainly, Lieberman knows he has staked out positions that do not make many in the Democratic Party or the major media happy with him. For instance, he has supported President Bush’s successful effort to remove Saddam Hussein.

Lieberman points out on the campaign trail that while he is a proud Democrat, he is an American first. He understands that partisanship ends at the nation’s shore. In the era of Sept. 11, national security should not be used to score cheap political points.

While the other Democratic candidates refuse to admit that the world is safer without Saddam Hussein, Joe Lieberman has supported the president in maintaining that by toppling Saddam the U.S. and its allies have improved the prospects for peace and stability in that troubled region.

Last May, Dennis Kucinich asked Lieberman how Democrats could win "if we simply rubber-stamp this president's destabilizing foreign policy of pre-emption and nuclear first strike, without offering a serious alternative?"

Lieberman snapped back: "Dennis, I'd say how can we win this election if we send a message of weakness on defense and security after September 11, 2001, to the American people? Protecting their security, giving them a sense of safety, making sure people in this country are not worried when their loved ones go out to the mall or take a train, go to a movie theater, that is the first goal of our government, and that means being strong on defense and homeland security."

Lieberman has made it clear that issues such as homeland security and national defense are not the property of the Republican Party and that you can be a Democrat and still campaign on them. It is a stand that requires both courage and integrity. It may cost him his party’s nomination.

His party appears to edging closer to selecting Sen. John Kerry.

Time and again Kerry has demonstrated a far left political extremism that Howard Dean has only been accused of.

A decorated war hero, Kerry’s position on national security is worse than Dean’s. Kerry opposed the 1991 Operation Desert Storm to liberate Iraq. Even Dean supported that action.

Last year, Kerry did vote to give the president authorization to remove Saddam Hussein. But once that became unpopular in his party, he backtracked and accused President Bush of malfeasance.

A man of integrity is willing to challenge those he cares about and is unwavering for the positions he takes because he believes them to be right.

Joe Lieberman does not hesitate to take on other Democratic sacred cows, such as Hollywood, castigating Tinseltown over the issues of graphic sex and violence. And during a debate in South Carolina, he criticized Rep. Dick Gephardt's health-care proposal, saying it reminded him of "big-spending Democratic ideas of the past."

He also backs the death penalty, has attacked racial quotas and has spoken favorably about school vouchers despite the fact that these stands put him at odds with the party whose support he needs.

As Al Gore's running mate in the 2000 presidential election, Joe Lieberman refused to follow the party line in the Gore campaign when they tried to prevent the absentee ballots of American serviceman and women serving abroad.

Instead, to the dismay of his running mate and his campaign staff, he insisted that their ballots be counted.

NewsMax firmly believes that George Bush deserves re-election, but we are not so cynical as to suggest that Lieberman should be the Democratic nominee because he would be easy for Bush to beat. Quite the contrary.

We contend that in the post-Sept. 11 era, the country can no longer afford to have only one party with one candidate who will serve the interests of the American people.

We consider accurate the report from Australia that President Bush told the Australian prime minister he feared only Lieberman come November.

While we disagree with many of Joe Lieberman’s positions, we cannot overlook his courage and integrity. It has set him apart from his opponents and we are proud to endorse him for his party’s nomination.

Editor's note:
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2004 Elections