Gore & Lieberman - Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman - Brief Article

Washington Monthly, June, 2000 by David Brooks

JOSEPH LIEBERMAN

The Lord rested on the Sabbath, but it's impossible to imagine Al Gore doing so. The man is a political Clydesdale, his eyes straight ahead, pushing his way forward. As his handlers have discovered, his manner makes him effective on the attack--he is a bludgeoning machine--but it also makes him a little creepy. Why does he seem so intent even when he's supposed to be loose? This is why he needs Sen. Joseph Lieberman as his running mate. Sen. Lieberman does rest on the Sabbath, every Sabbath, because the Torah tells him to. He obviously has a life outside of politics. And it shows in his gentle demeanor and his reflective nature. Sen. Lieberman doesn't bring many electoral votes to the ticket, but he brings sensibility and balance. People actually like the more authentic Joe Lieberman. He seems like he'd be enjoyable company.

There are three things a presidential candidate needs from a vice presidential nominee. First, he needs him to energize the convention. Sen. Lieberman would do that. Democratic delegates would love the idea of putting a Jew a heartbeat away from the presidency. It's so Jackie Robinson! They'd be reminded that theirs is the party of civil rights and breaking down ethnic barriers. The press would love it too. There would be so much to write and talk about: the place of religion in society (a circulation builder), the ins and outs of orthodox Jewry, his wife, Hadassah, herself a dynamic personality. There would be endless ruminations on whether America is ready for a Jewish vice-president. I suspect we'd find it is. Remember, while Catholics and Protestants do not form cohesive voting blocks any more, highly religious people do. If you attend services weekly, whether Catholic, Protestant or Jewish, you are more likely to vote Republican. Lieberman would appeal to the highly religious of all faiths, and help the Democrats shake off their secularist tinge.

Second, the vice-president has to be effective in the televised debate. Can you imagine how difficult it would be for the Republican vice-presidential candidate to launch a vicious attack on the Democratic ticket with Joe Lieberman standing at the other podium? The man exudes civility and makes anybody who goes on the attack look like a rabid dog by comparison. How would the Republican raise the issue of the Clinton sleaze? Lieberman was one of the chief Democratic critics of Clinton sleaze. By joining the Gore ticket he'd be a step toward putting the party beyond all that. Of course, Lieberman wouldn't be much good at attacking the Republican ticket. But with Al Gore at the top of the ticket, the Democrats don't need another hatchet man.

Third, if a Gore/Lieberman ticket were elected, the vice-president would raise the tone of the White House. These days, administrations seem to be staffed by more and more ruthless political players. Once Democratic operatives decided they were going to be as hardball as Lee Atwater, they adopted bare-knuckle tactics with the fervor of converts. The Clinton scandals were all magnified because the Clintonistas lied so blatantly and ruthlessly assaulted their accusers. The counterattack was often more revolting than the crime. Lieberman would at least serve as a hall monitor for all those thrusting 27-year-olds who now seem to run White Houses.

Gore doesn't have a lot of great choices when it comes to vice-presidential picks. There aren't a lot of Democratic governors anymore, or even a lot of promising Democratic senators. But there is one outstanding pick--the guy in the yarmulke.

DAVID BROOKS is a senior editor at The Weekly Standard.