Let's talk about the money, Joe

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm getting mighty sick of hearing Joe Lieberman discussing how wealthy Ned Lamont is, and whether it's a good idea to have another millionaire in the Senate.

Joe Lieberman is a phony, plain and simple.

Yes, Ned Lamont is wealthy. But he's generated wealth as well as inherited it, because he is an entrepeneur who started and has successfully run a business for many years. He's created jobs and helped the local economy in a very direct way.

Ned Lamont doesn't hide the fact that he has money, and his family has been very active in charitable organizations for many years.

Joe Lieberman makes a big point of saying he came from humble beginnings. He acts like he's representitve of the middle class. Well, I can't speak for anyone else, but not too many of us middle-class kids get the chance at a Yale education, like Joe got. Very few of us humble middle-class people are attorneys and career politicians.

So while Joe did come from a non-privilaged upbringing, the minute he entered Yale at the age of 19, he started losing touch with the middle-class. Now, roughly 40 years later, he's as disconnected and insulated as any politician could be.

Joe Lieberman is a millionaire, too. Maybe not like Ned Lamont, but don't doubt for a second that he has plenty of money compared to most people, and all of it has come while pretending to be the "champion of the middle class".

And let's look at campaign finances. (I got the numbers from an article at My Left Nutmeg)

Joe is insisting that Ned Lamont is "buying a seat in the Senate". Here's the facts. Lieberman has raised a total of $9.2 million dollars so far, while Ned has only raised $4.6 million, exactly HALF of Joe's war chest.

And where did Joe get his money from? Lobbyists, special interest groups, PACs, and wealthy donors mostly. Ned has contributed about $3 million of his own money to his efforts, and taken in another $1.6 million from mostly regular people like you and me.

When Ned Lamont wins, he won't be beholden to the corporations, special interests and lobbyists. Ned will be able to legislate guided solely by his conscience, which is something Lieberman has SOLD long ago.

What this says to me is that should Joe somehow manage to hold on and win, he'll continue to occupy the BEST SENATE SEAT CORPORATE MONEY CAN BUY!

So, that's what I think about the money.