Joe Lieberman

Joseph Isadore Lieberman February 24 1942 March 27 2024 was an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States senator from Connecticut from 1989 to 2013 Originally a member of the Democratic Party he was its nominee for vice president of the United States in the 2000 presidential election During his final term in office he was officially listed as an Independent Democrat and caucused with and chaired committees for the Democratic Party Lieberman was elected as a Democrat in 1970 to the Connecticut Senate where he served three terms as majority leader After an unsuccessful bid for the US House of Representatives in 1980 he served as the Connecticut attorney general from 1983 to 1989 He narrowly defeated Republican Party incumbent Lowell Weicker in 1988 to win election to the US Senate and was reelected in 1994 2000 and 2006 He was the Democratic Party nominee for vice president in the 2000 presidential election running with presidential nominee and then Vice President Al Gore and becoming the first Jewish candidate on a US major party presidential ticket Gore and Lieberman lost the 2000 Presidential Election to the Republican George W BushDick Cheney ticket while winning the popular vote He also unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination in the 2004 US presidential election During his Senate reelection bid in 2006 Lieberman lost the Democratic primary election but won reelection in the general election as a third party candidate under the Connecticut for Lieberman party label Lieberman was officially listed in Senate records for the 110th and 111th Congress as an Independent Democrat and sat as part of the Senate Democratic Caucus After his speech at the 2008 Republican National Convention in which he endorsed John McCain for president he no longer attended Democratic Caucus leadership strategy meetings or policy lunches The Senate Democratic Caucus voted to allow him to keep the chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subsequently he announced that he would continue to caucus with the Democrats Before the 2016 election he endorsed Hillary Clinton for president and in 2020 endorsed Joe Biden for president As senator Lieberman introduced and championed the Dont Ask Dont Tell Repeal Act of 2010 and legislation that led to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security During debate on the Affordable Care Act ACA as the crucial 60th vote needed to pass the legislation his opposition to the public health insurance option was critical to its removal from the resulting bill signed by President Barack Obama