Senator Joseph Lieberman Is Happy To Be Insane

Imus was a late getting to Senator Joe Lieberman this morning, which the Senator should tolerate, considering, you know, Imus got him reelected in Connecticut in 2006. But Lieberman's memory was longer than that.

"Let's not forget way back in 1989...you made me a well-known Senator," he said. "I'm forever grateful. I don't mind waiting a few seconds. Or minutes."

The Senate Finance Committee votes today on their version of the health care bill, and if it passes it will be melded with the Health Committee's version to be voted on by the entire Senate. Lieberman is nervous the President's timing is off.

"He's trying to do two good things, but doing them at once in the middle of a recession may be really hard to pull off," he said.

The first goal, Lieberman explained, is to lower the cost of health care by changing the way it is delivered. The second aim is to cover millions of people who are presently uninsured.

Lieberman thinks the focus should be on reforming delivery to ensure the highest quality of care. He also wants to help the nearly ten million people who unknowingly qualify for government-assisted programs like Medicaid to get enrolled.

Imus pointed out that, per Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Economic Advisor Larry Summers, the recession is over, so Lieberman shouldn't be too concerned. He laughed.

"It does look like we've certainly hit rock bottom and begun to come up," said Lieberman, an Independent. "But the unemployment rate is creeping toward ten percent. People are still anxious about their economic future."

He does not support Senator Max Baucus's version of the health care bill "the way it is now," and he thinks it is self-defeating: health insurance costs might go down, but taxes would almost certainly increase to pay the cost of covering the uninsured.

Moving on to the equally complex issue of in Afghanistan, Lieberman is aligned with his pal John McCain, and with General Stanley McChrystal: send more troops. He acknowledged there are no good alternatives, but that pulling out would be a disaster.

"It would make too much sense, too," Imus chimed in. Lieberman insisted more troops would keep Afghanistan from falling apart. To which Imus replied, "What do we care?"

If we leave, Lieberaman said, more Afghanis will align themselves with the Taliban, and will view the United States as deserters. Also problematic is nuclear Pakistan next door.

"The number one question leaders there have is, does America have the staying power to hang in there to protect them from the Taliban?" said Lieberman.

Imus thanked his guest for sharing his insane point of view, which made Lieberman smile.

"I always feel good when you say it's insane," he told Imus. "I figure it must be pretty sensible."

-Julie Kanfer