Regis Philbin
Aug 14th, 2006, 10:08 PM
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14334681
Donors say Lieberman will be well-funded
Supporters of Israel from both parties will be crucial to senator’s effort
By Tom Curry
National affairs writer
MSNBC
Updated: 10:19 a.m. MT Aug 14, 2006
WASHINGTON - Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut will be able to raise the funds necessary to mount a campaign to keep his Senate seat, both Democratic and Republican donors say.
Having lost last week’s Democratic primary to Ned Lamont, Lieberman is running as an independent against Lamont and Republican Alan Schlesinger.
Lamont, a Greenwich, Conn. businessman who self-financed about two-thirds of his campaign, ran against Lieberman’s support for the Iraq war, his refusal to use a filibuster to block a vote on Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito and a number of other issues.
Lieberman's decision to run as an independent is causing angst within the ranks of Democratic donors, some of whom were unwilling to talk on the record about his campaign because his candidacy has so divided Democrats.
The three-term Democrat will turn to donors to his previous Senate campaigns and his 2004 presidential bid. He’ll also get some money from Republican and independent donors, especially those who agree with Lieberman’s support of Israel and continued U.S. troop presence in Iraq.
At a moment when Israel is at war with Hezbollah, Lieberman's candidacy has become a rallying point for those who think it would be a singularly bad time to end the Senate career of such a staunch champion of the U.S.-Israel alliance.
Ira Forman, executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) said, “He can raise the money” to run a campaign. “There is a pro-Israel network of folks who are going to give to Lieberman because of his friendship to the Jewish community and because of who he is. Will he get all the money he’d have gotten as the Democratic nominee? Probably not, but I do think he can raise the money” to sustain a very credible campaign, Forman said.
Donors say Lieberman will be well-funded
Supporters of Israel from both parties will be crucial to senator’s effort
By Tom Curry
National affairs writer
MSNBC
Updated: 10:19 a.m. MT Aug 14, 2006
WASHINGTON - Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut will be able to raise the funds necessary to mount a campaign to keep his Senate seat, both Democratic and Republican donors say.
Having lost last week’s Democratic primary to Ned Lamont, Lieberman is running as an independent against Lamont and Republican Alan Schlesinger.
Lamont, a Greenwich, Conn. businessman who self-financed about two-thirds of his campaign, ran against Lieberman’s support for the Iraq war, his refusal to use a filibuster to block a vote on Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito and a number of other issues.
Lieberman's decision to run as an independent is causing angst within the ranks of Democratic donors, some of whom were unwilling to talk on the record about his campaign because his candidacy has so divided Democrats.
The three-term Democrat will turn to donors to his previous Senate campaigns and his 2004 presidential bid. He’ll also get some money from Republican and independent donors, especially those who agree with Lieberman’s support of Israel and continued U.S. troop presence in Iraq.
At a moment when Israel is at war with Hezbollah, Lieberman's candidacy has become a rallying point for those who think it would be a singularly bad time to end the Senate career of such a staunch champion of the U.S.-Israel alliance.
Ira Forman, executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC) said, “He can raise the money” to run a campaign. “There is a pro-Israel network of folks who are going to give to Lieberman because of his friendship to the Jewish community and because of who he is. Will he get all the money he’d have gotten as the Democratic nominee? Probably not, but I do think he can raise the money” to sustain a very credible campaign, Forman said.