Go Lamont!

Check this out (via Hoffmania):

After years of ardent support for the Iraq war, Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman could become that conflict's first big political casualty in a Democratic primary race fueled by rising anti-war anger.

Lieberman, the party's vice presidential nominee in 2000, faces a growing challenge from a political neophyte who has rallied Democrats angered by the senator's enthusiastic backing of the war and willingness to support Republican President George W. Bush on other issues.

Challenger Ned Lamont's underdog bid to unseat Lieberman in Democratic-leaning Connecticut could offer an early gauge of the intensity of anti-war sentiment ahead of November's midterm elections, along with a measure of the influence of the Internet activists and bloggers who have flocked to his cause.

"Senator Lieberman has cheered on the president every step of the way when it comes to the invasion of Iraq, and he is too quick to compromise on core Democratic principles," Lamont, a businessman and former Greenwich town selectman, told Reuters.

"He's wrong on the big issues of the day and he is not challenging the Bush administration," added Lamont, who qualified for the Aug. 8 primary ballot by winning 33 percent of the delegates at the state party convention last month.

Lieberman, who has not faced a tough re-election race since entering the U.S. Senate 18 years ago, has been stirred by the challenge, stepping up his state schedule and launching a television ad attacking Lamont for votes he cast in Greenwich.

Can you imagine the shockwave that would be sent through the GOP if Lamont merely came close to beating Lieberman in the primary? I'm fairly certain that Lieberman still maintains a pretty good lead in the polls, but Lamont is definitely closing the gap.

I'll never forget, during the last State of the Union address, when Lieberman was the first member of Congress to rise to his feet to applaud Bush's statement about staying the course in Iraq. If he's not doing this already, Lamont should get this footage and repeatedly run it in his political ads. Lieberman even stood up before the Republicans did.

Any leader in the Democratic Party who does not think Iraq will be a big issue in the 2008 presidential campaign should take a closer look at this Lieberman/Lamont race.