Lieberman a No-Show at Funeral for Fallen Connecticut Soldier

by: tparty

Sat Jul 07, 2007 at 13:08:07 PM EDT

Back last August 6th, as part of his "Closing Argument" for his pathetic and foundering primary campaign, Sen. Lieberman made perhaps the most duplicitous and self-righteous version of an argument that he has often advanced both before and since - that because he was such a strong supporter of the failed policies in Iraq from the beginning, he felt more deeply about the loss of life that he had caused than anyone else:

I know as well as anyone we have made a lot of mistakes in Iraq and we have suffered more casualties than we should have. Don’t think for a minute I do not grieve for every casualty of this war.

In fact, as someone who voted for the war, I feel a heavy responsibility to try to end it as quickly and successfully as possible.

I have been to the front lines four times. I have been to Walter Reed and visited the brave men and women who have suffered awful injuries and sacrificed for their country the way Max Cleland did.  I have visited with the families who have been devastated by the death of a son or daughter, a husband or a wife.

The last thing I want to do is needlessly add to that kind of heartbreak. I want to get our troops home as fast as anyone, probably more than most, and as I have repeatedly said, I am against an open-ended commitment.

Two weeks ago, on June 25th, U.S. Army Pfc. Andre Craig Jr. of New Haven was killed in Baghdad as the Humvee he was riding in was hit by an improvised explosive device, leaving behind a wife and a six-month old daughter who he had met for the first - and last - time just this past May.

The funeral was yesterday. And Sen. Lieberman, he who "grieves for every casualty of this war" so much that he is doing everything in his power to keep our soldiers in harm's way, wasn't there:

Among those not in attendance was U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman. He sent a representative in his place. That angered some of the mourners like the Rev. Anthony Brown Sr., as well as the curious who gathered in the small park across the street just in front of Dwight Elementary School.

"Sen. Lieberman voted for the war. But he wasn't here to pay his respects to a young man who lost his life," Brown said. "Lieberman should be ashamed of himself. But that's what politicians do. They send someone else to do the job. They send someone else's kids to die for their wars."

While he who "grieves for every casualty of this war" more than anyone else didn't have time to pay his respects to a fallen soldier from his own state yesterday, Sen. Lieberman did somehow find the time to do a radio interview on WNPR, and have an insane warmongering op-ed placed in the Wall Street Journal calling for even more of our troops to have their lives endangered by invading Iran.

Perhaps, as Michael Mayko reports for the Connecticut Post, this  kind of sentiment is one reason Joe chose to stay away:

Many of the two dozen black and Hispanic people who gathered in the park to watch the procession and pay their respects voiced opposition to what, they said, appears to be a never-ending civil war.

"We need to bring those boys home alive not in caskets," said Carmen Galan, who stood outside with her 9-year-old grandson, Brandon Burroughs. "We're not getting anything out of this war except more dead children and more grieving parents."

Galan said one of her nieces spent three years in Iraq. "I thank God she came home alive," Galan said.

Burroughs said this was the first military funeral he watched.

"I hope it's the last, too," he added.

Both Gail Williams and Diane Sellers also believe Congress should end the war.

"There's no end in sight," Sellers said. "The only end results I see are deaths."

The New Haven Independent was also there:

Army Specialist Andre Craig, Jr., whose life was cut short by an explosive device in Baghdad, was remembered Friday as a father, husband and an "inspiration." His funeral sent ripples through the city and Dwight neighborhood, where many have family and friends serving abroad....

As the service went on inside the cement church at 1324 Chapel St., Dwight area neighbors stopped by to pay their respects. Angel Calderón (pictured), who lives nearby, leaned against a tree and watched the scene.

"I wish it would end already," said Calderón in Spanish of the war. "Look," he said, pointing to the church. "Kids are dying here."

Others also had more to say:

"Is Bush inside the church? The president should be inside saying something to the family," said Christine Oliver, 51, as she rested outside the church.

Meanwhile, at least eight other U.S. soldiers have been killed in Iraq in the past two days alone.

And he who "grieves for every casualty of this war" continues to be M.I.A. for both our troops and their families.

Late Update: Lieberman was apparently in Washington, D.C. for the day. The Senate was not in session.