Lieberman faces vote of "no confidence"

I notice that several of Ned Lamont's biggest boosters in the blogosphere have spent the last couple of days tamping down their own, if not their readers', enthusiasm in advance of Tuesday's Democratic Party primary in the Connecticut senate race.

Atrios declares that it will be nothing less than a miracle if enough Lamont supporters show up at the polls to put him over the top.

At AMERICAblog, John cautions against overconfidence.

And at Daily KOS, DemFromCT's diaries are as matter-of-fact as they can be, reporting almost exclusively what other people are saying about the primary, and avoiding anything resembling a prediction, or even a desired outcome.

But if the blogs are beginning to tone down the rhetoric, traditional media outlets are starting to report the story with a definite awareness of Lieberman's vulnerability.

"I have no more confidence in Lieberman," said [John] Reardon, an 83-year-old retired truck driver from Meriden. "He doesn't tell the truth. He goes to Iraq and says everything is great and I'm supposed to believe him? What am I, stupid?"

Said [Jocelyne] Hudson-Brown, a public relations adviser from New Haven: "The war in Iraq has changed everything. Lieberman was always with us before, we knew him and trusted him -- but not anymore."

After decades in Connecticut and national politics, Lieberman faces his biggest political test on Tuesday when state Democrats decide whether to renominate him for a fourth six-year term or turn to Lamont.

Lamont, a millionaire former cable television executive, opened a double-digit lead on Lieberman in a poll last week after hammering the senator for his support of the war and his willingness to work with President George W. Bush.

Considering the high-profile disappointments of the recent past, I understand perfectly the desire of bloggers to avoid any premature celebration of Tuesday's primary. The passion that Dem bloggers put into the campaigns of Francine Busby, Paul Hackett and Ciro Rodriguez resulted in extreme letdowns. It is probably wise not to oversell the potential of a Lamont upset over Lieberman.

All that having been said, the momentum really appears to be on the side of the challenger in this one.