TNR Endorses Bush

The New Republic's endorsement of Senator Joe Lieberman reads not so much as an endorsement of Lieberman but as the setup for its endorsement of Bush in the fall.

The editorial speaks of "the apparent absence of an ongoing Iraqi nuclear program," as if the editors are still hoping to find nuclear material in the next spider hole. It whines about "the teacher's unions" and "Hollywood," using the Republicans' fraudulent definition of what's wrong the country. And, after charging Governor Dean with helping to "create this mood of self-righteous delusion" in the Democratic Party, how can the magazine endorse Dean if he becomes the nominee?

Since Lieberman doesn't stand a snowball's chance in Florida of earning the party's nomination, I suspect the magazine's real endorsement already has been written. It starts: "We didn't leave the Democratic Party, the party left us."