The Lieberman Lesson: All Politics is Local

While most people will blame his support of President Bush and the Iraq War for Lieberman's loss, last night, there are other -- less incendiary -- reasons.

For example, Chris Matthews seems to believe that about half of Lieberman's problems stemmed from the fact that he became a U.S. Senator (rather than a Connecticut Senator.)

The point is that Lieberman quit attending local meetings and taking care of local problems. (He quit going to the the Elks Club and the Knights of Columbus meetings, etc. )

My experience is that being a good local politician will cover a multitude of sins. I can't help but believe there is some truth to this criticism of Lieberman.

Of course, having a good staff is also vital to being a good public servant. They can sometimes cover for an absentee boss. But if constituent calls aren't returned -- and if local Mayor's don't get the attention they demand -- there will be repercussions.

At the end of the day (as former Speaker Tip O'Neil liked to say), "All politics is local." He was right. In becoming a national star, Joe Lieberman forgot that lesson.