Dec 16, 2007 7:50 pm US/Eastern
Lieberman Breaks Ranks, Will Endorse McCain
Endorsement Comes On Heels Of Nod From Des Moines Register, Boston Globe
MANCHESTER, N.H. (CBS) ―
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Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., was scheduled to announce his support for McCain at a town hall meeting Monday morning in Hillsborough.
AP
Sen. Joseph Lieberman, an independent who in 2000 was the Democrats' vice presidential nominee, will endorse Sen. John McCain, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination.
McCain is trying to build momentum toward a reprise of his 2000 New Hampshire primary victory, and is piling up high-profile endorsements.
The Connecticut senator was scheduled to announce his support for McCain at a town hall meeting Monday morning in Hillsborough.
Lieberman switched his party affiliation from Democrat to Independent to compete in the 2006 Senate contest in Connecticut, which he won.
A Lieberman adviser said the senator decided to back McCain despite being a Republican because he believes his colleague from Arizona "has the best chance of uniting the country in its fight against Islamic terrorism."
The adviser, who spoke on the condition of anonymity in advance of the formal announcement, said Lieberman would continue to caucus with Democrats, and said his decision was not a reflection of any lingering tension with his old party after high-profile Democrats abandoned him when he lost the Democratic primary during his 2006 Senate re-election campaign.
Lieberman subsequently won re-election with an independent candidacy and has since been the darling of many high-profile Republicans, including former White House adviser Karl Rove, for pushing a hard line in support of the country's war in Iraq. McCain also supports the war, calling it a critical battlefront in the fight against terrorism.
A top McCain aide said: "They are obviously very good friends. McCain helped him in his re-elect, and the significance of the support he will help attract to McCain cannot be overstated."
The aide also spoke on the condition of anonymity prior to the Monday event, which the campaign generically advertised as "a major new endorsement."
Word of the endorsement follows several other high-profile announcements for McCain, including weekend endorsements by The Des Moines Register and The Boston Globe.
McCain has largely ceded the Iowa caucuses to front-runners Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney, but the Register said, "McCain is most ready to lead America in a complex and dangerous world and to rebuild trust at home and abroad by inspiring confidence in his leadership."
The Globe, while not based in New Hampshire, circulates in New Hampshire's vote-rich southern tier. McCain has focused his campaign on the Granite State, hoping to repeat his 2000 victory over George W. Bush.
"The iconoclastic senator from Arizona has earned his reputation for straight talk by actually leveling with voters, even at significant political expense," the Globe wrote.
McCain has also picked up endorsements from The New Hampshire Union Leader, the state's largest newspaper, and The Portsmouth Herald.
"U.S. Sen. John McCain will tell you the truth, even if it costs him the election," the Herald wrote.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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