Sen. Joseph Lieberman’s claim to fame is his unflagging support of President George W. Bush’s disastrous Iraq war. Lieberman has extensive foreign policy experience; he should recognize a lost cause when he sees one. Lieberman would have placed bets on Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo and cheered on Gen. Custer at Little Big Horn.

It’s bad enough that Lieberman has been dead wrong on Iraq, but now he’s taking the wrong approach on dealing with Iran’s nuclear ambitions and meddling in Iraq.

On CBS’s Face the Nation, Lieberman said, “If the Iranians don’t play by the rules, we’ve got to use our force, and to me, that would include taking military action to stop them from doing what they’re doing.”

From Courant.Com:

“While stressing that any specific military action would be up to the generals, Lieberman said he foresaw not a massive invasion, but knocking out camps where Iranians are training and equipping terrorists who then try to kill American soldiers.”

Does Lieberman imagine Iran would respond to an American bombardment in a “tit-for-tat” fashion? Iran would unleash Armageddon in the Middle East; they would attack Israel and our forces in Iraq and initiate a terrorist campaign in our homeland.
I can picture Lieberman in a shouting match with Iran’s President Ahmadinejad:

Ahmadinejad: Death to the Great Satan!

Lieberman: Nuke Tehran!

Ahmadinejad: Destroy the moral cesspool that is Hollywood!

Lieberman: I’m with you on that one you crazy nut!

This kind of “cowboy rhetoric” has already resulted in the greatest military debacle in American history; the last thing we need is to strike preemptively against another country. Do we really want to be at war with three Muslim countries at the same time? That might be Dick Cheney’s most cherished wet dream, but it is a nightmare scenario for most Americans.

This is the time for diplomacy and not saber rattling. Lieberman is unlikely to listen to lowly pundits, but perhaps he will pay attention to the words of General Wesley Clark:

“Senator Lieberman’s saber rattling does nothing to help dissuade Iran from aiding Shia militias in Iraq, or trying to obtain nuclear capabilities. In fact, it’s highly irresponsible and counter-productive, and I urge him to stop.This kind of rhetoric is irresponsible and only plays into the hands of President Ahmadinejad, and those who seek an excuse for military action. What we need now is full-fledged engagement with Iran. We should be striving to bridge the gulf of almost 30 years of hostility and only when all else fails should there be any consideration of other options. The Iranians are very much aware of US military capabilities. They don’t need Joe Lieberman to remind them that we are the militarily dominant power in the world today.”