Al Gore selected Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman to be his running mate yesterday, rounding out the 2000 Democratic party ticket with the first Jewish vice presidential candidate in U.S. history.
Lieberman accepted Gore's offer in a cell phone call yesterday morning after weeks of speculation over who would be chosen to complete the democratic ticket and just hours after Gore's choice had been announced.
"That was the call. It was directly from Al Gore," Lieberman told reporters yesterday as he arrived at his New Haven, Ct. home with a cell phone to his ear. "We said a short prayer together," he added.
Lieberman, 58, is considered by many to be a Democratic centrist like Mr. Gore and has previously been one of few democrats to be in favor of the Persian Gulf War as well as a relatively conservative stance on welfare reform.
Many also believe Lieberman was selected due to his reputation for taking a stance on the Monica Lewinsky scandal, a move that some hope will help to separate Gore from President Bill Clinton and win over independents and moderate Republicans.
Lieberman described Gore's offer in a press conference as a "special honor to be asked to run for vice president with a man I deeply believe in, Al Gore, and who I think is ready to be a great president."
Lieberman is running for reelection to the Senate and was set to deliver a speech yesterday to the Connecticut branch of the AFL-CIO labor union. Following his acceptance of Gore's offer, Lieberman appeared to slip easily into his new role as vice presidential candidate.
"We have to decide which leader and which party are able to build on the tremendous prosperity we have had, who can best move our country forward, not backward," he said. "This choice is an easy choice, this contest is no contest. The right choice is Al Gore in the year 2000."
Democrats hope that Lieberman, a two-term senator and former Connecticut attorney general, will help to thwart Republican attempts to win back the White House.
"He's been a friend of mine for 30 years," Clinton told reporters. "I think he is one of the best speakers in public life, he is just an extraordinary guy."
Democratic officials also noted, in light of Lieberman's unique position as the first Orthodox Jew to campaign for the vice presidency, that this election is the 40th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's presidential bid as the first Catholic to run for the presidency.
A senior Republican analyst told the New York Times that Lieberman's support for school vouchers, which Gore opposes, may cause a problem for the campaign. The strategist added that he believes Gore is directly trying to appeal to independents and, as a result, is bypassing the Democratic party's traditional base of liberals, women and labor and liberals.
"This is a good move if you've got your base locked down," he criticized, "but Gore doesn't."
Lieberman was one of six candidates considered by Gore as a potential running mate. Other potential candidates included Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana, Senator John Edwards of North Carolina, Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, Representative Richard Gephardt of Missouri, the House minority leader, and Governor Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.
