Lieberman Looking For A State He Can Win

With a saber in one hand, a domestic spending program in the other and civil rights activism in the resume in his hip pocket, Joe Lieberman is seeking the niche that will bring him the Democratic presidential nomination.

To have a shot at it, and become the first Jewish nominee for president, the Connecticut senator will have to suffer as a likely also-ran to regional favorites in Iowa and New Hampshire, then beat another regional favorite or run a strong second in South Carolina's potentially crucial Feb. 3 primary, analysts say.

Lieberman agrees.

"He needs to find a place where he can win," said Earl Black, author and presidential scholar at Rice University. If it's not South Carolina, Black said, Lieberman's campaign may be over.

"It's going to a new Super Tuesday, with South Carolina, Delaware, Missouri, Arizona, Oklahoma and New Mexico. I expect to do well that day. I need to do well that day because some of those states are wide open, they aren't neighbors with someone expected to do well in them."

All may not be well in the Lieberman campaign. Last week, his top fund-raiser quit amid what the campaign described as a two-track effort to build on previous efforts and tighten cash outflow. The campaign raised $5.1 million in the second quarter and spent $2.8 million, with $4 million in the bank — fifth among the nine contenders.