Lieberman, Kerry spar over McCain Iraq comment

Former Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry and former Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Lieberman have emerged over the last week as lead surrogates on national security matters for rival campaigns.

Lieberman on Wednesday leaped to defend this year’s GOP flag-bearer after Kerry (D-Mass.) attacked Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) over his remark on “The Today Show” that it is “not too important” how long U.S. troops are in Iraq.

{mosads}Kerry, on a conference call quickly set up by the Obama campaign, said McCain’s comments showed he is “confused” and out of touch.

McCain’s camp hastily arranged a counter-call featuring Lieberman, the Democrat-turned-Independent senator from Connecticut. Lieberman called the response to McCain’s remarks by Kerry and other Democrats “another partisan attempt to distort John McCain’s words.”

“To put it mildly, I’m disappointed by these reflexive attacks on what Sen. McCain said on ‘The Today Show’ this morning,” Lieberman said. He added: “I regret these comments made today, and I hope we can get back to the facts.”

Both the Obama and McCain campaigns have used Kerry and Lieberman to push their candidates, creating the unusual spectacle of a 2000 Democratic vice presidential candidate sparring with the party’s 2004 presidential candidate.

This was the second conference call on McCain’s behalf Lieberman has participated in since the general election began in earnest last week.

That Lieberman has emerged as such an outspoken McCain supporter is perplexing to some Democrats on the Hill, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) continues to back the one-time Democrat, allowing him to retain his chairmanship of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Obama adviser steps down after controversy

The man Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) chose to help pick his running mate stepped down Wednesday afternoon after days of controversy.

Jim Johnson, who was tapped to lead the committee vetting vice presidential candidates for Obama, resigned after Republicans hammered Obama over hefty loans Johnson received from Countrywide Financial Corp., a major player in the sub-prime lending fiasco, while he was CEO of Fannie Mae.

“Jim did not want to distract in any way from the very important task of gathering information about my vice presidential nominee, so he has made a decision to step aside that I accept,” Obama said in a statement. “We have a very good selection process under way, and I am confident that it will produce a number of highly qualified candidates for me to choose from in the weeks ahead. I remain grateful to Jim for his service and his efforts in this process.”

Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain’s (Ariz.) campaign on Wednesday again used the issue to question Obama’s judgment.

“Selecting the vice presidential nominee is the most important decision a presidential candidate can make and one even Barack Obama has said will ‘signal how I want to operate my presidency,’ ” Tucker Bounds, a McCain spokesman, said in a statement. “By entrusting this process to a man who has now been forced to step down because of questionable loans, the American people have reason to question the judgment of a candidate who has shown he will only make the right call when under pressure from the news media.”

— S.Y.

Warner’s Senate run complicates veep talk

As Barack Obama’s (D-Ill.) vice presidential selection team continues its rounds on Capitol Hill, one name likely to be discussed by top campaign strategists is that of former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner.

There’s just one problem: Mark Warner is running for the Senate seat being vacated by Sen. John Warner (R-Va.). If Obama chooses him as his running mate, that would put Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) in a bind.

Schumer, the head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, dismissed questions Wednesday about an Obama-Warner ticket.

“Mark Warner is a great candidate for the Senate, and I’m not getting into who will be chosen and who won’t when you’re talking about the vice presidency,” Schumer said. “Virginia is going to be a very good state for us. Period.”

Schumer said that he and Obama have spoken and that both recognize the need for Democrats to win more seats in the upper chamber, where they currently have a razor-thin 51-49 majority. That might mean that Warner, who is a heavy favorite against former Gov. Jim Gilmore (R), could be off the ticket — unless Schumer has another Democratic Senate candidate in mind.

Schumer is not saying whether he has any contingency plans. He said he’s already spoken to Obama a few times since the weekend, and that Obama “has said to me that he will not be able to accomplish his agenda unless we pick up a significant number of senators — that he’d even have to crimp his agenda … if we don’t pick up many.”

Schumer says he is meeting with the three-member VP-vetting team in the next few days.

— S.Y.