Lieberman may stop pretending to be a Democrat by election time.

Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman announced today he will petition for a place on the November ballot as an "independent Democrat," giving him a chance to stay alive politically should he lose an Aug. 8 primary for the Democratic nomination.

Even should he lose in August -- and the most recent public poll shows him leading Lamont by 15 percentage points among likely primary voters -- Lieberman would retain his status as a registered Democrat. His name would not, however, appear on the ballot line with other Democrats.

I see him on television flouting his record and talking about how the focus should be on that instead of his support for the Iraq war. Well the way I see it is he is asking voters to remember him as he was and not how he is today. He wants to you vote for the "old Joe Lieberman" and not the new one who is clearly out of step with his party.

And this should serve as a wake up call for Hillary. If you entertain even a hope of being the Democratic Presidential nominee you will have to change your rhetoric about Iraq. Actually I am guessing it might be a little to late for that.