Lieberman was on with Imus this morning and sounded like a man who doesn't have a clue about the situation in Walter Reed even though he supports sending more troops over to Iraq. He then thinks Lt. Gen. Kevin Kiley was a fine replacement for Weightman after it was reported that he is part of the urine problem. Then Joe backs down on that fact. Simply disgusting. Holy Joe has the audacity to weasel out of it by using the phrase "mea culpas."

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via Imus Blog--(thanks for the audio)

Imus: It would occur to me Senator Lieberman. Particularly if you were somebody who thought this war was such a wonderful idea as you did. And continue to support this idiotic exercise and you sit on some of these committees. That you would have a special responsibility to know what the hell is happening to these kids. It’s not enough to say you didn’t know or didn’t ask the right questions. I mean that’s why we elected you.

Lieberman: We all have responsibilities and I take it very personally because I have supported the war and I continue to believe we have to do everything we can to have it end successfully. I have a special responsibility and we should all be doing mea culpas. Battlefield medicine, I’ve been to battlefield hospitals when I’ve been over in Iraq, Walter Reed in the main building unbelievable. Unbelievable heroism by soldiers who have lost limbs and are just devoted to coming back as close to normalcy as they can. But the other stuff, just crazy and unacceptable and I think you’re going to see a change now.

IMUS: "How do we get this fixed?" (full transcript below the fold)

LIEBERMAN: "Well, I think the first thing is to hold people accountable. And, you know, General Weightman going is a good first step. The Armed Services Committee..."

IMUS: "Well, it's an absurd first step. He didn't have anything to do with this. He's been in charge -- that's a big scapegoat deal and you know that."

LIEBERMAN: "Your questions about General Kiley are very good questions, and I'm going to ask him. Because this, after all, is the guy that was in charge for a couple years."

IMUS: "Well, he's a lying skunk. He ought to be forced to resign today, Senator."

LIEBERMAN: "Of course, I don't have that exact authority."(LAUGHTER)

"But I will tell you that -- I'm on the Armed Services Committee. The Armed Services Committee oversees the medical hospitals. And a group of us on the committee are going out there this afternoon. And I am going to ask some of the tough questions that you and a lot of
others..."

IMUS: "See if they'll let you, Senator Joe Lieberman, walk around without being escorted by four or five of these generals who've known about this for years."

LIEBERMAN: "Yes."

IMUS: "I mean, did you read Dana Priest and Anne Hull story in The Washington Post yesterday, that General Kiley's been up there testifying before your committee and lying to you, Senator..."

(CROSSTALK)

IMUS: "... lying to you and these other people. He's lying to you."

LIEBERMAN: "A lot of that was housekeeping. I agree. Look, this is the guy that was on top of the institution. It is not -- it's a good sized hospital, but it's not a city. And this was
a building that was an important part of that. So, look, he should have known. And I believe as this goes on, he's going to be held accountable. But I want to figure out what we can do next on this. Part of this, Don, was that the whole response never lived up to the increasing demand on the Army medical system or the military medical system after Iraq."

IMUS: "Well, that's not a good excuse."

LIEBERMAN: "Well, no, it's not an excuse. It's an explanation that we never put enough money in. Look, at Walter Reed, there used to be 100, 150 patients. They are now up to over 600 and have gone as high as over 800. And they have, beyond the paint and the mold and the rodents, which you can fix -- they don't have enough medical and, particularly, mental health personnel there. And I would say that on a supplemental appropriations bill, which
is the bill that will come up by the end of this month to fund a lot, including military needs, we ought to put together a rapid emergency program, not just to fix up the buildings, but to fix up the whole darn system. And that means hiring more people, and particularly means giving more money to the Veterans Administration."

IMUS: "You know what they ought to do? I was talking to Donald Trump earlier this morning. He had a great idea. Because, you know, Arnold Fisher, who is a contractor just like Donald Trump."