Lieberman blasts Dean on records

Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut yesterday criticized rival Howard Dean's decision to seal most records from his tenure as Vermont governor, saying the move contradicted Dean's frequent claims to be the most forthright of the Democratic presidential contenders.

Dean has placed most of his gubernatorial records off-limits to the public until 2013 to prevent potential political embarrassments from haunting his campaign, he has said. Dean reiterated the position yesterday on ABC's "Good Morning America," saying he would make the records public only if President Bush made available his own records as Texas governor: "I'll unseal mine if he'll unseal all of his."

Bush's gubernatorial records are held at his father's presidential library at Texas A & M University. Last year, the Texas attorney general ruled the records are subject to public information requests.

Lieberman, meeting later in the day with Globe editors and reporters, said Dean's stance was "a long way from straight talk . . . I hope he changes his position." Lieberman puzzled aloud over Dean's motivations in shielding records about the governing of a small New England state from public scrutiny. "We're not really talking about national security here, are we, folks?" he said.

Lieberman has staked his candidacy on being a centrist and independent-minded Democrat, but he has been unable to sway big blocs of primary voters in key states. He is stuck in the pack in many statewide polls and trails most of the leading candidates in fund-raising.

Lieberman's positions, to the right of most of the Democratic field, often generate hostility when he speaks before such traditional liberal constituencies as union members, minority groups, and antiwar activists. But he has asserted that only a centrist Democrat can defeat Bush.

Dean's fervent antiwar rhetoric, Lieberman said, was "sending very uncertain signals on security and defense" to the electorate. And he said Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts, another Democratic contender, was "just changing his mind as he goes along" on Iraq policy.

Lieberman has criticized Bush's Iraq policy but advocates aggressive US involvement in Iraq, although with more United Nations assistance. He would repeal Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy while preserving cuts that have benefited the middle class.

Even as Lieberman listed the shortcomings of his opponents, he saved praise for one, the Rev. Al Sharpton, whose past civil-rights activism has been criticized by some as divisive demagoguery. "I disagree with a lot of things Rev. Sharpton has done in the past," Lieberman said. "But in fairness, people change . . . I think that Rev. Sharpton has conducted himself quite admirably."

Raja Mishra can be reached at rmishra@globe.com.