Which, when it happens on November 7 (as it Will ~ mark my words), will be a victory for Connecticut, for Lieberman, and most importantly, for America.

A.P. ~

Stripped of the Democratic party’s support, U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman began his independent campaign for re-election Wednesday after his 18-year Washington career was derailed by a primary loss to an anti-war candidate.

…On Wednesday, he filed petitions to run in November as an independent and dismissed his campaign staff, saying he hadn’t been aggressive enough in countering Lamont during the primary.

“The bottom line is that I’m definitely in,” Lieberman told The Associated Press on Wednesday. “While I consider myself a devoted Democrat, I am even more devoted to my state and my country.”

…Lieberman’s loss sets up a three-way race this fall among Lamont, Lieberman and Republican Alan Schlesinger, who has trailed far behind both Democrats in recent polls.

The final returns from Tuesday’s primary showed Lamont defeating Lieberman 52 percent to 48 percent.

Kenneth Dautrich, a public policy professor at the University of Connecticut, said Wednesday that Lieberman’s name recognition and moderate stances will draw strong support from independent and Republican voters in November.

Lamont’s views that appeal to liberal Democrats will likely turn away many unaffiliated and Republican voters, Dautrich said.

“For a variety of reasons, I think Lieberman is now in the driver’s seat,” Dautrich said. “We probably would expect to see Lieberman with a fairly handy lead as the election campaign begins.”

The biggest challenge, Dautrich said, will likely be fundraising. Lamont, a multimillionaire who put $4 million of his own money into the primary, will also get donations from traditional Democratic sources.

“The one handicap is he doesn’t have the deep pockets that Lamont has,” Dautrich said. “Lamont can put his hand in his pocket and come out with a few million bucks, and Lieberman can’t do that.”

No he can’t, personally. But, in the end, this will Not be a problem.

Western Connecticut State University political science professor Christopher Kukk predicted that some religious or moderately conservative groups will contribute to Lieberman’s campaign.

“I think money will somehow find its way toward Lieberman’s campaign,” Kukk said. “I think you’ll find more independent organizations step up, or those a little more on the conservative side.”

A Quinnipiac University poll released in July showed that 51 percent of likely voters would support Lieberman in a three-way race. That’s compared with 27 percent for Lamont and 9 percent for Schlesinger, an attorney who was formerly a lawmaker and mayor.

Though having both Lieberman and Lamont on the ballot could split the Democratic vote, Schlesinger is not considered a major threat. His campaign stumbled in July after revelations that he used a fake name to gamble at a Connecticut casino and had been sued over gambling debts at two New Jersey casinos.

Republican Gov. M Jodi Rell urged him to drop out of the Senate race, but Schlesinger called the gambling a “non-issue” and vowed to remain in the race.

But Dautrich and Kukk both said Rell’s clear lack of support and enthusiasm for Schlesinger could be seen by many Republicans as a free pass to support Lieberman without feeling they are betraying their party.

“With a weak Republican in the race, it’ll be Lieberman who fills that void,” Dautrich said.

…He said Wednesday that he does not blame his now-dismissed campaign staff members for Tuesday’s loss, but that he wants “some different people” - including a new media consultant and new polling firm - as he launches his independent run.

“It’s a new chapter of the campaign and therefore I’m going to put together a new team to help me run the campaign, to support me in the campaign,” he said.

All signatures on Lieberman’s petitions turned in Wednesday must be validated by the town clerks in the towns where they were submitted…

Read the rest. / The only Big question now is, will Joe win the 3-way on Nov. 7 with an upper-40s-percentile Plurality ~ similar to the 48-plus-percent he achieved in the 2-way Dem primary ~ or, will he Romp with an Absolute Majority over Alan & Neddy combined?

Either way, Connecticutians for Lieberman, and for America, will gladly Take it.