Former Sen. Joe Lieberman has died

Former US senator and vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman has

died

at the age of 82. His family says he suffered complications from a fall. Right now, I want to bring on our political commentator, Alyssa Farah Griffin, our senior political commentator Van Jones and CNN chief political correspondent Dana Bash. You and I covered Joe Lieberman for many years. Talk a little about his legacy as far as our country is concerned. Well, he certainly he was one of the most godly politicians that I have ever covered and ever known. And he was very well known as a very important Jewish figure.

But it's not just that he was Jewish, Wolf. He was a practicing Jew, very open and proud of his Judaism and its traditions. And that, without a doubt, led him to a very long political career. And he started in the Connecticut State House of Representatives. He then he became attorney general of Connecticut and then, of course, he was a senator in the United States Senate for almost a quarter of a century. And, Wolf, he was very well known for his fairly tough stance on defense issues and on some internal issues. Some of his positions on international relations certainly differentiate it from his party.

And that led to some clashes with the Democratic Party. So much so that even though he was Al Gore's vice presidential choice in 2000 and came within just over 500 votes of becoming vice president of the United States. It wasn't long afterward, perhaps about a decade, that he was even challenged within his own party in the United States Senate. Connecticut Democratic Senate Primary. And he lost. And then he ran as an independent and won again. And that sums up Joe Lieberman's career. The other thing I think people may not realize is that the entire Department of Homeland Security, Wolf, was created in large part because it was his idea, along with others.

But his main idea was that he spearheaded the idea after 9/11 to bring together all of these disparate departments and agencies that weren't communicating well enough before 9/11 into one umbrella organization. And that's the Department of Homeland Security. And that's largely what he did. And I will say that we're already getting statements from his

former

colleagues, Chuck Schumer, saying how devastated he is. Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, who often traveled with Senator Lieberman. Senator McCain and Senator Graham said she is simply heartbroken. And we're going to keep listening to that all night long. No doubt about it. You know, many of us who knew Joe Lieberman well are heartbroken right now.

Van Jones, Lieberman was the vice presidential candidate along with Al Gore, as we all remember in 2000. How do you think Democrats in general should remember him now? Well, I mean, this kind of story of two. To Joe Liberman. Why was he elected vice president? You know, we have a big party. Many people could play that role after the 1990s, when Bill Clinton's White House had been rocked by scandal. There was a sense that maybe Bill Clinton was a tarnished figure and Al Gore had to think: How do I signal to people that this is going to be a button operation, that this is going to be a high integrity operation?

My White House will be governed by adults. I'm going to choose Joe Lieberman, because of his reputation, his prestige, his, the esteem that he had throughout the country. That was the most important way he could pinpoint the type of man he wanted to be associated with. And it was very important to Gore at that time. And time and time again, it was just said that he came within a couple hundred votes of becoming the first Jewish vice president, he would have made history if he had done that. And, given his service-minded heart, he certainly would have made a fantastic vice president.

At the same time, when McCain ran against Obama, Joe Lieberman actually endorsed John McCain, which on the one hand is a beautiful statement of bipartisanship. On the other hand, he was heartbreaking for Obama. People like me see a big figure like that crossing the street and holding hands on the other side. And that is also Joe Lieberman, independent, tough-minded, who is not going to follow popular opinion, he is going to go with his own heart. Sometimes that helps Democrats. Sometimes he hurts our feelings. But he was certainly a lion of the Senate and a legendary figure.

Let me bring Alyssa very Griffin into this conversation. Alyssa. Joe Lieberman was very, very, very independent-minded. He joined the Republicans from time to time, as we all know. How do you see his legacy? Well, first, I just want to offer my condolences to Senator Lieberman's family, to his wife, Hadassah. I mean, he was truly a consummate statesman. And upon hearing this news, I couldn't help but feel that, in some ways, this is the end of an era. He really put forward the idea of ​​bipartisanship and championed the idea of ​​working across both parties. He saw it as a virtue.

He didn't feel like he had to fit into a box or play for just one. He really focused on the priorities of the American people. And he's a very interesting person to reflect on in this political moment because he strongly condemned toxic partisanship. I mean, a remarkable legacy for Van's point of view, that he was on a Democratic presidential ticket and, years later, was very seriously considered as a Republican presidential candidate. I think it speaks to the character of him, to the seriousness of who he was in the Senate as a statesman, as a policymaker, but also as someone who is universally respected on both sides of the aisle.

You know, it's very true. Indeed. Everyone, wait a moment. I want to bring in a

former

assistant to Joe Lieberman. Dan Gerstein joins us right now. Dan, our deepest condolences for your loss. I know that you have worked very closely with Senator Lieberman over the years. How do you remember it tonight? Well, thanks, Wolf. It's a sad day. Still a bit of shock. I guess you know, hearing some of the other guests talk about both eyes, as we like to say, integrity and independence. And those are the values ​​that Senator Lieberman defended. He will always be remembered by him.

And as much as I'm sad, I'm also grateful for the opportunity to have worked for him, to have worked with him. But I have also learned from him. I have learned a lot not only about politics and policies, but also about respect for other people, for different points of view. And one of my favorite things about him and what I will always remember is that when we were at events and maybe we were backstage or in the kitchen, he would always take the time to talk to the catering staff, the waiters and make them feel seen and show them respect.

And that really said a lot about his character. It certainly was. You were one of Senator Lieberman's top advisors during multiple campaigns. Tell us a little more about his experiences with Senator Lieberman over the past few decades. Sure. You know, one of my favorite experiences was, and this was really my first experience working for him of all time, in his '94 re-election campaign, where he was in a dominant position. It wasn't a great race, but he still campaigned hard and went out and met with voters again, as a sign of respect for the process, for the democratic process.

And we came up with the idea that he had been visiting diners from time to time as a way to interact with real people, real voters. And we set up a tour and I had the opportunity to drive with him and often take him to some morning stops at restaurants in Connecticut. And again, it was remarkable to see a man who was very comfortable sitting in boardrooms with CEOs, in meetings with heads of state, with presidents of the United States, and who was also very comfortable talking to police officers, workers from factories, teachers, The kind of people you would meet in restaurants and take your questions and take them seriously.

And it was to the extent that he was a statesman and a master politician and he negotiated a very important law. He was also a political master of retail and it's a rare combination these days, particularly in the digital age. In summary, Dan, what do you think Senator Lieberman's legacy is at this point? Well, I mean, I think the word statesman, I think it will be attached to his name and integrity and I'm sorry to see the phone ringing off the hook, you know, the way he worked across the aisle and tried to build coalitions and, you know?

You know, in an era where compromise increasingly became a dirty word, he still believed in the power of compromise and being in a position to, you know, found, build agreements and forge consensus of people, from different points of view, because he is always said that the only way to get things done in Washington is through the Senate. And have bipartisan support not only to obtain the votes, but also to have legitimacy for the policies that were approved. And I think we are now seeing the consequences of that lack of commitment, that lack of consensus in our politics.