Leadership Lessons From Former U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 17: Former U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman departs the White House after meeting ... [+] with U.S. President Donald Trump May 17, 2017 in Washington, DC. Trump is interviewing candidates to replace former FBI Director James Comey who was fired last week. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Former Democratic vice presidential nominee and U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman who died yesterday at 82, leaves behind a track record of professional conduct that can serve as a role model for business and other leaders.

“Joe Lieberman and I didn’t always see eye-to-eye, but he had an extraordinary career in public service, including four decades spent fighting for the people of Connecticut,” former President Barack Obama said in a statement.

“He also worked hard to repeal “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” and helped us pass the Affordable Care Act. In both cases the politics were difficult, but he stuck to his principles because he knew it was the right thing to do,” Obama observed.

“At his political peak, on the threshold of the vice presidency, Mr. Lieberman— a national voice of morality [was] the first major Democrat to rebuke President Bill Clinton for his sexual relationship with the White House intern Monica Lewinsky…” the New York Times reported.

“Joe Lieberman was a great leader because he, throughout his life, was a very independent-minded person, a very compassionate person, empathetic, and he had both a sense of humility about himself and a sense of humor. Humor and humility is a good combination and kind of rare these days,” Jim Kennedy, who was the senator’s communication director for nine years, said via email.

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 17: Former U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman departs the White House after meeting ... [+] with U.S. President Donald Trump May 17, 2017 in Washington, DC. Trump is interviewing candidates to replace former FBI Director James Comey who was fired last week. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

“Senator Lieberman didn't stick to talking points. He didn't stick to partisan ideology, he worked across party lines to get things done, successfully in many ways. And that's increasingly a rarity, and people like him are few and far between, unfortunately, but if we could get back to that kind of leadership, I think the country would be better off,” Kennedy noted.

During his final Senate speech in 2013, ‘Lieberman urged Congress to look beyond party lines and partisan rancor to break Washington gridlock,’ the Associated Press reported.

“It requires reaching across the aisle and finding partners from the opposite party,” said Lieberman. “That is what is desperately needed in Washington now,” the news outlet wrote.

“In an era of political carbon copies, Joe Lieberman was a singularity. One of one,” said Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat. “He fought and won for what he believed was right and for the state he adored,” according to a reported by the Associated Press.

“With his good friend, the late Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona), he was able to build consensus and move the country forward without rancor, without dividing the country,” Debra Caruso Marrone, CEO of DJC Communications, said via email.

“Members of today’s Congress should emulate Senators Lieberman and McCain and bring the country together, ending the chasm that exists between the right and left,” she recommended.

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