Lieberman slams COVID stimulus negotiations: ‘Partisan wrangling’ isn’t how government should run

Former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman is “disappointed” in stimulus negotiations and the lack of bipartisanship behind the bill.

“Colleagues in both parties on Capitol Hill, they each say to me the same thing: ‘The other side doesn't want to really negotiate and a compromise is impossible,’” he said on FOX Business’ “Cavuto: Coast to Coast.” “And that's not really true. But that's the mood there now.”

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He said this is partially because it is a “post-traumatic” time following the Capitol riot and the push to impeach former President Trump.

Lieberman believes the $1.9 trillion package, which was passed by the House and will be considered by the Senate this week, could be less expensive but still meet the most urgent needs of Americans.

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Lieberman experienced similar partisanship during his time serving under both the Democrat and Republican parties.

“The incoming president tends to want to do something big and his party sticks with him,” he told host Neil Cavuto. “Manchin and some of the other moderates did negotiate some changes, but it looks like they really are clinging to the 1.9 trillion.”

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Lieberman went on to say “partisan wrangling” doesn’t align with how the U.S. government should run or how Joe Biden acted when he was a senator.

“He always worked across party lines to try to get things done,” he said. “And that's what the country needs now.”

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With other big spending items on the docket, Lieberman believes reaching across the aisle is as important as ever.

“I hope that we can recover from the partisan sniping that's going on now and so they can work together on the next big items like infrastructure,” he said.