New Haven Independent

The occasion was The Greater New Haven Young Democrats’ third annual Sip ‘n Dip party, held Thursday evening at the Blue Pearl bar in downtown New Haven. The event drew a host of statewide elected officials, young campaign workers and budding politicians from as far as Middletown and Cromwell.

As senatorial hopeful Ned Lamont moved through the room, sticker-clad sippers congratulated him on his recent “messy desk” TV ad that parodies Sen. Joe Lieberman’s campaign’s record-distorting attack ads.

“We went head to head with that French soccer player who headbutted that guy” as the two most-viewed videos on YouTube that day, said Lamont, tossing around Internet lingo like household terms. This reporter was not able to determine if his video had really ranked near that of the disgraced soccer pro on the video-sharing website. But it drew laughs from many in Thursday’s crowd.

Would Lamont’s mocking ad be the all-powerful blow to knock out Lieberman’s negativity? “I don’t think so,” said Lamont. Lieberman himself wasn’t there to respond — organizers said he was voting in Washington and couldn’t make the event.

Chatting with a small circle of supportive young Democrats (pictured above), Lamont quickly sniffed out a debate team student in Don Trella (pictured above at right). Trella debates for a Brown University team.

“I could use some pointers from you!” joked a jovial Lamont. “I’d watched the Cheney-Lieberman debate,” said Lamont of a much more civil faceoff between vice-presidential nominees. “Then he comes out, and boom!” he said, referring to Lieberman’s surprising aggressiveness on the floor.

Trella recalled similar opponents who’d broken golden debating rules by speaking out of turn. He’d call his opponents out on their law-breaking, framing such behavior as a weakness.

“(Lieberman) kept on breaking the rules and interrupting — he looked so vulnerable,” Trella later expounded. Being the aggressor “worked against him.” Joe’s urgency conveyed the feeling that “if I don’t say x, I’m going to lose my Senate seat.”

Out in the courtyard, Laura Gardner (pictured at right) met gubernatorial hopeful Dan Malloy for the first time. Her impression? Gardner, a newcomer to New Haven, is holding off judgement: “I want to learn more about the race.”

She walked on to seek out Lamont, wondering how he compared to the face on TV. Would he emit a “Jonestown vibe,” as Comedy Central comedian Jon Stewart charged on a recent show?

That’s the point of the evening, said Jacqueline Kozin, Young Dems president: “Trying to give young people as much contact with candidates as possible.” While Kozin works for the Malloy campaign, she said the Young Dems group does not. The group won’t make endorsements prior to the Aug. 8 primary.

The event was mainly for mingling — funds from the 75-plus attendees went to the Young Dems, not to a campaign, said Kozin. Guests included State Sen. Martin Looney, State Rep. Toni Walker, Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz and state Rep. Jim O’Rourke, (who came all the way from Cromwell and was the only man from his delegation to break for Lamont). John DeStefano didn’t make it — he got stuck in traffic coming back from Hartford, said campaign staff.

Kozin hoped the evening would “bring Democrats together” this campaign season. Would Lieberman’s recent move to run as an independent if he loses the primary disrupt party “togetherness”? Perhaps. “I know some people are upset about that,” said Kozin.

Kozin’s group, following bylaws of the national Young Dems organization, must endorse the Democratic primary winner, said Kozin. “If he loses the primary, it won’t be Lieberman, which is unfortunate, but Democrats stick with Democrats.”