Lieberman to support McCain

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), trying to build momentum toward a reprise of his 2000 New Hampshire primary victory, is piling up high-profile endorsements, including one from another political maverick, Sen. Joe Lieberman.

The Connecticut senator, an independent who was the Democrats’ 2000 vice presidential nominee, was scheduled to announce his support for McCain at a town hall meeting today in Hillsborough.

A Lieberman advisor said the senator decided to back McCain because he thought his colleague from Arizona had “the best chance of uniting the country in its fight against Islamic terrorism.”

The advisor, who spoke on condition of anonymity in advance of the formal announcement, said Lieberman would continue to caucus with Senate Democrats, and said his decision was not a reflection of any lingering tension with his old party after key Democrats abandoned him when he lost the Democratic primary during his 2006 Senate reelection campaign.

Lieberman subsequently won reelection with an independent candidacy and has since been the darling of many prominent Republicans, including former White House advisor Karl Rove, for pushing hard in support of the country’s war in Iraq.

McCain also supports the war, calling it a crucial battlefront in the fight against terrorism.