Th cynic in me sees nothing but politics here. Liebermann is just another brick in that 60 vote wall the Dems need, if you punish him you not only lose a vote, the Republicans get a freebie. He is also a key man for the Jewish constituency and to a lesser extent, the rest of the pro-Israel lobby. If he keeps his committee and seniority, he owes Obama a big favor. Obama can afford to be magnanimous and bipartisan, and it looks good on both sides of the aisle, where Lieberman has lots of friends. I think its a smart move, and a fair one, and Obama has put off the inevitable for a while. There is still no blood on his hands.