They mean business on the GOP side | Michael Tomasky

As you know, GOP senator Lisa Murkowksi recently lost the Alaska senate primary to Joe Miller. She has been mulling a third-party candidacy of some sort.

Today, Roll Call reports:

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) will likely be forced out of her party leadership position should she decide to launch a write-in or third-party candidacy, a Senate Republican said Wednesday.

Murkowski, who conceded the GOP primary last month to Fairbanks lawyer Joe Miller, could announce as soon as Thursday whether she will continue her campaign for re-election as a write-in candidate. She has also held talks with the state's Libertarian Party leaders about running under their flag.

Although Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and other GOP leaders have not yet formally discussed what to do if Murkowski does run, the Senate Republican said there is likely no scenario in which she would be allowed to remain Republican Conference vice chairwoman.

According to this source, Murkowski could simply resign her position, or McConnell and other leaders could press her to resign. The conference could also formally vote to strip Murkowski of her leadership mantle.

Okay now. Think back to 2006-2007. Remember what I'm talking about?

Then-Democrat Joe Lieberman lost a primary, to Ned Lamont, who became the Democratic nominee for US Senate. Lieberman, of course, ran as an independent. And he won. What did the Democrats do? They sweet-talked him and made sure he retained his chairmanship of a powerful committee!

Then, in 2008 - oh yes, there's more - Lieberman endorsed John McCain for president. Went out and actively campaigned for the other party's presidential candidate and appeared on stages with him and his vice-presidential choice, stages from which his own (erstwhile but historic) party's candidate was accused of palling around with terrorists. And what happened to him then? LA Times, November 2008:

On Tuesday, some of his liberal activist supporters reacted with anger when Senate Democrats -- at Obama's urging -- turned aside attempts to strip Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) of a committee chairmanship. The liberals, and some senators, had wanted to punish Lieberman for campaigning on behalf of John McCain, the Republican presidential nominee.

Wonder why the Republicans win so many Washington battles? That's it in a nutshell, folks. One side plays for keeps. The other side still thinks this is a game of ring-around-the-rosy.

Sure, sure, the situations aren't precisely the same. Lieberman did not have a leadership post. Maybe the Democrats actually would have stripped him of that. But I'll tell you this much: I'm pretty certain that Democratic Party leadership wasn't out there leaking to a Capitol Hill newspaper, as Lieberman was on the verge of deciding whether to run as an independent, that there would be consequences if he did.

This isn't quite in Nathan Deal-Neil Abercrombie territory. But it's up there. Sheesh.