Broder: Democrats stray from Clinton's winning formula

[unfrigginreal]

By David Broder

Washington Post Writers Group

WASHINGTON -- The distance the current Democratic presidential contenders have strayed from the Clinton formula for winning the White House became startlingly clear last week with their reaction to President Bush's decision to remove the tariffs on imported steel he had imposed 21 months before.

snip

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who has been steadily tacking away from his earlier support of NAFTA and free trade as he tries to head off Gephardt in Iowa, went further than Lieberman. "The president's decision to lift the steel tariffs early is just another example of this administration playing politics with people's lives," Dean said. "When he imposed the tariffs, the president's rhetoric suggested that he actually cared about American steelworkers, their families and the communities in which they live. If that were the case, he would not be lifting them today."

snip

But the most interesting case is retired Gen. Wesley Clark. He is the favorite of many Clintonians, including Mickey Kantor, a key operative in Clinton's 1992 campaign and later his top trade official. Just a few weeks ago, I attended a news conference where Kantor joined two others who had served as special trade representative in Republican administrations, Carla Hills and Clayton Yeutter, in urging the Bush administration to take bolder steps to eliminate trade barriers. Kantor said specifically that while he thought at the time the steel tariffs were imposed that they were justified, it was imperative that they be lifted now -- as Bush subsequently did.

But General Clark obviously did not consult Kantor, a senior adviser, on this question. In a most peculiar fashion, Clark first issued a statement that accused Bush of "taking his cues" from "steel industry executives" he had been with "at a fund-raiser in Pittsburgh." That made no sense, because the steel executives wanted the tariffs to remain in effect. So 26 minutes later came a correction from Clark's Little Rock headquarters, eliminating the bogus charge and complaining that Bush "still has no strategy to help the 2.6 million manufacturing workers who have lost their jobs."

http://www.cjonline.com/stories/121203/opi_broder.shtml

[POed_Ex_Repub]

1. Going to a different formula isn't a bad thing...

We live in different times than 8 years ago. We need what works "now".

[aquart]

2. Broder is an authority on winning elections?

Or tariffs?

Or Democrats?

Actually curious. I don't follow this person.

[Cocoa]

7. he's way overrated

they call him the "Dean of Washington journalists" but I think he's just an older whore.

He also does not answer his emails, I sent him many regarding a column where he compared Bush to FDR. :puke:

[Old and In the Way]

3. No problem Dave-

Once we elect any of the Democrats, we'll be getting Bill to help fix the mess that Junior created.

Unlike the unelected Imperial Emporer from the Kingdom of Crawford, Democrats will work together to fix the problems because we'll need all hands on deck to fix the massive Clusterf**k that your neo-criminals have wrought on this country.

[caledesi]

4. Hello? It isn't 1992 anymore. Don't these people "get it?"

That's why Joe Lieberman looks so ridiculous. He is still trying to run like it's 1992. Clinton did the right thing (obviously) in 1992, but this is 2003 and a LOT has happened since then.

No Bush* lite here. It's time we can be proud we are Democratics with a clear defintion of what being a Democrat means.

[polpilot]

6. Politics is 'time sensitive'...a lesson Dean has taught the other

campaigns.

Dean '04...

[no name no slogan]

5. What "winning formula" was that?

The same "winning formula" that NEVER got him elected with a majority of the electorate?

The same "winning formula" that whose leadership lost us control of not only the US Senate, but also the House, where we'd been the majority party since 1954?

The same "winning formula" that did NOTHING to stop the widening gap between the rich and poor in the 90s?

The same "winning formula" that kicked people off of welfare and into McJobs that did NOTHING to help them out of poverty?

The same "winning formula" that took the "easy" way out on a variety of core democratic issues, like equal rights, universal healthcare and worker protections?

Crikey, with a "winning formula" like that, I'd hate to see what the "losing" formula would be.

:eyes:

[ProfessorPlum]

8. "Thanks" for the "advice", "Dean" Broder

Now STFU.