What the hell is DLC and who belongs to it, so to speak?

[jojo54]

I just started seeing this reference today and I'm out of the loop on this one. Can I have some info please? Thx in advance.

[dogday]

1. DLC=Democrats Lack Courage

it is republican lite. very moderate democrats trying to put on a moderate show. wuzzies....

[William769]

9. Misinformation?

Isn't that what we accuse the other side of?

[AntiCoup2K4]

2. They are neocon moles who infiltrated the Democratic Party

with the intention of destroying it from within.

[AlamoDemoc]

5. Well put...I Couldn't have said it better

[rawtribe]

3. It's a branch of

the republican party.

[podnoi]

4. The DLC is the Corporations attempt to buy the Democrats

They say they are more "Moderate" but really what they are is "Republican light". Bothe the RNC and the DLC lead to the same place. The DLC just wants to make a "Kinder Gentler Fascism"(TM)

[Pryderi]

25. Attempt? You mean success.

[LaurenG]

6. Democratic Leadership Council

http://www.dlc.org/

[unlawflcombatnt]

26. The DLC supports CAFTA

The DLC has made their pro-corporate, cheap labor lobby position clear by their support of CAFTA. Even a lot of previous free-trade supporters oppose CAFTA. This bill is nothing but an attempt to open up the cheap labor markets of Central America to Corporate America. And the DLC supports CAFTA.

Here is link to their position on CAFTA:
http://www.dlc.org/print.cfm?contentid=253428


unlawflcombatnt

[jojo54]

7. Thx for the info guys.

Figured it was some kind of neocon group, but didn't realize they were infiltrating the Dem party. Damn, now I realize that they will stop at NOTHING.

CHEATERS! all of 'em.

[SaveElmer]

14. You might want to take time and read some of their position papers...

Decide for yourself...

The membership of the DLC includes nearly half of the Democrats in the U.S. Senate...including John Kerry, Kent Conrad, Debbie Stabenow etc

Also includes governors, Vilsack from Iowa, Warner of Virginia.

I'm not on board with all their positions...and they do come off as arrogant and superior... I also believe they wrongly went after Howard Dean in the last election for invalid reasons.

However, by and large, their membership consists of loyal center to center-left Democrats...and they do have some good ideas about how to better frame our message to get the true word out about what Democrats stand for in certain areas (gun control, energy etc). On other issues they clearly reflect a minority position within the party (Trade and globalization, Iraq)

[Big Kahuna]

8. They are the centerist-wing

of the Democratic party, and virtually indistinguishable from "moderate republicans". Ever watched congress voting on CSPAN?

Lets say they're voting on whether to allow the clubbing to death of baby harp seals in Alaska... They show a table counting the votes:

AMMENDMENT 214 \ 1147 blah blah blah ... "To allow the clubbing of baby harp seals on federal reserves"

Party....................Yea...........Nay
-----------------------------------------------------
Republican...............227............0
Democrat..................60...........150

-----------------------------------------------------

You ever wonder who those 50 or 60 assholes were?

[Jacobin]

10. Here is a good start on them:

www.billmon.org

Really good

[Eloriel]

11. Yeah, pretty good. Even better with the real link

the PERMAlink, so anyone coming along weeks or months from now can actually find exactly what YOU are referring to here:

http://billmon.org/archives/002065.html

(I feel like I've done little more today than ask DUers to please, please, PLEASE post permalinks instead of home page links.)

[Jacobin]

13. Thanks Eloriel

That page really is good reading and I love his writing style.

[CTLawGuy]

12. the DLC was started

around 1984-85 by a group of conservative and southern democrats who were fed up with party presidential candidates such as Walter Mondale and George McGovern.

Through the 80's and 90's they worked to introduce more moderate policies into the Dem Party, such as free trade and the balanced budget. Bill Clinton was once their chairman.

When Bill Clinton was elected and then RE-elected, the DLC grew in influence in the party, some saying that they took over the party.

they pushed such policies as the balanced budget, NAFTA and welfare reform - which clinton was able to accomplish while in office.

People like Howard Dean and Al Gore were memebers of the DLC (Dean believes strongly in a balanced budget.)

then came the Selection of 2000. Gore was far behind in the months leading up to the election, following a very DLC strategy of playing the middle and being careful. Then suddenly, gore changed his tune, he developed the message of "people vs. the powerful" - a populist (very non-DLC-type message) theme. He surged in the polls and started to catch up to Bush.

But after Bush stole the election and took power, the DLC and it's mouthpiece Joe Lieberman, blamed Gore's new message of standing up for working people for costing him the election. In my opinion this was the beginning of Gore's fallout with the organization.

After 2000 and september 11th, the Repugs moved far to the right. the DLC followed. They are always seeking the "middle". Instead of balanced budgets, the DLC talked about standing behind bush on Iraq, and the war on terror, and tax cuts. They thought we would never be able to win in 2002 or 2004 without taking these positons.

With the DLC now supporting the war, people like Al Gore and Howard Dean became alienated from the organization. Gore made a huge speech before MoveOn.org criticising the war, while the DLC stood firmly in favor of the action. When Dean came out and criticized the war, the DLC fired salvos at him, one of their own, saying he would surely lose to Bush by opposing the war, and slamming regular party activists, saying they are what holds the party back from power. Thus Dean became at odds with what he now called "the Republican wing of the party".

Fortunately for the DLC, Dean went down, and they got Kerry, who had voted for the war and ran on a very DLC-friendly strategy of emphasizing military credentials and "taking wedge issues off the table." Unfortunately for all of us, Kerry lost. now Kerry's friend and primary supporter from Iowa, Gov. Tom Vilsack, is now the DLC chair.

the DLC is a desructive force in our party. They enabled Bush's destructive agenda and their strategies have cost us the last 3 elections.

I'm sure others will have different opinions, but that is mine.

[NYCGirl]

16. They also discouraged Gore from running in the 2004 election, which is

when he broke from them.

[election_2004]

17. So does that mean....

If Gore had run in 2004, would the DLC have micromanaged his campaign?

[NYCGirl]

18. Possibly, although he broke free of the reigns in about the last two weeks

of the 2000 campaign, in which he made the most progress. So it's hard to tell.

[bvar22]

23. Very GOOD summary.

You hit most of the important details.
I envy people who can condense material without losing context.
It would have taken me pages to cover the same ground.

[quinnox]

15. It's the ultimate evil gang of doom

They are the puppet masters controlling the Dem party insidiously from within, the super villian such as Dr. Doom from the Fanatastic Four. They must be fought at any costs to save the earth from destruction

[Lecky]

19. Moderate Democrats

Apparently, I'm supposed to really hate them or something.

[Q]

21. No...you're not supposed to 'hate them'...

...you're supposed to be an informed citizen that cares enough to do the research it takes to vote for those politicians beholden to the people and not corporations.

And then ask yourself why the DLC supports a war in Iraq that the whole world KNOWS is illegal and immoral?

[Lecky]

22. You are making the assumption that people who like the DLC

and like what it stands for are wrong in their beliefs. Just because you or I don't agree with them sometimes doesn't make them wrong. Also most liberals differ with each other on a lot of issues...so who is right exactly? The most hardcore?

...but I do agree with you on the war, that's one topic I will not waver on with any DLC member. I also feel like all Democrats are in tough spot considering they are the minority party atm.

[Donna Zen]

24. Assumptions?

All moderates are not DLC.

I don't think advocating for moderate policies without big corporate give aways is hard to imagine. I have a moderate representative, but he favors the working people. Even though he is anti-choice, I vote for him. His republican opponents are always pro-choice and extemely rich with big fat corporate ties. He was against the IWR but has really gone all out to support our troops. Also, the US highways up here are finally getting fixed. He is a social conservative on many issues, but I'm okay with him, and will work for him again.

[Donna Zen]

20. The Big Votes

Let's say that there is a big vote coming up and all of facts are in our favor. People across the board don't much like the policy, and the polls are running 53% against. But some huge corporation would benefit from this wasteful policy.

Activists organize: writing, calling, and holding rallies. None of this easy, we all have lives to lead, but it all seems worth it.

And then on a Sunday morning the Dems of Russert's choice fold with comments about how we need to meet the republicans halfway. Except that the entire frickin bill is bad for working people, and besides, once it goes to conference committee, it will be 100% the corporate way.

Those Dems, the ones who vote to fold, the ones who get called pink tu-tu Dems, those Dems are the DLC.

Finger in the wind, they voted to give bush a blank check for war, not because he lied to them, they knew what was up. They voted for bush's war because they thought it would look good on a campaign resume. Once in a while, they leave their cozy nooks and actually talk to us. But they are on transmit and never receive: they don't care what we say.

In 1992, the bush I lost because the republican base didn't trust him. It was a hard lesson, but if you've noticed, the republicans now court their base no matter how loonie they are.

Trying to change the party from within while holding on to seats in congress is a delicate balance, but what we've been doing isn't working: voting for them, no matter how many times they vote against us. That's why 10% of the people have two parties to represent them, and the rest of have nothing except the few brave souls who deserve all our thanks and praise. Think about it.