DLC equals Elitism versus True Centrism

[Armstead]

The DLC represents what has been wrong with the US in a political sense for the last 30 years.

That is, the elitist view has had dominance, without a countervailing political force for real grass roots values and interests.

The GOP has made a good charade of representing the interests of average people, but in reality they really represent the interests of corporate oligarchs, as they always have.

The problem is the desertion of progressive/liberalism populism by the Democratic Party establishment and DLC. They adopted a slightly more socially liberal view, but support the same worldview as the Corporate Conservatism in terms of the core issues of Wealth and Power.

That's what the DLC represents. It is the assumption that the current holders of power -- Big Business --are the rightful owners of democracy. The only difference between the DLC vision and the Republican vision is that the DLC types want to make the Oligarchy a little bit kinder and gentler.

Opposing that is not being "left" or "radical" or "extremist." It is actually very mainstream. If youi strip away the surface, it's even what lies below the resentments of many people who currently support the right wing. Many grass roots conservatives are opposed to Elitism -- but they have been convinced that the liberals are the elitists.

The reason they believe liberalism is elitism is because the GOP has been smart to use "social issues" and economic delusion to sell a phony populism.

The Democtratic leadership class and the DLC have also collaborated by making the image of the Democratic Party one of elitism.

The only way to restore political balance -- and allow the nation to rediscover its true center -- is for the Democratic Establishment to become truly liberal and progressive , and start defending those positions instead of running away from it.

[welshTerrier2]

1. "the left" and "the center"

i'm very skeptical that many, even many DU'ers, could really define the differences on policy between "the left" and "the center" ... frankly, i think the labels are virtually meaningless ...

since before the invasion of Iraq began, i have strongly opposed it ... i was regularly labeled here as "the left" ... now many moderates have come to see the war as wrong and as a failure ... a majority of Americans do ... are they now all "lefties"?

the real differences that have divided DU, and i think many in the Party, had NOTHING to do with views on the issues ... it had to do with whether we put issues ahead of politics ("the left") or politics ahead of issues ("the center") ...

i get a very strong feeling from DU now, especially since the Sheehan protests began and the war just dragged on and on, that left and center are moving closer and closer together ... sadly, this has NOT been the case with many of our "leaders" ...

but i believe they see what is happening in the Party ... ultimately, i think they will have to come around ... but this is not the case for the DLC ...

that is an animal with an entirely different stripe ... as you very correctly pointed out, the DLC is all about corporatism ... they abhor anything with a populist flavor ... and although they still have something of a stranglehold on many of our elected reps, their days are numbered ... i believe their short-sightedness and their vision of the world as political technocrats with no passion for the issues will cost them all of the power and influence they now have ...

i'm not all that optimistic that these changes will come about before 2006 ... even if they do, it may be too late ... but a unified Party, a post-DLC Party, with the courage to take bold stands and fight for them from the heart will truly be a force to be reckoned with ... so for me, i retain some optimism with a good healthy dose of skepticism thrown in ...

[Armstead]

3. I agree about labels

The problem is that when someone like Dean (who is ultimately a moderate on positions) takes stands that are remotely gutsy, he is branded as "left" by the media and Democratic establishment.

[corkhead]

2. absolutely dad gum right!

if you are interested, I wrote something along these lines a little bit ago...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1967313

[Armstead]

11. I remember that one

IMO you nailed it on the head with this:

"To regain control of the Democratic Party, we need to draft a clear agenda that simply serves the best interests of the VAST MAJORITY of Americans. I would think that would be easy. How about universal healthcare, fiscal responsibility, a free and fair election system, workers rights, environmental protection, individual freedom, corporate accountability, and something the corporatists are truly incapable of, adherence to the ultimate core value, THE GOLDEN RULE. We must develop a clear and concise platform that measures up to these principles before we can work on the strategy to win with them. If we can change the divide in this country from being along silly red herring social issue lines to being “The People” vs. “The Corporatists”, we WILL win easily."

[idlisambar]

4. Agreed n/t

[justabob]

5. question

<<The only way to restore political balance -- and allow the nation to rediscover its true center -- is for the Democratic Establishment to become truly liberal and progressive , and start defending those positions instead of running away from it.
>>

I agree very strongly with what you have said, but I have a question. I realize that the Dems are the logical place to look for support/leadership, but with our language being perverted the way it has been and with certain words... like liberal... being near toxic to some people, is it possible? What I am trying to say is is it possible to strip politics from the issues altogether? And would that be any more effective?

I don't think labels are meaningless as others said above.... I believe they are false and create unnecessary barriers by use of code, tainted language and trigger words that once said make it impossible to continue discussing the important stuff in a rational manner.

What do you think?

[Armstead]

7. I don't like labels but since we're stuck with them....

We ought to make the most of it and make the term "liberal" respectable again.

Liberal is not an insult. It stands for a lot of positive qualities. It implies a basic approach of tolerance and the recogniztion that we are social beings and need each otehr to survive.

It only has a bad taint these days because of the attack campaign by the right, while Democrats have too often run from it. That retreat from true liberalism is perhaps the major failure of the Democratic Party over the last 30 years.

In fairness, however, liberalism also suffered an image problem because some liberal policies did either go too far in impinging of personal rights or repreented wasteful throwing money at problems or overregulation....However that does not mean the baby should have been thrown out with the bathwater.

At the same time, liberal issue ought to be handled on their own terms. The idea of a minimum wage, for example, is a liberal concept. But it's also something that many people who are moderate -- and even conservative -- agree with.

IMO we ought to start pointing out the common sense sifde of liberalism and the decent tolerant aspects of it again, instead of coming up with some "new" definition.

[justabob]

8. Understood

I didn't mean to imply I wanted new definitions.... I think we agree, I just wondered if there was a way to defuse the hyper-polarization of words and concepts so people can talk to each other without all the baggage, for lack of a better word. There seems to be a SEVERE shortage of plain ol' common sense and I have yet to figure out a way around that :(

[Armstead]

9. I think the hyperpolarization is somewhat exagerated

IMO the hyperpolarization is largely whipped up by the media because it makes a good show. At eitehr end of the spectrum are people who arehyperpolarized.

But I think the majority are more level about it, and are a mix. Liberal in some ways, conservative in otehrs. In that sense I think politics is more an internal competition within people between their liberal and their conservative instincts on specific subjects.

[newyawker99]

14. Hi justabob!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Hidden Stillness]

6. Pro-Worker/Anti-Corporate was All-American Until "D"LC Told Us it Was Not

Wonderful thread! The "D"LC is not at the "middle" or "center" of anything, but are extreme, anti-government, anti-law corporatists, serving the funders they will not name or admit to, and seeking to accomplish,,,what, ultimately. The true, middle-of-the-road middle class is sometimes very liberal, almost Socialist (their love of Social Security as the greatest program ever, and fierce defense of it; the overwhelming support for the idea of heavily taxing rich people and corporations; etc.), and sometimes "conservative" (not as the neo-con Republican Party has become), as with support of the troops and our country at war, until completely proven that it was wrong, as is now happening. True opinion can be all over the map, on different issues, but should always be, I think, mildly to strongly liberal--the only group that has ever done any good for our country and the world.

The "D"LC is a shady group of corporate consultants whose goal is to launch, along with Republicans, one disinformation campaign after another, to smear and tarnish the good names of "liberal," "Democrat," "social program," etc., etc. Once commonplace middle class thinking, such as the anti-corporate knowledge that they would pay us all nothing and take all benefits away if they could, which all the middle class non-management population knows, is now suddenly cast as "extremist liberal" etc., as if rich corporate consultants now tell us what the American people think and what they don't--like they know and we don't. They are cutting us off further and further from the true middle of America, by consultants who think of commercial advertising as the standard of "thought."

Every time, lately, a true Democrat has managed to become public--from Paul Hackett to Cindy Sheehan, the Dixie Chicks a couple of years ago, to the #1 downloaded country song "God Bless You, Cindy Sheehan" now--with a strong, uncensored message, people cheer. We ourselves are the people; the "consultants" only remove us into the boardrooms of advertising, and kill our humanity.

[Armstead]

10. Yes, liberalism is as American as Cherry Pie

Things that are accepted as conventional wisdom nowadays would have been considered beyond the pale not very long ago. The notion that we should have allowed American corporations to ship all employment overseas, while we are still expected to have a domestic economy, would have been seen as laughable satire had it been proposed as national policy 30 years ago...But today that's the basis of conservative GOP Corporate policy. Unfortunately, the so-called "centrist" democrats also support that notion.

[corkhead]

13. need one more nomination for greatest page

I think this is an important message that needs to be seen by as many DUers as possible.

We need to shift the battle lines

[JNelson6563]

12. Well said

I know of some elitists here in my own backyard. They are useless.

Julie