New Democrats
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In U.S. politics, the New Democrats are an organized faction within the Democratic Party that emerged after the 1988 presidential election. The Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) is their central institution. They are identified with center-right social/cultural positions on political issues and neo-liberal fiscal issues. [1] [2].
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[edit] Overview
Ronald Reagan attracted many previously-Democratic voters in his 1980 and 1984 campaigns against Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale. The New Democrat faction saw the defeats of Carter and Mondale as proof not that the majority of the electorate in the United States had been truly converted to conservatism, but rather just that it had rejected the excesses that it had come to associate with the 1960s Democratic version of liberalism. The DLC was founded in 1985 by Al From and other New Democrats.
Bill Clinton was the single Democratic politician of the 1990s most identified with the New Democrats; his promise of welfare reform in the 1992 presidential campaign, and its subsequent enactment, epitomized the New Democrat position, as were his 1992 promise of a middle-class tax cut and his 1993 expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit for the working poor. New Democrats were also noteworthy for seeking and obtaining funding from large corporations, and for being less connected with organized labor. They were more open to deregulation than previous Democratic leadership had been. This was especially evident in the large scale deregulation of agriculture and the telecommunications industries, as well as the ratification of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), all of which were opposed, in principle, by other Democrats.
The New Democrats claimed success for many achievements in the 90's. The budget was balanced for the first time in over 30 years, and the more moderated approach to economic affairs had allowed for more stable growth. This perception largely helped give Clinton a 49% plurality in the 1996 election, and advanced Democrats at the state and local levels in the late 1990s. At this time, it is also worth noting that the ideologies of the more liberal and moderate wings of the Democratic party drew closer together. Although liberal Democrats had been alienated by the welfare reform of the mid 1990s, many would eventually admit that the previous system had been largely inefficient, and that social programs should be more effective, even as they sought to expand them. As NAFTA's effects began to hit the rust belt and other manufacturing areas, many New Democrats also began to implement practices of fair trade, and international commercial treaties began to have more strict preconditions on labor and environmental practices in the late 90s.
New Democrat successes under Clinton, and the writings of Anthony Giddens, are often regarded to have inspired Tony Blair in the United Kingdom and his moderate policies, which he refers to as "New Labour." Several people identified as New Democrats may vie for the 2008 Democratic nomination for President such as Senator Hillary Clinton, Governor of New Mexico Bill Richardson and Senator Evan Bayh. Former Virginia Governor Mark Warner, also affiliated with the New Democrats, declined to run for the Presidency in 2008.
[edit] New Democratic Governors
- Gov. Kathleen Blanco of Louisiana
- Gov. Phil Bredesen of Tennessee
- Gov. Jim Doyle of Wisconsin
- Gov. Michael Easley of North Carolina
- Gov. Jennifer Granholm of Michigan
- Gov. Christine Gregoire of Washington
- Gov. Brad Henry of Oklahoma
- Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia
- Gov. Joe Manchin of West Virginia
- Gov. Ruth Ann Minner of Delaware
- Gov. Janet Napolitano of Arizona
- Gov. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania
- Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico
- Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas
- Former Gov. (now former President) Bill Clinton of Arkansas
- Former Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa
- Former Gov. Mark Warner of Virginia
[edit] Members of the House New Democratic Coalition
- Rep. Jim Davis of Florida
- Rep. Ron Kind of Wisconsin
- Rep. Adam Smith of Washington
- Rep. Tom Allen of Maine
- Rep. Joe Baca of California
- Rep. Brian Baird of Washington
- Rep. Melissa Bean of Illinois
- Rep. Shelley Berkley of Nevada
- Rep. Marion Berry of Arkansas
- Rep. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon
- Rep. Lois Capps of California
- Rep. Dennis Cardoza of California
- Rep. Ed Case of Hawaii
- Rep. Ben Chandler of Kentucky
- Rep. Jim Cooper of Tennessee
- Rep. Bud Cramer of Alabama
- Rep. Joseph Crowley of New York
- Rep. Artur Davis of Alabama
- Rep. Susan Davis of California
- Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois
- Rep. Anna Eshoo of California
- Rep. Bob Etheridge of North Carolina
- Rep. Harold Ford of Tennessee
- Rep. Charlie Gonzalez of Texas
- Rep. Jane Harman of California
- Rep. Ruben Hinojosa of Texas
- Rep. Rush Holt of New Jersey
- Rep. Mike Honda of California
- Rep. Darlene Hooley of Oregon
- Rep. Jay Inslee of Washington
- Rep. Steve Israel of New York
- Rep. Jim Langevin of Rhode Island
- Rep. Rick Larsen of Washington
- Rep. John Larson of Connecticut
- Rep. Stephanie Herseth of South Dakota
- Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California
- Rep. Carolyn McCarthy of New York
- Rep. Mike McIntyre of North Carolina
- Rep. Carolyn Maloney of New York
- Rep. Jim Matheson of Utah
- Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York
- Rep. Mike Michaud of Maine
- Rep. Brad Miller of North Carolina
- Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald of California
- Rep. Dennis Moore of Kansas
- Rep. Jim Moran of Virginia
- Rep. Grace Napolitano of California
- Rep. David Price of North Carolina
- Rep. Silvestre Reyes of Texas
- Rep. Mike Ross of Arkansas
- Rep. Steve Rothman of New Jersey
- Rep. Loretta Sanchez of California
- Rep. Adam Schiff of California
- Rep. David Scott of Georgia
- Rep. Brad Sherman of California
- Rep. Vic Snyder of Arkansas
- Rep. John Spratt of South Carolina
- Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan
- Rep. John Tanner of Tennessee
- Rep. Ellen Tauscher of California
- Rep. Mike Thompson of California
- Rep. Tom Udall of New Mexico
- Rep. Robert Wexler of Florida
- Rep. David Wu of Oregon
[edit] Members of the Senate New Democratic Coalition
- Sen. Max Baucus of Montana
- Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana
- Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware
- Sen. Thomas R. Carper of Delaware
- Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota
- Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California
- Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota
- Sen. Herb Kohl of Wisconsin
- Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana
- Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut
- Sen. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas
- Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida
- Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska
- Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas
- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York
- Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado
- Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan
- Former Senator (Now Former Vice President) Al Gore of Tenessee
