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[MADem]

444. How old are you? 22 and angst-ridden? "Fanboy?" Jesus.

I have to wonder how "Aging" you are when you use immature words and a confrontational, accusatory tone. Although, if you want a dose of the kind of shit you're dishing out, I could be a jerk and say something like "Gee, your tone could be a result of changes that result in men and women as they age--see your doctor!" But I won't. Instead, I will answer your snarky query frankly.

I think the DLC, which is defunct--and I recognize that it is dead and buried, unlike some people (like the FDL crew) who want to regard it as a zombie entity that lurks around corners and is responsible for every ill in the land-- served a purpose during its time. It pushed back the Republicans, it silenced the Jesus Freak Fundy assholes--or at least lowered the volume of their bullshit down to a dull roar--and it produced a large number of viable elected officials who, despite the carping, whining, and bee-wording of some on this web site, HAVE done good work. Many of them are still in public office; others remain in the public square in other capacities.

However, I also recognize that the organization--which, unlike what some here call "Turd Way"--was not primarily a "think tank" (which TW is), but it was an activist organization that had as a goal electing Democrats to public office...Democrats who could be elected, not sincere people who were bound to lose and be crushed (Ewwww....it's all about the principles!!! Bullshit--you can't eat principles, and they won't keep a roof over your head) . They believed in an incremental approach, because they recognized that bouncing over to the other far-left wall and trying to fight from that angle was fucking futile. We made a lot of gains from 92 to 2000 as a result of them, even if some here want to ignore that and pretend that we got to the first President of Color by frigging osmosis or something.

When Obama was elected, he had no use for them because he had formed his own coalition--with, ironically, the help of a DLCer, Joe Biden (who pulled many away once he was named VP). Many people who worked for DLC left the organization (e.g. Frum and Emmanuel) and they didn't have the money-generating clout to assist candidates as they once did. They went broke, in essence. They had a moment in time, and that moment passed. They closed up shop, they consigned themselves to the history books, and all their records are in boxes in Arkansas at the Trailer Library. They did play a key role in the resurgence of the Democratic Party, but their usefulness expired and they aren't around anymore, and haven't been for three years, now. Three years is a lifetime in politics. Why, I have to ask, do people keep flogging this organization as if it exists? Is there an agenda in so doing? Or unawareness?

This is why I find people who continually say "Ewwwwwwww....DLC!!!" like they're the boogieman, tiresome. I'd use a stronger word but I don't want to sound insulting.

You wouldn't have anything to cry about if it weren't for those people. They served a purpose. They put enough Democrats -- who became incumbent Democrats--in office to give the rest of the party a frigging place at the table, which is something we didn't have before.

I am a pragmatist. I can see the good, and the bad, in people and organizations. I don't go all black-and-white when it comes to advancing an agenda that includes things like a balanced budget, a solid social safety net, better educational opportunities for all, not just at the college level, but from pre-school on up, a living wage for everyone, an end to hunger and homelessness, protection of children and animals, a strong but not insane and wasteful national defense, prioritizing diplomacy and efforts at peaceful conflict resolution around the world, and shit like that. I am not stupid--I am not going to get that from the Greens, the Libertarians, or the Republicans. I am going to get some if not all of that from ANY flavor of Democrat.

Bill Clinton would not have become President if not for the DLC. Al Gore would not have become VP if not for the DLC and he wouldn't have been the Presidential candidate in 2000 were it not for the DLC. And Democratic Underground, by extension, would not have been formed if not for the DLC....and you'd be crabbing about politics at frigging Yahoo Dot Com with a bunch of Republicans, were that the case.