The Centrists Didn’t Hold

By NOAM SCHEIBER

Published: July 28, 2007 Washington

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/28/opinion/28scheiber.html

NOT very long ago, the Democratic Leadership Council was a maker of presidents — or, at least, the maker of a president.

[Snip]

But few headlines will be made this weekend at the council’s “National Conversation” in Nashville. The next president of the United States almost certainly won’t be there. Not only are Democratic front-runners like Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama planning to skip the conference, but so are the Bill Richardsons and Chris Dodds of the field. That’s probably a good move for the candidates, as the council has become radioactive among Democratic primary voters. But the Democratic Leadership Council’s fading influence is also good news for the entire party.

[Snip]

Today, the council has almost no constituency within the Democratic Party. About every five years, the Pew Research Center conducts a public opinion survey to sort out the country’s major ideological groupings. In 1999, Pew found that liberals and New Democrats each accounted for nearly one-quarter of the Democratic base. By the next survey in 2005, New Democrats had completely disappeared as a group and the liberals had doubled their share of the party. Many moderates, radicalized by President Bush, now define themselves as liberals.

I’ve had a feeling that we were making progress in the fight to take back the Democratic Party from these neocons and DINOs, but it was gratifying to see a confirmation in the MSM. We are, however, far from finished, and Hillary’s decision not to attend Al From’s free dinner in Nashville this weekend is just another example of her pandering to the electorate. She remains the poster girl for the DLC, and until she publically renounces her affiliation with them, she is not a Democrat, but a “centrist” New Democrat who supports the war on Iraq.

So, while there is reason to feel heartened over this bit of good news, the fight isn’t over yet. There are still Liebermans, Bidens, Nelsons, and the rest of the New Democrats that need to be either convinced to return to true Democratic American Liberal values, or be removed from office. It is no longer their choice, but ours.