June 29, 2022

"[S]hortly after he cinched the Democratic nomination, [Bill] Clinton gave a speech to [Jesse] Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition group — in which he attacked the group..."

"... for also hosting a relatively obscure rapper named Sister Souljah, who in the wake of that year’s Los Angeles riots said in an interview, 'If Black people kill Black people every day, why not have a week and kill white people?' Clinton told the Rainbow Coalition that 'if you took the words "white" and "Black" and reversed them, you might think David Duke was giving that speech.' Jackson was furious and called on Clinton to apologize — exactly the response Clinton was hoping for. The Black syndicated columnist Clarence Page later wrote that by picking the fight, Clinton 'impressed swing voters, particularly white suburbanites, with a confident independence from Jackson that other Democratic presidential candidates had not shown.' A loudly performed repudiation of a putative far-left extremist would come to be known as a 'Sister Souljah moment.' Clinton ran for president as a factional candidate, against the Republicans but also against his party’s liberal wing, so that when he won, he remade the Democratic Party in his own — and the D.L.C.’s — image. In 1995, midway through Clinton’s first term, 23 moderate House Democrats formed the Blue Dog Caucus to, in their words, 'represent the middle of the partisan spectrum.'"

From "The Vanishing Moderate Democrat/Their positions are popular. So why are they going extinct?" by Jason Zengerle (NYT). This is a very long article. I've just pulled a little snippet from it.

79 comments:

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Again- the Billionaire Oligarchs control the elite of the democrat party.

Michael K said...

The 1994 election taught Clinton a lesson. He had strayed from that "moderate" stance with "don't ask, don't tell" which is laughable now. Democrats today, especially Biden's handlers, have no ability to learn from mistakes. Clinton was the last competent Democrat president. Obama could not learn from 2010 but he was an ideologue.

rcocean said...

A "moderate" Democrat would be to the Left of Sister Soljah, back in the 90s. Anyway, the so-called "moderate Democrats" were mostly just liberals/leftists hiding their true beliefs in order to get elected.

Clinton and Obama were OUTRAGED when they were accused of supporting Gay marriage, but of course came out so support Gay Marriage when it became popular enough. Both are now in favor of open borders and almost no enforcement of immigration laws, but on the campaign trail were "moderates" who talked of border security and the need to balance enforcement with Amnesty.

Now, a "Moderate" democrat in the House votes for everything Pelosi does 90% of the time instead of 100%. And Fake Moderate Joe from WV, supports everything Biden does except for getting rid of the filibuster and some crazy massive spending bill.

n.n said...

Diversity [dogma], Inequity, and Exclusion (DIE) is an unpopular doctrine past, present, and progressive. Lose your Pro-Choice ethical religion.

Readering said...

He did seem moderate. I voted for someone else.

Dave Begley said...

Triangulation. Dick Morris invented it. Sheryl Sandberg and her "branding" new hubby will use it.

2024 will be Sandberg v. DeSantis.

Mr Wibble said...

Obama election convinced the left wing of the party, the activists and donor class, that they no longer needed blue collar white biters who had long made up the rank and file of the party. They would win with a combination of hope middle class women, urban millennials, minority voters, and guys.

Thanks to Obamacare and it's backlash, the "moderate" dem politicians who would normally appeal to those white voters were voted out in large numbers, which solidified power on the left, as well as reinforced the idea that the party should stop making a play for those votes.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

The big elephant in the room, pre-pandemic BLM protests/riots, was the deafening silence from liberal democrats. That was one of the reasons I calculated the democrats would not be voted back to the White House. The explanation in response to that, which I'm not entirely convinced about, seems to be that the anti-Trump media, the pandemic and Trump annoying tweets inoculated the democrats less than exemplar behavior during the BLM riots. The pandemic gave the democrats a new political lease. It was like a popular Spanish saying: 'borron y cuenta nueva' for the democrats.

Howard said...

The Clinton Third Way was a domestic copy of Nixon and Kissinger's trilateral diplomacy.

Gusty Winds said...

The further left Democrats go, the less they care about black on black crime and murder rates. That's why they choose to ignore, deflect, and vilify the police, white guys, and guns.

It would be most difficult for Americas violent Democrat cities to move back toward the center. The white liberals would have to admit culpability and failure, and that ain't gonna happen. The arrogance is all knowing.

Leftist Democrats HAVE to ignore black on black crime. 1) It exposes their absolute failure in helping the black community through gov't wealth redistribution. 2) They would have to admit that fatherless families are part of the problem, and 3) shit public schools and the teachers unions have these kids trapped. Democrats NEED Teacher Union money, and control of the public school indoctrination process.

Places most entrenched in this gross hypocrisy are cities like Madison, WI. They need inner city blacks to vote their white woke way, but they're not interested in actually changing anything or helping poor inner city communities. Milwaukee is simply Madison's bitch.

Bill Clinton never actually cared either. Ask the Haitians.

Kevin said...

From "The Vanishing Moderate Democrat/Their positions are popular. So why are they going extinct?"

Let me guess, Elon Musk was not asked to contribute to this article.

Kevin said...

'"From "The Vanishing Moderate Democrat/Their positions are popular. So why are they going extinct?"

You mean people who might agree to a ban on second- and third-term abortions?

How are they going to fundraise off that?

Kevin said...

Let's look at the other party for comparison. Trump wanted to close the border, stop the overseas wars, and bring jobs home to America.

Each of those positions was well within the mainstream of the American electorate. How well was that received?

How would he have succeeded if he didn't already have global name recognition, billions in the bank, and friends in the media?

Leland said...

Simple answer to the proposed hypothesis is Elon Musk's cartoon tweet. They are not extinct. They are very much alive. But as the party has been pushed so far to the left; they now are more on the right and will vote Republican this time. You can hope abortion will get them to change their mind in November, but there are lot of Republicans already signaling a willingness to negotiate on a compromise on abortion, while the left makes threats of violence.

Greg The Class Traitor said...

From "The Vanishing Moderate Democrat/Their positions are popular. So why are they going extinct?"

Because the extreme Left Dem's control of academia, the press, and our would-be tech overlords mean that the Dems haven't paid the price for their extreme end that they paid in the 1980s.

We'll see if the Dems can move to sanity after getting crushed in November. I doubt it.

It took three lost presidential election in a row for the Dems to be willing to embrace at least the appearance of sanity in 1992.

It also took none of the big name Dems wanting to run in 1992 because of Bush's high approval ratings at the beginning of the year.

And it took having Bill Clinton, a guy who won, governed Left, Got booted out of office, remade himself as a "moderate", and then won again as Governor, in order to have someone who could pull off the trick

boatbuilder said...

Why are Democratic moderates going extinct?

Gee, do ya think that perhaps the newspaper that you are writing for might have something to do with it?

Aggie said...

What does popularity have to do with it? It's a useful skinsuit whose purpose is obsolete. The ideas aren't Marxist and don't concentrate power. End of story.

gspencer said...

Hmmm, the racism is strong in these Democrats.

rcocean said...

We all know Clinton, like Hillary, is an extreme social issues leftist at heart. However, he was perfectly willing to do or say whatever he had to in order to get elected or stay in office.

Hillary in 2008 and 2016 tried to sound reasonable on all the issues, and be a "moderate" but as shown by her comments since then, she's bat-shit crazy left. Which is her true self. If you go back to the early 90s, you had people like Nixon saying Clinton was a more or less reasonable liberal, who'd "play ball with the Republicans" to stay popular and "get things done". But Hillary was thought of as the Maoist enforcer. Willing to be hard left no matter what.

But she was always willing to Play the moderate on the campaign trial. Or carry a big fake bible whenever neccessary.

Oh Yea said...

Strictly political theater. He wanted to appear moderate for election purposes only. He didn’t stray left after election, he was showing is true colors. His shift after the 94 election was purely pragmatic because he knew he would be a lame duck otherwise.

Enigma said...

Clinton's triangulation ruled the day until Hillary lost in 2016. Then, anger at all things Clinton led to "Believe all Women", the downfall of Senator Blue-Sweater "Doggone-it people like me," the downfall of Harvey Weinstein, etc. as proxies for Trump. Meanwhile, Trump developed a reputation for having Teflon skin they unleashed the hard left zealots and the impeachment flavor of the day.

Joe Manchin and Tulsi Gabbard might win in 2024, as they set themselves up as neo-triangulators without the Clinton taint.

Hugh said...

All I can say about Fake Moderate Joe Manchin is thank you and we need more Democrats like him IMHO

Readering said...

DB you promote Sandberg more than your screenplay. (Less than SoJ. With you there.)

gilbar said...

And IF jo biden had done the same thing, to AOC and the green nude eel maniacs..
He'd be one the most popular Presidents the USA had ever seen.
BUT, No One EVER accused jo biden of having any balls.

Seriously if he'd told them to F*ck OFF and had switched to Drill Baby Drill (Union Drilling of course)..
How many votes would he had lost? ANY? (I don't believe that Readering 'voted for someone else')
WHO'D you vote for Readering? Bob Dole? Ross Perot? SURE!! Sure you Did!!!

gilbar said...

jo biden was picked by the Powers That BE, to represent the democrats, INSTEAD of bernie sanders
jo biden was NOT picked by the American People to BE bernie sanders

CJinPA said...

"Their positions are popular. So why are they going extinct?"

It's NEVER that a progressive position is unpopular, or less popular than thought. The position is ALWAYS good and right, it's just stupid American politics that prevents it from being implemented.

The level of cynicism needed to keep this narrative alive, day after day, year after year, decade after decade, is impossible to measure.

Americans continue to debate issues only because the most powerful media outlets are sitting on the Story of the Century: Facts Show There is No Legitimate Alternative to Progressive Thought. Sounds like quite a scoop.

walter said...

"The era of big government is over"

West TX Intermediate Crude said...

Moderate people can often solve a problem.
Nobody can raise funds over a solved problem.
More profitable to keep everything and everyone agitated.

West TX Intermediate Crude said...

Dave B-
Sandberg v. DeSantis.
Facebook v. Florida.

Where do we want to live?

Temujin said...

They're not going extinct. They've simply switch party affiliation. The entire political spectrum has slid over from where in was in the 90s. What was then center-left might be more center-right today. What was Left then, is only center-left now. What was batshit crazy left then, is the mainstream Democratic Party now. Don't believe me? Go listen to those in ascendance in that party. Listen to AOC, Jamaal Bowman, Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, Rashida Tlaib, Jay Inslee, Elizabeth Warren, Pramila Jayapal.

These are not sane sounding people, nor are they people who seem to have a deep love for this country. But they are taking over the party.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

What Temujin said..
btw- the crazies what abortion clinics at yellowstone.

Robert Cook said...

"What was batshit crazy left then, is the mainstream Democratic Party now. Don't believe me? Go listen to those in ascendance in that party. Listen to AOC, Jamaal Bowman, Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush, Rashida Tlaib, Jay Inslee, Elizabeth Warren, Pramila Jayapal."

These people are not the mainstream Democrats of today and they are not taking over the party. They are just a fringe.

gspencer said...

"jo biden was picked by the Powers That BE, to represent"

The real power in this country whose club house is located at Harold Pratt House, 58 East 68th Street, Manhattan.

Yep, the Council on Foreign Relations.

Peons of the world, Know your place. The CFR controls your fate.

J Melcher said...

It's the media. Clinton v Jackson was the sort of attention-grabbing event we would now call "click-bait". The actual details don't matter. It appears to be new and unexpected and sensational and so it dominates the broadcast and headlines on most platforms.

Live by the sensation and die by the sensation. The actual details of the Whitewater Savings and Load corruption scandal investigated by Ken Starr don't matter. And most people now, asked about "Whitewater", will reply with "huh?, Who? What?" But Ken Starr and Monica Lewinsky made headlines.

Does Monica arise in memory for anyone else considering Cassidy Hutchinson?

Michael K said...


Blogger gspencer said...

Hmmm, the racism is strong in these Democrats.


Yes because they are convinced that blacks are inferior and cannot get along without favoritism and lots of cash. The black pols are never going to tell them differently unless they are Republicans. It dates back to LBJ.

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Bill Clinton effectively emulated sincerity, one of his political gifts. He also valued winning above any ideological position, which is a defining factor by its absence in modern politics. They don’t make ’em like Bill anymore. Look at pitiful foolish reactionary Chuck Schumer. Look in despair!

Mike (MJB Wolf) said...

Sure Lean In baby!

Mr Wibble said...

Joe Manchin and Tulsi Gabbard might win in 2024, as they set themselves up as neo-triangulators without the Clinton taint.
------

Both seem to be positioning themselves as the same choice for party leadership once the Dems are gutted in November.

J Melcher said...

Moderate people can often solve a problem.
Nobody can raise funds over a solved problem.


That's largely why nebulous catastrophes decades in our future grab so many headlines. There is no immediate pressure to determine whether the problem has been solved.

A REAL problem, like Bill Clinton's problem with protecting NYC from Muslim terrorist bombings and other attacks as exemplified by the WTC bombs (and comparable attacks in Bombay) of Feb '93 ... don't get nearly the attention of Clinton's implementation of Bush (Sr.'s) Clean Air Act (Phase I) requirements on (modestly inconvenient) "Acid Rain".

Real American said...

Because they're not actually popular when people see the awful results of their policy choices.

traditionalguy said...

OK. This is 20 year old news. The moderate Dems have been gone since Zell Miller’s speech nominating Bush II in 2004.

TRISTRAM said...

"[T]hey now are more on the right and will vote Republican this time. You can hope abortion will get them to change their mind in November, but there are lot of Republicans already signaling a willingness to negotiate on a compromise on abortion, while the left makes threats of violence."

This is the same side of the coin: It isn't that the paleo-(R) are moving away from hardline against abortion (except for mistresses), but that the neo-(R) are more pro-abortion. The (R) is becoming the big tent party.

Narayanan said...

girl crush abides all adversity

Narayanan said...

Bill had strayed from that "moderate" stance with "don't ask, don't tell" >>> don't ask for consent don't tell girl [about to be raped]

Oh Yea said...

2024 will be Sandberg v. DeSantis.

Sandberg will make Kamala look likable.

Yancey Ward said...

Civil Rights Gerrymandering is mostly responsible. When you create what are today 53 majority black districts, almost all of which are won by 60+% margins, and match them up with all the other extreme left wing urban districts won by mixture of white, Hispanic, Asian, and Jewish candidates, there really isn't much left for center Democrats- they basically no longer exist and/or have switched parties despite the GOP elites attempts to give them no reason to vote Republican.

Narr said...

"Clinton taint."

Yewwww.

Michael K said...

Cook thinks:These people are not the mainstream Democrats of today and they are not taking over the party. They are just a fringe.

We'll see who is left on Dec 1. The crazies, like you.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

BTW, in case some of you aren't aware, because there aren't any new riots, yet, the woke left still believes rioting is a winning stratigery.

Link

wendybar said...

Breyer stepping down Thursday. The Judge who doesn't know what a woman is reports to work Friday. Now Joe can work on another woke idiot who doesn't know what a woman is to take the next place in line.

gilbar said...

Yancey Points out, that...
there really isn't much left for center Democrats- they basically no longer exist

And,
IF there IS the slightest little spot for them.. Cracked out crack whores like AOC will primary them.
Because, not only do Cracked out crack whores like AOC not care about america..
They don't even care about their own party.
Mostly, Because they're Cracked out crack whores that marry their own brothers

Lance said...

"Cinched"? I think the headline writer meant "clinched".

Scott Patton said...

cinched?
or clinch?

Michael said...

.
The Sister Souljah moment was a piece of brilliant political tactics. That and It's The Economy, Stupid really speaks to how politically skilled Clinton was. And when you consider his four major accomplishments while in office - NAFTA, Welfare Reform, Crime Bill, Balance Budget - were all Republican priorities. He cut deals with Newt Gingrich for heavens sake....and even outlasted that firebrand.

Voted for him in '92, but not '96. He could have been ranked as one of the great ones if he only had a larger vision for the country and not just a narcissist lust for power....and for foisting that ethically challenged wife upon the nation for the next three decades.

Clyde said...

Their positions may (may!) be popular, but not with Democrats.

Left Bank of the Charles said...

The “faction” that Bill Clinton represented was the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. Back in the 1980s, liberal was an epithet used by Republicans to alienate Democratic candidates from the other Democratic Party constituencies - especially unions and socialists. Bill Clinton made liberalism cool again.

Barack Obama and Joe Biden are also liberals. Barack did hold the Senate in 2010, which was better than Bill who lost both the House and Senate in 1994. We’ll see how Joe does.

Mikey NTH said...

Wendybar- I believe the USSC will be ending this term tomorrow. The next term starts on the first Monday in October.

boatbuilder said...

OK, Cookie. Just exactly who are those mainstream, moderate Democrats who are in control of the party?

boatbuilder said...

Bill Clinton's primary political principle was Bill Clinton. And it served him well.

boatbuilder said...

It was extremely clever of Liz Cheney to take all the wind out of the sails of the pro-abortion and anti-gun outrage over the Supreme Court's rediscovery of the Constitution, to focus all the attention on DONALD TRUMP!!! throwing a plate.

Maybe she is a double-secret Republican plant after all.

Go Liz!

Narr said...

I remember when Jesse threatened to cut Obama's nuts off. Good times.

mesquito said...

Never, ever underestimate the cynicism of anyone named “Clinton .”

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Bill Clinton rode on Jeff Epstein's airplane 21 times.

Trump - zero.

Yes yes - there is a social photo with Epstein and Trump - but so what? that doesn't mean much. You cannot control social gatherings.

Jupiter said...

"Clinton told the Rainbow Coalition that 'if you took the words "white" and "Black" and reversed them, you might think David Duke was giving that speech.' Jackson was furious and called on Clinton to apologize ..."

He should have apologized. To David Duke, who has never called for anyone to kill anyone else, as far as I know. Unlike many of the political allies of both Jesse Jackson and Bill Clinton.

Butkus51 said...

and then he got on a plane with Epstein

Narayanan said...

""[S]hortly after he cinched the Democratic nomination, [Bill] Clinton gave a speech to [Jesse] Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition group — in which he attacked the group...""
------------
"Cinched"? I think the headline writer meant "clinched".
================
Cinch = fix (a saddle) securely by means of a girth; girth up (a horse):

very smart writer [or gaffeishism]

not if you can think of D party as the horse you ride to power

D have been saddled with Clintons ever since

Narayanan said...

""[S]hortly after he cinched the Democratic nomination, [Bill] Clinton gave a speech to [Jesse] Jackson’s Rainbow Coalition group — in which he attacked the group...""
------------
"Cinched"? I think the headline writer meant "clinched".
================
Cinch = fix (a saddle) securely by means of a girth; girth up (a horse):

very smart writer [or gaffeishism]

not if you can think of D party as the horse you ride to power

D have been saddled with Clintons ever since

Tina Trent said...

Who the fuck cares what the motive was? The argument was valid.

Tina Trent said...

And by the way I've been to a Rainbow event with Jessie Jackson. The whites were told to sit in the back and not join the buffet line before every black served themselves.

It wasn't subtle: it was Klannish. 19fucking94. Anyone care to object?

tim in vermont said...

"It's easier to move left on economics that right on culture." - Political Truism.

tim in vermont said...

I even saw a theory that all of this gender stuff, the celebration of female impersonators, etc, was a "right wing psyop" to drive the working class away from the left. To an extent it's true, the right does amplify it for that reason. But we could not make this stuff up

madAsHell said...

Clinton told the Rainbow Coalition that 'if you took the words "white" and "Black" and reversed them, you might think David Duke was giving that speech.'

Why is Black capitalized, but white......not so much??

effinayright said...

m in vermont said...
I even saw a theory that all of this gender stuff, the celebration of female impersonators, etc, was a "right wing psyop" to drive the working class away from the left. To an extent it's true, the right does amplify it for that reason. But we could not make this stuff up
*************

Yawn. Yet another example of "Republicans Pounce".

wendybar said...

Why is Ghislaine in prison for 20 years, whilst the RAPISTS walk free among us?? Shouldn't her list of rapists be released so they can be arrested and tried for THEIR crimes?? Nope. They walk. She should be let free too then. Some rapists are more equal than us peons...

Michael said...


Tina Trent said...
And by the way I've been to a Rainbow event with Jessie Jackson. The whites were told to sit in the back and not join the buffet line before every black served themselves.


I canvassed for Jackson in '88. Strong believer in the Rainbow Coalition. But left in early 90s as it became apparent some colors were being erased from that rainbow.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Isn't it interesting that the media are not interested in Ghislaine's clients?

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Wendy - the sexual predators walk because they are the elites.

Ghislaine didn't work the lowercase smut... She was operating the sex game with the elite of the elite.

The global cabal. With scuzzy creeps like Bill Clinton.

Narr said...

"Isn't it interesting that the media are not interested in Ghislaine's clients?"

Who? And who?

LOOK! TRUMP!

Rollo said...

Democrats had to be wallopped three times in a row to make them desperate enough for victory to go along with Clinton.