General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Thomas Franks, the Clintons and "phony" Democratic populists in the New Gilded Age [View all]merrily
(45,251 posts)However, I used to read there a lot before Fromm decided to do other things or whatever reason he gave publicly for closing down the DLC. However, if the stuff were still up, you'd see many echoes of it in Clinton's actions and Obama's. He didn't stop the wave of conservatives. He forced it to go further right.
And he was not trading with conservatives. He was triangulating. For example, as CIC, he could have put into effect orientation equality without any negotiation at all; and he did not need to get Congress to pass it, which he did only to cover his own ass. Nor did he get anything for signing DOMA. Or for urging Democrats to get Gramm, Leach, Bliley on his desk ASAP.
I think he did things, first, to assure his own election. First President in history to put a political "Situation Room" for that purpose into the White House. Second, he did a lot simply because he believed in them, and some of those things were conservative. And that's the one most Democrats never want to look at. And then, yes, some things were compromises and some were the result of the Contract with America Congress.