2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Hillary has spent most of her political career denying she's a liberal [View all]HereSince1628
(36,063 posts)and unfortunately it is used in an effort to win electoral support.
Why have democrats done this for more than 25 years?
Because...the abandonment of labor, and changing welfare as we know it were conscious and intentional decisions.
These decisions were made mostly by conservative leaning democrats who wanted to gain access to a class of donors more wealthy than labor unions.
This perspective was accepted in the southern United States, where from the late 1960's on relocation of northern industries to union-free areas had expanded the economy increasing manufacturing. Democratic voters in the south saw value in the added jobs even if they came at the loss of union protections and reducing corporate participation in local tax-generation. This neo-liberal path -did- bring in industrial growth that in the south for much of the 20th century lagged behind the "Old Foundry States".
At the same time this created new jobs and the right to work for less, it created opportunities for politicians to benefit from the developing symbiosis between politicians and corporations. Seeking that benefit was for the political insiders just what the creation of the DLC was all about.