Cuellar colludes

The Wall Street Journal's Kimberly A. Strassell pens another column on clashes between some Democratic lawmakers and the netroots. The focus is on Texas Congressman Henry Cuellar, who has a theory about those who have been in primary battles with candidates supported by online activists.

Mr. Cuellar goes so far as to argue that instead of cowing Democratic moderates, the left-wing attacks have united them. More middle-of-the-roaders now believe that if the bloggers were to win a high-profile primary, it would only energize them to go after others. "This has brought us together to say, 'this is us, and we've got to stick together,'" he says.

Cuellar also reveals to Strassell his thoughts on San Francisco's own, Speaker Nancy Pelosi. "I've seen her behind the scenes, and I've always thought she was liberal, but she's done a good job of trying to bring us more to the middle."

DLC follow-up

Here's DLC Chair Harold Ford, Jr., speaking about the Democratic presidential candidates in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.

They'll find their way back to the middle. And if they don't, they won't win.

Huh? What makes Harold Ford think it's the Democrats who are out of the mainstream?

DLC's decline

Noam Scheiber replies to DLC criticisms of his New York Times op-ed last month.

The DLC says it's a mistake to read too much into the decision by the Democratic presidential field to skip its "National Conversation" this year, pointing out that Al Gore skipped the event in 1999 and that the major presidential candidates also sat it out in 2003.... Perhaps a more useful benchmark is the number of likely candidates who attend its convention two years out.

By that benchmark, the DLC still appears to be in decline. As my former colleague Ryan Lizza pointed out earlier this year, "In 2002, the National Conversation was a major stop for anyone testing the waters for 2004. Lieberman, Bayh, Daschle, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Mark Warner, John Edwards, and Dick Gephardt were all there."

Scheiber goes on to list some symptoms of the the DLC's downfall, one of the best points being about how the Democratic Party has changed so much since the organization's founding in 1985.

[T]he interest-group structure that was responsible for some of the party's excesses in the 1970s and '80s has been largely dismantled.... For example, it leaves From at a loss to explain why the netroots--which he seems to regard as a kind liberal uber-interest group--would support relatively conservative candidates in conservative districts and more liberal candidates in liberal districts. Traditional interest groups aren't nearly so flexible.

From's 'silly fights'

Time columnist Joe Klein wrote about Al From and the DLC this week, joining the 'DLC is radioactive' pile-on but pretty much on point. "From is a moderate who acts like an extremist," writes Klein.

When Klein said From picked "silly fights" (i.e. calling Al Gore "too liberal" after the 2000 election or the relentless criticism of Howard Dean in 2003), Ed Kigore responded,

What I actually recall saying to Joe [Klein] in our conversation at the DLC event is that the fight over Dean (arguably just a standard-brand nominating season fight) did indeed lead to a demonization of the DLC among many elements of the netroots, fed in part by occasional but provocative DLC quotes comparing the Doctor to McGovern and Mondale, which were not intended as compliments. More importantly, the fracas helped soldify a netroots stereotype of the DLC as an essential--perhaps the essential--part of the DC Democratic Establishment, which completely submerged the DLC's past history as party outsiders, and continuing focus on non-Beltway elected officials, as reflected in the entire eleven-year history of the DLC's annual meeting. I also told Joe that unexpressed hostility to Bill Clinton, and expressed hostility to Hillary Clinton, was a motivating factor for some DLC-haters in the party, who invariably identify the DLC with Dick Morris' infinitely unfortunate term, "triangulation."

Next year

The DLC's Marc Dunkelman says, 'See you next year,' to the Democratic presidential candidates (via The Democratic Strategist)

In 1999, eight years ago, Al Gore did not attend the DLC’s national conversation. A year later, he addressed the DLC’s 2000 National Conversation as the Democratic Party’s nominee.

In 2003, four years ago, none of the candidates attended the DLC’s National Conversation. Sure enough, the next year, the Democrat’s standard bearer, John Kerry, made an appearance.