Reinventing Democrats: The Politics of Liberalism from Reagan to Clinton

By Kenneth S. Baer

Book Overview

When Bill Clinton declared in 1996 that "the era of big government is over," Republicans felt that he was stealing their thunder. But in fact, it was the culmination of a decade-long struggle for the heart and soul of the Democratic party. This book tells how a group of New Democrats reformed their enfeebled party's agenda, moved it toward the center, and recaptured the White House with their first two-term president since FDR.

Reinventing Democrats is the story of the Democratic Leadership Council, an elite group of elected officials, benefactors, and strategists that let fresh air into the smoke-filled room of politics and changed the public philosophy of their party. Kenneth Baer tells who they are, where they came from, what they believe in, and how they helped elect Bill Clinton--the DLC's former chairman--to the presidency.

Drawing on DLC archives and interviews with party insiders, Baer chronicles the increasing influence of the DLC from 1985 to the present. He describes battles waged between New Democrats and party liberals after the failed candidacy of Walter Mondale, and he takes readers behind the scenes in Little Rock to tell how DLC director Al From encouraged Clinton's run for the White House. He then explains how the DLC reshaped the party's agenda into a "third way" that embraced positions such as welfare reform, a balanced budget, free trade, a tough stance on crime, and a strong defense.

In this revealing analysis of insider politics, Baer shows how a determined faction can consciously change a party's public philosophy, even without the impetus of a national crisis or electoral realignment. He also shows that the New Democrat stance exemplifies how ideas can work in sync with the political calendar to determine which specific policies find their way onto the national agenda.

If Clinton has achieved nothing else in his presidency, says Baer, he has moved his party to the center, where it stands a better chance to succeed--much to the dismay of conservatives, who feel victimized by the theft of many of their strongest issues. In a book that will engage any reader caught up in the fervor of an election year, Baer reveals the role of new ideas in shaping political stratagems and provides much food for thought concerning the future of the New Democratic philosophy, the Democratic party, and American party politics.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 070061009X
• ISBN13: 9780700610099
• Release Date: February 2000
• Publisher: University Press of Kansas
• Length: 376 Pages
• Weight: 1.99 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.4" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Comprehensive, provacative

Whether you have a passing interest or are a true political junky, this book is a must read to understand America's contemporary political landscape. Highly recommended.

Can't be missed!

A must read for anyone interested in our political system! At the dawn of the 21st century, the face of politics and parties is changing at an alarming rate. Reinventing Democrats takes an insightful look at the underlying truthes of government today. Baer is a thoughtful and intelligent writer who sheds light on what fuels the actions and decisions that affect the lives of all Americans. This book definetly can't be missed!

The Answer Key for Elected Officials

This intelligent and exhaustively researched book outlines -- in a style that both political junkies and normal readers alike will find engaging -- how Bill Clinton and like-minded Democrats, for all of their foibles, truly became the political "comeback kids" of the late twentieth century. George W. Bush and Bill Bradley would do well to stop ignoring the lessons Baer teaches, and aspiring leaders from around the world undoubtedly will turn to this book as an answer key for the tests voters put before them on election days.

Reinventing my interest in Democrats

Baer challenges you to think about politics in a way the media doesn't want you to -- a constructive way. With information that only an insider could love, and logic that even the most non-political of readers can enjoy, he moves beyond the accusations and division that sour our politics of today to the source of the changes in the Democratic Party over the past decade. He traces how the party that brought us Jefferson and Jackson re-invented itself(to use his wording) back into the party of mainstream values and progressive politics. Politicians and policy-wonks alike will use Baer's manifesto as a roadmap for how to reach voters and capture a message that will bring about both electoral success and the ability to govern for years to come.

Reinventing Democrats

A phenomenal history of the Clinton years. Full of important information for ayone who wants to understand the Clinton decade and the way in which the Democrats seized the governing intiatives from the Republicans.