Today's Democrats are also liberated by budget surpluses. Clinton's political centrism was dictated in part by the deficits. Robert Rubin, a deficit hawk, beat Robert Reich, a traditional liberal, in the crucial early months of Clinton's first term. Domestic discretionary spending actually grew more slowly under Clinton than under Bush. But now we've got surpluses, so the climate that created Clintonism is gone too.
Progressives are right in feeling as hopeful as they do.
We'll highlight selected readers' remarks as the Roundtable progresses. David Brooks is a senior editor at The Weekly Standard and a contributing editor at Newsweek. All rights reserved.