The Clinton campaign has carefully crafted its policies to evoke the images of a traditional Democrat agenda while in practice echoing the substance of Reaganite Republicanism. Clinton's New Covenant is far from a return to the liberal spending commitments of Roosevelt or Kennedy. In his newly published Putting People First, Clinton is at pains to emphasise that nobody is getting a free ride. As well as threatening the introduction of forced labour schemes, Clinton promises firm action against fathers who desert children to welfare dependency. No more freebies' By distinguishing between real need and the undeserving welfare dependents, the Democrats appeal both to the fear of recession among middle Americans and to the prejudice that secured the old Republican majority.
White suburbanites identify welfare dependency with blacks and the inner cities.
They resent taxes because they imagine that they are paying to buy crack for black 'welfare queens'. Clinton's tough talk appeals to those sentiments. Middle class is here a euphemism for white America, just as 'welfare' is a code word for black. The underlying racial message of Clinton's campaign is not restricted to welfare spending. Clinton has opposed racial division, but at the same time attacked black militants for creating it.