Reinventing Democrats
Just in time for the 2000 presidential election, Baer, a former Oxford scholar now living in Washington, DC, has produced an excellent account of the making of the new Democratic Party. He argues that the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC), working behind the scenes but within the party, developed an alternative political philosophy to replace the one that appeared to be failing--a liberalism based on social justice and the redistribution of wealth. The irony here is that this "new" philosophy closely resembles that of FDR's New Deal. By chronicling the events leading from the formation of the DLC (with much-deserved attention given to the role of Al From) through Clinton's nomination in 1992 and the election of 1998, Baer ably demonstrates that a major shift in a party's identity (and its voters' allegiance) can occur in the absence of a national crisis or a realigning election. This excellent book blends history and politics with careful political analysis. Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the new Democratic Party and to gauge its potential for future success.-Thomas J. Baldino, Wilkes Univ., Wilkes-Barre, PACopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.