Democrat In Name Only

[[File:Palais_de_la_Decouverte_Tyrannosaurus_rex_p1050042.jpg|thumb|right|165px|[[Fossil]]ized remains of a DINO.]]{{uspolitics}}
{{hatnote|For the [[Republican]] equivalent, see [[RINO]].}}
'''DINO''' is an acronym meaning "'''Democrat in Name Only'''." It refers to the New Democrat Coalition, [[Blue Dog Democrats|Blue Dogs]], and similar [[Democrats]] who are more concerned about increasing party influence than standing by the party platform. They often, but not always, are trying to compete in more [[Red state|conservative states]] by leaning to the right. This makes them a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the current way Congress is structured gives disproportionate power to rural white states/districts, which tend to be very conservative, so recruiting a few right-leaning outliers is essential to win a congressional majority. On the other hand, these people are '''outliers''', so pandering to them too much just offends the left-leaning party stalwarts from less conservative regions.

Former [[Georgia]] Senator Zell Miller was an excellent example of a DINO. He delivered the keynote address of the [[2004 US Presidential Election|2004]] [[Republican]] convention, where he slandered [[John Kerry]] and challenged [[Chris Matthews]] to a duel. It was most likely that Miller is a Democrat [[Dixiecrat|because]] of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]]. Another good example is [[David Clarke]], who is as far to the right as they come and literally ran as a Democrat only to get votes.

Accusations are sometimes made by the party faithful for a good reason; they are also made to dissociate the accuser from [[rhetoric]]al responsibility when convenient.  
	
The [[House of Representatives]], at least, is now "perfectly sorted," meaning that the most conservative Democrat is still more liberal than the most [[liberal]] Republican, according to all adequate measures of such things.<ref>https://voteview.com/congress/senate/text</ref> This screams that there are no DINOs in the House. Their main stronghold is the Senate, where they have given [[Barack Obama|recent]] [[Joe Biden|presidents]] from their own party quite the headache when passing legislation.

==Democrats accused of being DINOs==
* Former Senator Mark Begich of [[Alaska]], who tended to vote with the [[Republican Party|Grand Old Party]] on [[gun control]] and other issues.
* Former Senator {{wpl|Joe Donnelly}} of [[Indiana]], who won in an upset landslide after {{wpl|Richard Mourdock|the moronic Republican nominee}} couldn't keep his mouth shut about his extreme views on [[rape]] and [[pregnancy]]. A member of the Blue Dog Coalition in the House, his voting record was to the left on [[trade union|labor union]]s, gun control, [[minimum wage]], [[corporate]] regulation-related issues, and [[gay rights]] and to the right on [[tax]]ation, [[Iraq War|defense]], [[abortion]], and immigration. He got destroyed in his re-election campaign by trying to cater exclusively to Indiana Republican voters by telling them he voted with [[Donald Trump|Trump]] often when he didn't vote with him enough to their standards.
*Former Senator James Eastland of Mississippi. If that didn't give it away, Eastland was also even more of a Segregationist than Strom Thurmond. He even argued that blacks were an inferior race, which Kamala Harris mentioned when criticizing Joe Biden on race relations because Biden praised both Eastland and Thurmond.<ref>Silva, Daniella (June 28, 2019). [https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/kamala-harris-joe-biden-s-segregationist-comments-you-have-draw-n1024456 Kamala Harris on Joe Biden's segregationist comments: 'You have to draw the line']. NBC News. Retrieved February 2, 2021.</ref>
* Representative Jared Golden of Maine's second district, who is by some measures considered to be the most conservative Democrat in the House.<ref>https://voteview.com/person/21923/jared-golden</ref> He was the only Democrat in either chamber to vote against the COVID relief bill.<ref>Patrick Whittle, [https://www.seacoastonline.com/story/news/state/2021/03/10/only-democrat-vote-against-covid-relief-bill-rep-jared-golden-maine/6944761002/ Maine's Jared Golden is lone Democrat to vote against COVID relief bill], Seacoastonline 10 Mar. 2021</ref>
* Former Congressman Ralph Hall of Texas, 1981 - 2015. Once a self-described "old-time conservative Democrat" who had an obligation to "pull my party back toward the middle." Hall was one of the co-founders of the Blue Dog Coalition and could even rival Stenholm for the title of most conservative Democrat. He hated the Clintons and voted for his longtime friend Dubya in 2000, voted against NAFTA, against abortion, supported gun rights, and in favor of tax cuts. Hall was the only Democrat not targeted by the same redistricting that swept away Stenholm and others. In 2004, after being refused money for his district by Republicans, Hall finally switched parties. He became one of the oldest members of the House until losing in a 2014 primary.  
* Former Senator Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, who voted to the right on issues like energy, gun control, and [[drug]] policy. The voters in North Dakota still considered her to be too liberal to win re-election.
* Former Senator Doug Jones of [[Alabama]], who once said himself that he was to be expected to not always fall in line and vote with Senate Democrats. Nonetheless, liberals still turned out to vote for him in droves, if for no other reason than the fact that [[Roy Moore|his opponent]] was a complete monster. That being said, Jones proved far too sane for Alabamans, who overwhelmingly voted to replace him with the Republican former football coach Tommy Tuberville. Tuberville consistently supported Trump's [[Bullshit|claims]] of widespread voter fraud (even voting against certification of the result after the [[2021 U.S. Capitol riot|January 6 coup attempt on the Capitol]]), and told reporters that his father fought the socialists in [[World War II]], making you wonder [[Nazism|which side he was on]].<ref>https://www.aldailynews.com/in-the-weeds-w-tommy-tuberville-alabamas-next-senator/</ref> Looks like Alabama is still Alabama, and ain't no [[Georgia]].
* Former Senator [[Mary Landrieu]] of [[Louisiana]]. Like Ben Nelson, she also only voted for the health care law after her state received earmarks, she supports drilling in the Arctic, tax cuts, and repealing the estate tax. Her final act as Senator was to push for the Keystone XL pipeline, which she voted for... and got kicked out in the midterm elections by the people of Louisiana.
* Congressman Conor Lamb, who supported Trump's steel tariffs,<ref>https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/07/pa-special-election-trump-tariffs-get-support-from-lamb-and-saccone.html</ref> was accused of being one by the GOP in an attempt to explain how they lost in a deep-red district.<ref>http://www.businessinsider.com/conservatives-on-conor-lamb-pennsylvania-18-congress-2018-3</ref> Funnily enough, many of those same conservatives would accuse him of being "the fifth member of the Squad" by the next election cycle.<ref>https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1214641</ref>
* Senator [[Joe Lieberman]] may be progressive on many domestic policy issues, but he was one of the most outspoken [[chickenhawk]]s in [[Congress]], even more so than many Republicans. When he was first elected to the [[Senate]] in 1988, he was elected with the endorsement of the [[Moral Majority]] and [[National Rifle Association]], running to the right of incumbent Republican (and quintessential [[RINO]]) Lowell Weicker. He went as far as endorsing [[John McCain]] in [[2008 U.S. presidential election|2008]] for these reasons, and got significant backlash from his party. Technically, he has been an independent since 2006, but he caucuses with the Democrats on most issues. Hates violent [[video games]] and joined [[Sam Brownback]], [[Hillary Clinton]], and [[Rick Santorum]] in crafting a Senate resolution condemning <u>Grand Theft Auto</u> after the "hot coffee" [[moral panic]].
* [[Fun:Illinois|Illinois]] Representative {{wpl|Dan Lipinski||,}} who opposes abortion rights, LGBTQ rights, Medicare for All, and the Green New Deal. He also voted for multiple reauthorizations of the Patriot Act and did not support the DREAM Act until 2018. He was successfully primaried by Democrat challenger Marie Newman on March 17, 2020, in a close race.<ref>https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/longtime-anti-abortion-rights-democrat-rep-lipinski-defeated-chicago-area-n1162756</ref>
* Former Senator [[Joe Manchin]] of [[West Virginia]] He was arguably the most conservative Democrat in the Senate following Ben Nelson and Joe Lieberman's retirements in 2012. Retired in 2024. 
* Senator {{wpl|Claire McCaskill}} of [[Missouri]], chickenhawk, flip flopping on tax reform, described [[Bernie Sanders]] as being "too liberal" and "extreme" to be president.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/25/claire-mccaskill-bernie-sanders_n_7662124.html|title=Claire McCaskill Thinks Bernie Sanders Is 'Too Liberal' And 'Extreme' To Be President|publisher=[[Huffington Post]]|date=June 25, 2015|accessdate=March 31, 2017|first=Igor|last=Bobic}}</ref> Won a second term because her opponent was [[Todd Akin|this jackass]], but lost her bid for a third to Republican challenger [[Josh Hawley]].
* Former Senator Ben Nelson, though representing [[Nebraska|a reasonably conservative state]], remains infamous for only voting for the [[Affordable Care Act]] after [[earmarks]] were secured for his state. 
* Former Senator Mark Pryor of [[Arkansas]], opposed gay marriage like Landrieu and Manchin.
* Representative Loretta Sanchez of California has voted in favor of deregulated for-profit colleges and against lawsuits against gun manufacturers for violence but did vote against the Iraq War and [[PATRIOT Act]].
* Senator Richard Russell, Jr. While Russell supported most of FDR's and Harry S. Truman's New Deal/Fair Deal, he also supported racial segregation and co-authored the Southern Manifesto with Strom Thurmond. 
* Senator [[Richard Shelby]], Senator from Alabama who is now a Republican, but started out as a Democrat and only changed when [[Newt Gingrich|it was safe]].
* Congressman Charlie Stenholm of Texas, 1978–2005. Legendary for his "tractor-seat commonsense" on Agricultural issues,<ref>http://connection.ebscohost.com/c/interviews/9302070130/tractor-seat-common-sense</ref> was considered not just the most conservative {{wpl|Yellow dog Democrat|Texas 'yellow dog'|,}} but one, if not ''the'' most conservative member of the House. Voted against the Americans with Disabilities Act, which Papa Bush proposed and signed. He opposed abortion and gun control. A staunch Republican ally, Stenholm was finally swept out of office when [[Tom DeLay]] [[gerrymander]]ed districts to suit Republicans after declining numerous opportunities to switch parties.
*Former Senator Strom Thurmond (D-[[South Carolina]]). A well-known supporter of the Southern Strategy, Thurmond ran as the openly pro-segregation presidential candidate for the "States Rights" (IE: Segregation) Party. Starting with his vote of President Dwight Eisenhower in 1956, he was the most conservative Democrat in the Senate at the time. Thurmond filibustered all of JFK/LBJ's civil rights acts, was anti-New Deal and anti-Great Society. Became a Republican in the early 1970s after the Democratic Party became genuinely supportive of Civil Rights legislation.
*Former Governor George Wallace of Alabama. The infamous American Independent Party candidate, Wallace was an avowed Segregationist Social Conservative when it came to most civil rights issues. On other matters, however, Wallace was much more economically populist. 
* Senator Mark Warner (D-[[Virginia]]), who voted [[Rex Tillerson]], {{wpl|Mike Pompeo||,}} [[Rick Perry]], and [[Ben Carson]] into Trump's cabinet. He also feverishly supports illegal NSA mass surveillance of American citizens, a lowered corporate tax rate, and advocates for "reforming" (read: gutting) Social Security.{{fact}} Also attempted to obstruct both the PRO Act and Biden's Infrastructure Bill. 
* Former State Representative Vernon Jones of [[Georgia]]. Self-described conservative Democrat who voted for [[George W. Bush]] in 2004. One of the most conservative Democrats in the Georgia House, he endorsed [[Donald Trump]] for his 2020 re-election bid.<ref>https://www.ajc.com/blog/politics/georgia-democratic-lawmaker-endorses-trump-presidential-bid/dpqTbn2pBPIivHNgPdNSdN/</ref> Formally switched parties in 2021 at Trump's Save America Rally, shortly before the [[2021 U.S. Capitol riot]].
* Former Senator [[Kyrsten Sinema]] of [[Arizona]]. Despite being a [[bisexual]]<ref>https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/kyrsten-sinema-makes-history-first-bisexual-member-u-s-senate-n935816</ref> [[atheist]]<ref>https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/11/20/kyrsten-sinema-broke-slew-barriers-with-her-senate-win-so-how-was-identity-non-issue-her-race/</ref> who supported [[Ralph Nader]] and has criticized capitalism,<ref>https://www.wsj.com/articles/democrats-road-to-the-senate-runs-straight-through-trump-country-1520266957</ref> as well as being a former member of the Green Party,<ref>https://jacobinmag.com/2021/03/kyrsten-sinema-transformation-democrat-arizona-minimum-wage</ref> she ended up becoming the only Democratic senator besides Joe Manchin who voted with the Republican Party a majority of the time.<ref>https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/congress-trump-score/kyrsten-sinema/</ref> (By comparison, the next most conservative Democrat, Mark Warner, only votes with the Republicans about a third of the time.) She recently became an independent, so at least she's honest about not being a Democrat. After trying to run as an Independent for her seat in 2024 and having dismal poll numbers, she dropped out in favor of Democratic Congressman Ruben Gallego, who went on to win the election against Republican nutjob Kari Lake, even as Trump won the state by 5 points. 


==See also==
*[[Dinosaur]]
*[[No True Scotsman]]
*[[RINO]]
*[[Blue Dog Democrats]] — The more "polite" term.
*[[Minjoo Party of Korea]] — It is a major liberal party against the conservative camp in South Korea, a de facto 'social conservative Keynesian' party that uses the party name "Democratic Party" and officially advocates "social liberal".

==Reference==
{{Reflist|2}}

{{USPoliticalParty}}
[[Category:Neologisms]]
[[Category:Centrism]]
[[Category:United States political parties]]

Categories: Neologisms, Centrism, United States political parties