The latest version of so-called moderate, centrist, Third Way to organize is calling itself "No Labels". If you look at who makes it up, it is the usual Third Way (Jonathan Cowan) crowd with the non-batshit insane wing of the conservative and republicans (David Frum, Mark McKinnon) and token conservadem (William Galston).
They claim that they are "Not Right, Not Left. Forward" and "Put the Labels Aside. Do What’s Best for America. We are Democrats, Republicans, and Independents who are united in the belief that we do not have to give up our labels, merely put them aside to do what’s best for America."
Alas, it seems to follow the recent Bloomberg plutocratic call for more of the same (deregulation, less taxes for the wealthy and corporate), but said nicely and with less Christianist and eliminationist rhetoric.
In other words the Village Consensus, high Broderism at it most vacuous.
They are having an opening event at Columbia University today, featuring the following:
Featured Speakers:
Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Congressman Bob Inglis
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Congressman Tom Davis
David Brooks
Joe Scarborough
Mika Brzezinski
Senator Joe Lieberman
Senator Evan Bayh
Senator Joe Manchin
David Gergen
Governor Charlie Crist
Lt Governor Abel Maldonado
Congressman Michael Castle
Ellen Freidin
They claim to be against the extremists and purists in both parties. One cute phrase is the they want to be the MoveOn for the center.
So I get it. They are moderate and corporatist/wall street Republicans who are opposed to the Tea Party, Christianists and Libertarians in the Republican party, who might possibly be a problem (if they stick to their claimed values) for the actual K-Street Chamber of Commerce agenda.
Of course this winds up being the usual false equivalence. As a matter of politics, there is little successful pressure from the left on the Democrats. And the country has been run by the plutocratic corporatists for the past 30 plus years, and despite the proven failure of their policies, they are able to buy more and worse of the same. The real problem has been the conservadems and claim-to-be-moderate Republicans in the Senate who have prevented better policies to be enacted these past two years.
So I challenge all centrists, moderates, third-wayers and no-labels folks:
- What is their specific policy to reverse the income and wealth inequality? This, and not the deficit, is the number one problem in America.
- What is their specific policy on federal debt and deficits? What specific programs to cut and how much does that actually add up to in actual dollars? What are the specific policies regarding specific taxes?
- What is their specific policy regarding the trade deficit?
- What is their policy on employment?
- What is their position on tax cuts, tax reform, tax simplification, and tax progressivity/flatness? The moderate conservatives who seem to identify with your group (Bloomberg, Brooks) still insist on falsely conflating tax simplification (get rid of deductions, loopholes etc.) with flattening (making more regressive) the tax structure. One can support the need for simplification while also increasing the progressivity, with lower rates for probably 80% of the population, coupled with steadily increasing rates for those in higher income brackets including the top 1-2% and 0.1% that have been getting all gains over the past 30+ years. Again, as Michael Kinsley pointed out perhaps 15 years in a wonderful New Yorker piece debunking the "flat tax" one can have lots of progressive steps, and still put the income tax table on a post card. Similarly what about the estate tax? Progressive could support the potentially regressive consumption tax in trade for getting rid of the regressive payroll deduction tax, on the principle of taxing consumption (should save more, help trade imbalance, better for the environment) and not taxing work/jobs/employment. But on the other hand, the estate tax needs to be re-increased, not only to satisfy the deficit issue, but to reduce the inequality and lack of economic mobility our country has suffered from these past 30 years.
- What is their policy on need for commonweal infrastructure development?
- What is their policy on minimum wage?
- On earned income tax credit?
- What is their policy on labor rights and organizing?
- What is their position on universal health care coverage, and what specific policies would they support?
- What is their position on global warming and what specific government actions would they support?
- What is their position regarding Citizen's United and the pay-to-play corruption of our current political funding system? What specific policies, such as public financing, constitutional amendement to limit funding to actual humans and citizen, and not corporate/organizationl "people".
I have emailed No Labels a few times,asking them the above questions, so far with no replies. I would encourage progressives to do the same. Challenge them to put-up or shut-up.
For anybody paying attention to what has been going on the past several years, reality is to the left of the American center, and certainly is to the left of the Village.
A real movement for going "Forward" and "Put the Labels Aside. Do What’s Best for America." would in fact endorse a progressive/left set of policies. But alas, that does not get the financial support of the plutocrats who have to ensure they do as well going forward as they have the past 30 years.
Updates:
"...one of their leaders is Pete Peterson's leading whore .. David Walker .. so this group is likely funded by Peterson"
h/t Calvin Jones
Looks like we can DLC/Third-Way lobbyist hack Mark Penn and his wife Nancy Jacobson the powers behind this group. And conservadem Lamm (at least the Mrs.) from Colorado.
Their plans:
After the launch, No Labels will:
• Organize all 435 congressional districts with Republican, Democratic and independent leaders, in order to monitor the activities of our legislators to ensure they are not playing hyper-partisan games and caving in to their party's ideological extremes.
• Host town halls in the 10 key states where independents can vote in the primary election.
• Establish a political action committee that can operate in the 2012 primary races of congressional incumbents who get challenged by the extreme ideologues in their own parties.
No Labels will not be a third party, only a third voice. You can stay in your own party and still become a member of No Labels. No Labels will not participate party vs. party in the general election of 2012 nor will it support any candidate for president.
Participants will need to adhere to only one label: American.
h/t George Pirpiris
