Progressive Democrats of AmericaThe Progressive Democrats of America is a progressive organization that formed out of the members of Dennis Kucinich's Presidential Campaign as well as Democracy for America, an organization that itself grew out of the Howard Dean Presidential Campaign.
The mission of the Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) is to strengthen the voice of progressive ideas within the Democratic Party. This is to be achieved by using the "inside/outside" model of working both in the Democratic Party as well as working with other progressive organizations. Celebrating the first anniversary of the movement, the PDA has grown and is developing a grassroots organization to improve the Democratic Party.
Democratic Leadership CouncilThe Democratic Leadership Council is an influential non-profit corporation that argues that the United States Democratic Party should shift away from the its traditionally progressive positions. Conservative and Moderate Democratic party leaders founded the DLC in response to the landslide victory of Republican candidate Ronald Reagan over Democratic candidate Walter Mondale during the 1984 Presidential election. The founders believed the United States Democratic Party needed to shift to the center to remain viable during the Reagan era. The DLC hails President Clinton as proof of the viability of third way politicians and a DLC success story. Critics contend that the DLC is effectively a powerful, corporate-financed mouthpiece within the Democratic party that acts to keep Democratic Party candidates and platforms sympathetic to corporate interests and the interests of the wealthy.
The DLC's affiliated think tank is the Progressive Policy Institute. Democrats who adhere to the DLC's philosophy often call themselves New Democrats.
Blue Dog CoalitionThe Blue Dog Coalition is a group of moderate to conservative Democrats in the United States House of Representatives. The group is currently made up of 35 Democrats, mostly from the U.S. Southern states.
Often, the group will be instrumental in striking a balance between liberal and conservative ideas. Despite Blue Dogs' differing degrees of economic and social conservatism, they share a strong orientation toward fiscal responsibility, and as a rule work to promote positions within the House of Representatives which bridge the gap between the two extremes. Blue Dogs are an important swing vote on spending bills and, as a result, have gained an influence in Congress out of proportion to their small numbers. They are frequently sought after to broker compromises between the Democratic and Republican leadership.
Blue Dog Democrats tend to differ ideologically from another coalition of moderate Democrats, the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC). The DLC describes itself as new Democrat and positions itself as centrist while taking liberal positions on social issues and conservative positions on economic issues and trade. Democrats who identify with the Blue Dogs, on the other hand, tend to be social conservatives, but have differing positions on economic issues ranging from fiscal conservatism to economic populism. For example, most Blue Dogs are strong supporters of gun rights and get high ratings from the National Rifle Association, many have pro-life voting records, and some get high ratings from immigration reduction groups, which cannot be said for most members of the DLC. On economic issues, Blue Dogs span the spectrum from fiscal conservatives to supporters of labor unions, protectionism, and other populist measures, while the DLC tends to favor free trade.
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