Third Way Founder: Clinton has done a good job straddling the two wings of the party

[portlander23]

Bernie Sanders' success may be pushing Hillary Clinton to the left
Nicole Gaudiano
USA TODAY October 8, 2015

Matt Bennett, a co-founder of the centrist think tank Third Way, said Wednesday that Clinton has done a good job straddling the two wings of the party. But later that same day, after Clinton announced her opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, he said “the jury is now out” on whether he was correct in his earlier statement.

Third Way, named for former president Bill Clinton’s governing philosophy, believes the TPP trade deal will help restore prosperity for middle-class workers.

“(Hillary Clinton) has said that her campaign is all about middle-class prosperity, and we just can’t have middle-class prosperity without a bigger share of the Asian market,” Bennett said. “They might be celebrating this in the Sanders campaign, but this doesn’t have anything to do with Bernie Sanders. The sad fact is that Democrats in primaries campaign as protectionists and then they govern as free traders.”

Speaking in Iowa, Clinton said Wednesday she doesn’t believe the trade deal announced Monday meets “the high bar I have set.” When she announced her opposition to the Keystone pipeline on Sept. 22, she said the project would hurt efforts to curb climate change, the same view adopted by the Democratic Party’s left wing.

Sanders said he welcomed both of Clinton’s announcements — and reminded Democratic voters that he had long opposed both the trade deal and the pipeline.
It’s unclear what policy positions Clinton would take without Sanders in the race, but Sanders has been an “incentive” for Clinton to take more liberal stances, said Dante Scala, associate professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire.

Related:

Not so fast! Clinton Now Re-Opens Door to Supporting Obama Trade Deal

Vox: Hillary Clinton's flip-flop on the TPP makes no sense

Third Way in struggle for the Democratic Party’s soul

Let's talk Third Way. Some links about its founding and the founders.

[SidDithers]

1. ...

Keep trying.

Sid

[moabfan]

2. Can't have it both ways. One or the other. nt

[Evergreen Emerald]

3. Not true

It never has to be all-or-nothing, black-or-white. There is alot of gray in life.

[AgingAmerican]

16. Which Republican policies should she implement?

Every single one would damage the country.

[Evergreen Emerald]

19. You mean like Sanders sided with the Rs on gun control?

I am a liberal. Most of my ideals align with Clinton. The big one is gun control. I know that Sanders has now evolved on the issue for political expediency...where in the past he has sided with the republicans...

Black/white? Gray? I guess you can be gray only when it comes to your candidate?

[AgingAmerican]

21. Sanders agreed with every measure in Obama's gun control package after Sandy Hook

Which right wing policies would Ms "I straddle left and right" adopt?

[Doctor_J]

18. don't worry. no one believes a single word of her populist campaign bs anyway

And what sort of budget priorities are halfway between the turd way and Paul Ryan?

[PADemD]

4. Yeah, follow one side and lip service to the other.

[bigtree]

5. so, he's fine with her, until he's not

...way to go Hillary, but not so much, huh?

[portlander23]

10. It's an interesting back and forth

He comes out for her when Mrs. Clinton supports TPP. Then she announces qualified opposition to it ahead of a debate, and he gives a cautious retraction noting that Democrats only campaign as "protectionists" and come around to his way of thinking afterwards (which is sadly true). Then shortly after the Debate, Mrs. Clinton backtracks on her qualified opposition saying the door is open for TPP.

I'll let people make of that what they will.

[madfloridian]

12. Nice post.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

6. Triangulation....again.

[TransitJohn]

7. We all know which wing will get sold down the river. eom

n/t

[CharlotteVale]

8. He took her TPP backpedaling seriously?

[stillwaiting]

22. There is no way to know the truth. I'm sure he's not against some theater from time to time. nt

[Oilwellian]

9. Oh look, they're trying to separate her from the pack

of corporate loving Dems. Ahahahahaha!

[Robbins]

11. Except

you can't push her left.if she wins nominatrion all progressive talk will end.

[JRLeft]

13. Enlightened democrats understand she's campaigning to the left only to

get elected once she wins, she will switch back to being a moderate. Her progressivism is a facade. Once she's goes back to her corporate ways her defenders will make a plethora of excuses why she's selling us out.

[PowerToThePeople]

14. Fuck third way, they are my enemy as much if not more than Republicans.

The enemy within is far more dangerous than the enemy without.

[Baitball Blogger]

15. A plea for Hillary:

Beware of big donations from law firms. You should start asking yourself, who do they represent?

Sometimes, things are so obvious you can't ignore them when they're staring you in the face.

[Doctor_J]

17. .

[madfloridian]

20. Matt B seems proud of the straddling. Surprised he said it out loud.

I would think it would be better for someone to take definite stands.

I am a little surprised Matt said that out loud.