We just might be getting past the period of basing Democratic policies and strategies on trying to avoid hurting the tender feelings of some mythological “centrist” voter.
Excerpt from 2012 Democratic National Platform –
“We know that global climate change is one of the biggest threats of this generation – an economic, environmental, and national security catastrophe in the making. We affirm the science of climate change, commit to significantly reducing the pollution that causes climate change, and know we have to meet this challenge by driving smart policies that lead to greater growth in clean energy generation and result in a range of economic and social benefits.
President Obama has been a leader on this issue. We have developed historic fuel efficiency standards that will limit greenhouse gas emissions from our vehicles for the first time in history, made unprecedented investments in clean energy, and proposed the first-ever carbon pollution limits for new fossil-fuel-fired power plants. As we move towards lower carbon emissions, we will continue to support smart, energy efficient manufacturing.
And there is this…
The Democratic Party’s 2012 platform calls for future deficit reduction to exclusively come from tax hikes on wealthy individuals and businesses, implying the party’s willingness to open negotiations with Republicans by agreeing to cut spending on social programs unconditionally is over.
“We support allowing the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest to expire and closing loopholes and deductions for the largest corporations and the highest-earning taxpayers,” the platform reads. “We are committed to reforming our tax code so that it is fairer and simpler, creating a tax code that lives up to the Buffett Rule so no millionaire pays a smaller share of his or her income in taxes than middle class families do.”