Fracture: Obama, the Clintons, and the Democratic Divide

Lay readers interested in the background of rifts within the Democratic party—both before and during the Obama administration—will find this concise summary from MSNBC correspondent Reid to be illuminating and accessible. Beginning with Lyndon Johnson’s efforts against discrimination, which culminated with the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Reid traces the demographic shifts within the Democratic Party as Southern whites began to feel increasingly threatened by government policies. She highlights the significance of Jesse Jackson’s 1984 and 1988 presidential campaigns anticipating Obama’s eventual successful one, then moves on to an overview of the Clinton administration and how its triangulation strategy alienated the party’s left wing. Reid pulls no punches in describing the disappointments some prominent African-Americans felt with the country’s first black president, and the tensions that emerged between centrist and liberal Democrats. Those looking for a refresher on the tensions of the 2008 Obama-Clinton primary battle, and their implications for the 2016 race, will find the salient points covered. Reid, despite her service as a Obama press aide in 2008, presents a balanced view of him and his administration’s internecine quarrels. (Sept.)