Factions and Divisions within the Democratic Party
The Democrats have had a varied history over the centuries. Their current incarnation dates from the 1930s when Franklin Roosevelt battled against the Great Depression. He believed that the state could help solve the problems of poverty in the USA. This was expanded on by Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s who increased help for the poor and introduced a slew of Civil Rights for African Americans. And now are the Democratic party a happy coalition well….
New Democrats
In 1985, the Democratic Leadership Councilwas created after the landslide victory of Republican Ronald Reagan over moderate Democrat Walter Mondale in the 1984 presidential election. Their fear was that Republicans were going to forever dominate the political landscape.
In the 1992 United States presidential election, Bill Clinton of ran as a New Democrat these were centrists who had been schooled by the Democratic National Council. They believed as Bill Clinton said that “the era of big government is over.” The Clinton victory led to a massive shift of the Democratic Party to the right. They also were relatively conservative on social issues.
Some such as Al From (a key former adviser to Bill Clinton) believe that the New Democrats have the key to getting back into power as he states in this Guardian article.
Libertarian Democrats
Just as the Republican party have a Libertarian wing so do the Democrats. They believe in the importance of civil rights and are concerned with the extension of government powers when it comes to surveillance. They can have mixed views as to whether or not to intervene in the economy.
Ron Wyden Democratic Senator for Oregon was more than happy to take Obama to task for what he thought was a lax approach to citizens rights when it came to intelligence gathering as can be seen in this article.
Conservative or Blue Democrats
A Blue Dog Democrat is a Conservtive member of Congress who is moderate or more conservative in their voting record and political philosophy than other, more liberal, Democrats in the House and Senate.
Conservative Democrats vary greatly in ideology. Some are fiscally conservative (which means they do not see their justification in the government intervening in the American economy) Indeed it was blue dog democrats who voted against Obama in 2009 when he was trying to pass his Stimulus package to aid American banks after the crash of 2008. Other Blue Dogs might have a pro gun stance.
Could the Blue Dogs being trying to cut a deal with the Republicans on taxes why not read this article.
Liberal
Today, liberals within the Democratic party are generally regarded as being socially liberal this means being seen as pro choice when it comes to abortion, and pro minorities when it comes to issues rights for African Americans and possibly seeking some form of gun control.
On economic issues, liberal Democrats vary, with some supporting neo-liberal economics which see a lesser role for the state and more freedom for business, while some believe in greater state intervention. Hoping to create more economic equality.
On foreign policy, there is also a divide among liberal Democrats, with some being liberal internationalists such as Hilary Clinton. This saw America assist during her time as Secretary of State in the overthrow of Colonel Qaddafi in Libya under Obama’s presidency. Others oppose American military intervention in most of it's forms.
Progressives
Progressive Democrats are generally regarded as social progressives on social issues. On economic issues Democrats believe in an interventionist economic model this saw Bernie Sanders the champion of the left of the party call for universal health care (similar to the NHS), free college tuition and a demand for full employment.
This CNN article highlights some of the divisions within the party. If you are in the mood you might even to look at the video below for a glimpse of more of Bernie's die hard supporters.