Democrat in name only

DINO stands for Democrat In Name Only, a disparaging term for a member of the modern-day United States Democratic Party whose words and actions are thought to be too fiscally or socially conservative. The term "Fox News liberal" has also been used in this context.

The term was created as an analogous opposite to the acronym RINO (Republican In Name Only), which refers to more liberal members of the United States Republican Party. The acronym is a pun on the popular English-language shortening of the word dinosaur.

"DINO" is used by more ideological (politically speaking) members of the Democrats to challenge fellow party members for their maverick or moderate positions. In some cases, the platform of the member in question is not even necessarily close to the opponents—they just do not necessarily follow the party line in every case. Many (but not all) of the DINOs are conservatives from the Southern states which were predominantly Dixiecrat before they switched en masse to the Republican Party. Unlike those who switched parties, these DINOs are content to remain "Democrats."

Putative DINOs

Democrats who have been accused of being DINOs include:

Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, a fiscal conservative. (The American Prospect, Dec 30, 2002)
Rep. Melissa Bean of Illinois, who voted for CAFTA, the Bankruptcy Bill and the Class Action Fairness Act.
Former Rep. Brad Carson of Oklahoma, who often touted his 'A' rating from the National Rifle Association, support for many of President Bush's tax cuts and support for the Federal Marriage Amendment.
Robert Patrick Casey, Jr., who is pro-life.
Rep. Stephanie Herseth of South Dakota who voted for the Federal Marriage Amendment.
Former Mayor Ed Koch of New York City who supported Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and several Republican mayors, governors, and senators of New York
Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, who voted for the three most conservative Bush appellate court nominees (Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen and William Pryor), as well as the confirmation of John Bolton as U. N. ambassador; she also supports ANWR drilling. However, after she was ridiculed by Republicans following Hurricane Katrina, it became tough for Democrats to apply the DINO moniker to her.
Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, a hawkish supporter of much of the Bush administration's foreign policy who has also sided with the Republicans on school vouchers and entertainment/video game ratings/restrictions. (TomPaine.com, July 17, 2002
Former Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia, keynote speaker at the 2004 Republican National Convention (called an "in name only" by Terry McAuliffe), who had a 94% voting record with the Republican leadership from 2003 to 2004, and is now pro-life.
Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska, a conservative.
Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas, who voted thrice in favor of John Bolton and also voted for three most conservative Bush appellate court nominees (Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen and William Pryor).
Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado, who voted for and introduced Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and sat by his side during Gonzales' confirmation hearings.
Rep. Gene Taylor of Mississippi who voted for all four articles of impeachment against Bill Clinton, and for the Federal Marriage Amendment.
Former Sen. John Breaux of Louisiana who is pro-life and opposed many environmental regulations.
The late Sen. Pat Moynihan of New York, who served as Undersecretary of Labor to Democratic Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, and in 1965 published a report critical of the federal welfare system. He remained highly critical of welfare programs throughout his political career.[1]
The late Sen. Scoop Jackson of Washington, his political philosophies and positions were a forerunner for modern neoconservatism.
The late Governor Robert P. Casey of Pennsylvania, who was fiercly pro-life and refused to campaign for any Democrat who was pro-choice. Casey's son, Pennsylvania State Treasurer and 2006 candidate for Senate Robert Patrick Casey, Jr., is also sometimes called a DINO because he also opposes abortion rights.
Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas, who supported George W. Bush for president in 2000 and 2004 and has been the first and only Democrat to ever be endorsed by the conservative Club for Growth; he describes himself as a "moderate conservative". Described as a "DINO" in a February 15, 2006 email "Make DINOs extinct: Join the call" from Tom Hughes to members of Democracy for America.
Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida who is a moderate.
Rep. Steve Israel of Long Island who is a moderate.

Conservative Democrats of the Past

Representatives (not a complete list):

Thomas G. Abernethy (D-MS)

George W. Andrews (D-AL)

Jack T. Brinkley (D-GA)

Goodloe E. Byron (D-MD)

Earle Cabell (D-TX)

Robert R. Casey (D-TX)

William V. Chappell Jr. (D-FL)

William M. Colmer (D-MS)

W.C. Daniel (D-VA)

W.J. Bryan Dorn (D-SC)

Thomas N. Downing(D-VA)

Walter Flowers (D-AL)

John J. Flynt (D-GA)

Phil Gramm (D-TX)*

F. Edward Hebert (D-LA)

Bill Hull (D-MO)

Richard H. Ichord (D-MO)

John Jarman (D-OK)*

Paul C. Jones (D-MO)

Marvin Leath (D-TX)

William Lipinski (D-IL)

Larry McDonald (D-GA)

James R. Mann (D-SC)

John O. Marsh (D-VA)

Bill Nichols (D-AL)

Masten O'Neal (D-GA)

Otto Passman (D-LA)

W.R. Poage (D-TX)

Graham B. Purcell (D-TX)

John R. Rarick (D-LA)

Paul G. Rogers (D-FL)

Jim Santini (D-NV)*

David E. Satterfield III (D-VA)

Richard C. Shelby (D-AL)*

Robert L.F. Sikes (D-FL)

Bob Stump (D-AZ)*

James Traficant (D-OH)

Joe Waggonner (D-LA)

Albert Watson (D-SC)*

Richard C. White (D-TX)

Jamie L. Whitten (D-MS)

John Bell Williams (D-MS)

* - Eventually switched affiliation to Republican.

Senators (not a complete list):

James B. Allen (D-AL)

Harry Flood Byrd(D-VA)

Harry Flood Byrd Jr. (D-VA)*

James O. Eastland (D-MS)

Spessard L. Holland (D-FL)

Frank Lausche (D-OH)

Richard B. Russell (D-GA)

John C. Stennis (D-MS)

Herman E. Talmadge (D-GA)

Strom Thurmond (D-SC)**

Richard C. Shelby (D-AL)***

A. Willis Robertson (D-VA)

* - Harry Flood Byrd Jr. switched affiliation to Independent, 1970.

** - Strom Thurmond switched affiliation to Republican, 1964.

*** - Richard C. Shelby switched to the Republican Party in 1994 when it gained the majority in Congress.

Fox News Liberals

The similar term Fox News liberal is used among Democrats and liberals in the U.S. to refer to those commentators and politicians who hold themselves out as liberals and/or Democrats, yet do one or more of the following:

They often agree with their conservative and/or Republican opposite numbers on TV talk shows or in legislative bodies on various issues and positions.
They show no hesitation to distance themselves from and criticize their fellow Democrats and liberals, especially to predominantly conservative audiences;
They present weak arguments in favor of liberal/Democratic positions, and refuse to debate or easily succumb to conservative/Republican arguments.
They base arguments on dubious claims made by conservatives and Republicans, thereby suggesting that those are valid liberal/Democratic positions.

The term is similar to Democrat In Name Only (DINO). It is based on the belief, held by many on the left, that the Fox News Channel has a conservative/Republican bias, and that many of the Fox News commentators who claim to be liberal are straw men hired to ineffectively present liberal viewpoints.

The term was first applied in 2004 to Alan Colmes, the liberal co-host to conservative Sean Hannity on the Fox News show Hannity & Colmes. Liberal viewers have long found Colmes' quiet, deferential style infuriating, particularly in contrast to the outspoken Hannity; and Colmes himself has sometimes taken more right-leaning positions, such as supporting Rudy Giuliani for mayor of New York City and defending Mississippi Senator Trent Lott after the latter made racially suspect remarks at the 100th birthday party for the late Sen. Strom Thurmond. It hasn't helped Colmes with his liberal critics either that he has also defended Fox's "fair and balanced" slogan as accurate, or that he has been praised by prominent conservatives such as Newt Gingrich and was once chosen as the favorite liberal by posters on a Free Republic forum. Liberal commentator Al Franken lambasted Colmes in his popular book Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them, accusing him of refusing to ask tough questions during debates and neglecting to challenge alleged erroneous claims made by Hannity or his guests.

Susan Estrich, Ed Koch, and Pat Caddell are also noted as examples of Fox commentators noted primarily for their links to past Democratic campaigns, have also been called Fox News liberals for exhibiting similar tendencies and appearing to care more that the conservatives like them and that they continue to appear on television than defending liberalism and the Democratic Party. In Zell Miller's case the label is almost certainly a misnomer since Miller for his entire career as a public official always presented himself a moderate or conservative Democrat.

The 2004 documentary Outfoxed claimed to show that the Fox producers purposely choose unthreatening liberal commentators, both in the interviews with former producers for the network who spoke anonymously and an interview with a former commentator who recalled how he was let go by Fox early in what was supposed to be a long-term arrangement after challenging the case for the 2003 invasion of Iraq too forcefully.

Democrat in name only

Putative DINOs

Conservative Democrats of the Past

Fox News Liberals

See also

Conservative Democrats

See also