for easier access to reaching them. It appears from what I have read, and what is also said in this Unity 08 post....that they take pride in reaching across the aisle. I know they are the ones, along with the New Democrat Coalition, who are summoned to meet with Bush or McConnell.
This time the deal they made put our personal freedoms in jeopardy.
From an article at Unity 08, urging that group to be sure to reach to the Blue Dogs...making clear they often stand with the Republicans.
Leveraging the CenterLeveraging the Center - The Blue Dog Democrats
posted by John Milligan on June 18, 2007 - 9:32am
Building from and on the Center – The Blue Dogs. THESE are the people we should be leveraging Unity 08 with on creating an implementable platform and pressuring the activist bases and attracting the electorate toward the rational center
Then the article presents where they stand on important issues that affect us greatly...quoting partialy from Wikipedia.
There was a phrase that came to mind as I read this description..."almost Democrats but keeping our options open".
Blue Dog Democrats are a group of 44 conservative to moderate Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives. The Blue Dogs are a coalition of like-minded Democrats whose primary mission is to promote fiscally responsible budget reforms and accountability for taxpayer dollars. Many members hail from conservative-leaning districts, where liberal Democrats and liberal values are a decided minority. Therefore, the Democratic Party has become more supportive of Blue Dog candidates in recent times. This was especially true in the 2006 election, when Blue Dog candidates such as Heath Shuler and Brad Ellsworth were elected in conservative-leaning districts, ending years of Republican dominance in these districts.
...The term is a reference to the "Blue Dog" paintings of Cajun artist George Rodrigue of Lafayette, Louisiana; the original members of the coalition would regularly meet in the offices of Louisiana representatives Billy Tauzin and Jimmy Hayes, both of whom had Rodrigue's paintings on their walls (and both of whom later switched to the Republican Party). The term is also probably meant as an ironic counterpoint to the traditional "Yellow Dog" label, which is applied to Southern Democrats so loyal to the party that they would vote for a yellow dog before voting for a Republican.
We have heard so much from both of our centrist coaltions...about personal responsibility. Only I feel both carry it to extremes at times.
On economic issues, Blue Dogs tend to be pro-business and favor limiting public welfare spending, arguing instead for "individual responsibility". They have supported welfare reform, for example, as well as the Republican backed Bankruptcy Reform Act of 2005. They do, however, have differing positions on trade issues, including some supporters of labor unions, protectionism, and other populist measures
30 of the 41 yes votes to give Bush and Gonzales more power on the surveillance issue were Blue Dogs. Six were New Democrats, the rest were not affiliated with either that I could see.
Their votes hurt us badly this time. I intend to make some calls tomorrow. I found the Blue Dogs site with links to their sites with contact info.
http://www.house.gov/ross/BlueDogs/Member%... Here are the Yes votes:
Jason Altmire (4th Pennsylvania) New Democrat
John Barrow (12th Georgia) Blue Dog
Melissa Bean (8th Illinois) Blue Dog
Dan Boren (2nd Oklahoma) Blue Dog
Leonard Boswell (3rd Iowa) Blue Dog
Allen Boyd (2nd Florida) Blue Dog
Christopher Carney (10th Pennsylvania) Blue Dog
Ben Chandler (6th Kentucky) Blue Dog
Rep. Jim Cooper (5th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Jim Costa (20th California) Blue Dog
Bud Cramer (5th Alabama) Blue Dog
Henry Cuellar (28th Texas) New Democrat
Artur Davis (7th Alabama) New Democrat
Lincoln Davis (4th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Joe Donnelly (2nd Indiana) Blue Dog
Chet Edwards (17th Texas)
Brad Ellsworth (8th Indiana) Blue Dog
Bob Etheridge (North Carolina) New Democrat
Bart Gordon (6th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (South Dakota) Blue Dog
Brian Higgins (27th New York)New Democrat
Baron Hill (9th Indiana) Blue Dog
Nick Lampson (23rd Texas) Blue Dog
Daniel Lipinski (3rd Illinois)
Jim Marshall (8th Georgia) Blue Dog
Jim Matheson (2nd Utah) Blue Dog
Mike McIntyre (7th North Carolina) Blue Dog
Charlie Melancon (3rd Louisiana) Blue Dog
Harry Mitchell (5th Arizona)
Colin Peterson (7th Minnesota) Blue Dog
Earl Pomeroy (North Dakota) Blue Dog
Ciro Rodriguez (23rd Texas) Blue Dog
Mike Ross (4th Arkansas) Blue Dog
John Salazar (3rd Colorado) Blue Dog
Heath Shuler (11th North Carolina) Blue Dog
Vic Snyder (2nd Arkansas) New Democrat
Zachary Space (18th Ohio) Blue Dog
John Tanner (8th Tennessee) Blue Dog
Gene Taylor (4th Mississippi) Blue Dog
Timothy Walz (1st Minnesota)
Charles A. Wilson (6th Ohio) Blue Dog
(List from Daily Kos...but I added the New Democrats)
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/8/5... 
DU Donor
