How Bill Clinton’s “Third Way” Helped Neoliberalism Win 🧩🎭 #Triangulation
By Occupy 2.5 News Team

During the 1990s, President Bill Clinton sold Americans a new idea called the “third way.” He said it was a smart middle ground between the big government ideas of the left and the free-market dreams of the right. But what really happened? Clinton’s “third way” took power away from working people and helped big businesses take over more and more of our economy. It also made it harder for progressives to fight for fairness and justice.

Let’s take a closer look at what this “third way” really did—and how it opened the door to decades of neoliberal rule.

What Is the “Third Way”?

Clinton didn’t want to be seen as a “tax-and-spend” Democrat like some presidents before him. So he made deals with Republicans. Instead of fighting for poor and working-class people, he focused on helping businesses grow. He called this the “third way.” But it wasn’t really new. It was just a friendlier name for something that already existed: neoliberalism.

Neoliberalism is the belief that markets should run almost everything. In this view, government should step back and let businesses lead the way—even when it hurts workers or the environment. Clinton’s “third way” helped make this idea sound smart and modern.

How It Hurt Progressive Goals

Under Clinton, the Democratic Party gave up many of its progressive values. Here are just a few examples:

  • Welfare Reform: In 1996, Clinton signed a law that ended many welfare programs and made it harder for poor families to get help. It was called “The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act.” Clinton said it would help people get jobs. But many families just ended up poorer than before¹.
  • The Crime Bill: In 1994, Clinton signed a crime bill that gave more money to police and built more prisons. Many Black and Brown communities were hurt by this law. It led to mass incarceration, especially for non-violent drug crimes².
  • NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement): Clinton pushed hard for NAFTA, a trade deal that made it easier for U.S. companies to move jobs to Mexico. That meant more profits for corporations—but fewer jobs for American workers³.
  • Financial Deregulation: Clinton also made it easier for big banks to do risky deals. He helped end a law called Glass-Steagall, which had protected the economy from bank failures since the Great Depression. That move helped cause the 2008 financial crisis⁴.

These policies didn’t help everyone. They helped the rich and powerful while many people struggled to keep up. Clinton said he was moving forward, but he was really stepping back from what progressives stood for: fairness, equality, and strong communities.

Why It Still Matters Today

Clinton’s choices changed the Democratic Party. After him, leaders like Barack Obama and Joe Biden followed the same path. They used words like “hope” and “unity,” but they often made the same kinds of deals with big business. They also avoided bold action, like Medicare for All or free college.

Even worse, Clinton’s “third way” gave Republicans more power. By moving to the center, Democrats gave up the fight for big, bold ideas. That left people feeling angry, ignored, and ready for someone like Donald Trump to take over by pretending to speak for “the people.”

The #Triangulation Problem

Clinton’s team called this approach triangulation. That means standing between the left and the right and picking the parts you like best. But that’s not leadership—it’s marketing. And it only works for those already winning the game. For everyone else, triangulation just feels like betrayal.

Progressives today are still cleaning up the mess. From healthcare to housing to climate change, we are trying to undo decades of damage caused by letting markets lead the way.

The “third way” may have sounded smart in the 1990s. But it turned out to be a dead end. If we want a better future, we need a first way—a bold, people-first path that finally puts human needs above corporate profits. ✊🌍

Footnotes

¹ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1996). Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. https://www.acf.hhs.gov
² Mauer, M. (2006). Race to Incarcerate. The New Press.
³ Public Citizen. (2003). NAFTA’s Impact on U.S. Jobs. https://www.citizen.org
⁴ Stiglitz, J. E. (2010). Freefall: America, Free Markets, and the Sinking of the World Economy. W. W. Norton & Company.

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