One Clinton advisor does not constitute "the Left".   Nor do a dozen such voices that may take issue with the former President's speech.   Politics is a spectrum, as are the left and right sides of the aisle in Congress.   That digital distinction- left and right -is artificial, defies our individual values, and does us all a disservice.

Without doubt there is a political calculation to be made.   There was a time when advocating women's suffrage would have assured political defeat.  Exactly where we citizens are collectively in our progress toward a more perfect expression of the American egalitarian ideal may not be precisely judged.   Though it would be a mistake to discount Obama's pragmatism, it would likewise be foolhardy to take differences in estimation as some profound division among significant portion of the Democrat Party.   The Party is far more centrist than the radical image painted by detractors; the Nation as a whole hasn't swung to the Left so much as it has continued a progressive arc.

The GOP's calcified position continues to tear away supporters as the Nation moves onward, a remarkable number of incumbent Republicans electing to not seek re-election.   Meanwhile, the Democratic caucus now reflects the citizenry more closely than any previous cohort from any party, ever.   While the Democrats may be experiencing a transformation, it is along the lines of an opening blossom- where as the Republican Party has entered a chrysalis.   It is unclear which portions will emerge, butterfly-like, to transform with the times, and which will be relegated to the past; the Tea Party has already waned, suffering from the limited appeal of a regressive message and the death of a primary financial backer.   We have to hope and encourage that growth, as there really is no Left and Right- only us... something made starkly clear as we gather around the Thanksgiving Day table in a few days, me thinks.