It was a month after the democrats' November disaster, but Bill Clinton's emotions were still raw. He was communing in the Oval Office with a half-dozen moderate Democrats when one of them, Oklahoma Rep. Dave McCurdy, bluntly questioned his convictions. "People don't know who you are. Who is Bill Clinton?" said McCurdy, chairman of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council (DLC), a group Clinton once led. The president apologized. "I know I've made mistakes," he said quietly. Soon others were piling on, urging him to find new ideas and fire liberal appointees like Ira Magaziner and Joyce-lyn Elders. Finally, Clinton snapped. "I don't like being judged by your political correctness," he shouted. "I'm with you guys 85 percent of the time. You ought to be with me 85 percent of the time." A few minutes later, as the delegation filed out, Clinton's anger melted into a plea for reassurance. He collared Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieber-man and asked: "Joe, do you think I can turn it around?" Lieberman nodded.
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