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Vice President Al Gore and President Bill Clinton in 1996. (Paul J. Richards/Getty Images)

Name a successful president who takes campaign assistance from a frenemy of the United States, pretends to not know what his vice president does and does not know, and radically alters foreign policy towards the nation that helped him get into the White House.

Raise your hand if you thought of Bill Clinton.

As bad as Donald Trumps #FlynnGhazi and #Russiagate scandals are, Bill Clintons re-election in 1996 was marred by shockingly similar collusion with Chinese spies and agents. Unfortunately, Republicans attempts to hold Clinton accountable at the time failed spectacularly due to arrogance, underestimating the White House and forgetting the long game.

Donald Trump is no Slick Willy but if todays Democrats arent careful Donald Trump could escape Russiagate just as easily.

The similarities between Russiagate and Chinagate are uncanny given the scandals are almost exactly 20 years apart. February 14, 2017 the New York Times reported that Trump campaign staffers were in regular contact with Russian intelligence during the 2016 campaign. February 13, 1997 Bob Woodward (of Watergate fame) broke a Washington Post story alleging similar malfeasance from Bill Clinton and the Democrats in the 1996 campaign.

A Justice Department investigation into improper political fund-raising activities has uncovered evidence that representatives of the Peoples Republic of China sought to direct contributions from foreign sources to the Democratic National Committee before the 1996 presidential campaign, officials familiar with the inquiry said.

The day the story broke, unlike Trump, President Bill Clinton kept his cool. His first comments on the Washington Post story were to call for an investigation.

This is a serious set of questions raised here, and the first I knew about any of it was last evening, Clinton told reporters. They obviously have to be thoroughly investigated and I do not want to speculate or accuse anyone of anything. I know nothing about it other than what I heard last night.

But obviously it would be a very serious matter for the United States if any country were to attempt to funnel funds to one of our parties for any reason whatever, Clinton added.

Clinton appeared to let Republicans have their way and hearings on campaign finance were headed up by Law & Order actor, Senator Fred Thompson (R, Tenn.) and Rep. Dan Burton (R, Ind.) in the House. While Republicans beat their chests and stunted in public hearings, Clinton privately covered his tracks and paid back his Chinese benefactors.

First, the DNC gave back over 2.4 million dollars in questionable contributions before the Congressional investigations were completed in 1998. Then, from 1997 to 1999 Clinton quietly lifted the ban on American companies selling satellite and nuclear technology to China, a move that helped the Chinese military jump ahead almost 20 years. Calls by the FBI to appoint an independent counsel to investigate Chinagate were blocked by Attorney General Janet Reno.

Over the course of two years and several investigations Republicans uncovered a cast of unscrupulous Chinese Bond villains to splash over the airwaves.

You could easily switch Rex Tillerson, Paul Manafort or even General Michael Flynn for any of this trio. Vice President Al Gore, like Mike Pence today, claimed to know nothing despite being at ground zero for much of the scandal. In 1996, Gore swore he thought he was attending a community outreach luncheon at the Hsi Lai Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles. Yet somehow the DNC raised $65,000 from a bunch of monks who had taken a vow of poverty. In 1997, after being caught lying to the FBI Gore used the Iced Tea defense. Claiming that he drank so much iced tea that he was always in the bathroom when illegal fundraisers were being discussed at the White House.

In the wake of such damning evidence and overwhelming public support for the investigations why were the only indictments of the fundraisers not anyone in the White House? Why did Chinagate backfire and propel Democrats to unprecedented wins in the 1998 mid-terms? Because Republicans were more interested in smearing Clinton than protecting national security. Because Bill Clinton is a better politician than Donald Trump. Because Bill Clinton wasnt at war with his own national security agencies. And ultimately because Republicans promised a knockout and delivered a nosebleed. However there are lessons for todays Democrats in the Republican failures from 20 years ago.

Democrats should be calling for an independent investigation into Russias influence on the Trump campaign and should use that as a litmus test for any future confirmation hearings. Also, Democrats need to get behind this story. The NSA and CIA are strategically leaking information to weaken what is seen as a compromised presidency. All Democrats have to do is capitalize on the information. Democrats dont need to sell any wolf tickets, theyre being handed out for free. Trump has only been in office a month, Russiagate is a national security issue, not a springboard for 2018 and 2020. Its much easier to motivate calls to Congress when voters think theyre protecting America against corruption, instead of setting up Corey Booker or Elizabeth Warren for Iowa.

Donald Trump doesnt have the political capitol, nor the loyalty within the national security apparatus to cover himself the way that Clinton did. It is also unlikely that he will get impeached. Nevertheless Democrats, with some long game planning can hamstring his administration and translate their patriotic acts into local elections across the nation in 2017. Let this play out, strike when necessary and let Trump hang himself. The Russiagate is open but Democrats would be wise to not rush through just yet.

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Groundhog Day: Democrats Must Make Sure Russiagate Isn't Like 1996's "Chinagate" - The Root

By Mori Rothman and Yasmeen Qureshi

JEFF GREENFIELD: On a Sunday in February, more than a hundred Democrats crowd into a home in the Philadelphia suburbs to listen to their Congressman talk about the state of their party and the nation.

40-year-old Brendan Boyle is in his second term representing northeast Philadelphia and suburban Montgomery County.

Its something of a political family affair. Brendans younger brother, Kevin, is a 37-year-old State Representative in his fourth term.

If youre looking for whats troubling Democrats, this is a good place to start: Mayfair. Not the tony London neighborhood, but northeastern Philadelphia, a working class neighborhood with a tradition of big pluralities for Democrats, a tradition that was broken last fall.

Both Bill Clinton and Barack Obama easily won the Mayfair neighborhood. But Hillary Clinton carried it by a lot less, which was one factor in her narrow loss in Pennsylvania.

KEVIN BOYLE: Hillary didnt really sort of offer any economic plan that she really hammered home. Donald Trump was talking about bringing back industrial jobs to blue collar America and thats what people cared about in my area.

BRENDAN BOYLE: There is a real disconnect within the Democratic Party between the elites who make the decisions and the vast majority of people who are regular Democratic voters, and what the elites care about versus what most people here in Philadelphia who are casting Democratic ballots care about.

KEVIN BOYLE: The hardcore social left are saying we cant reach out to white working class voters, because somehow that would be racist. I think that is absolutely crazy to say that, because a progressive economic platform could unify workers, it could unify white workers with Latino workers, with African American workers, with Asian workers. Because at the end of the day what will drive the Democratic Party back into the majority is when Joe Smith in northeast Philadelphia, who voted for Barack Obama twice but then voted for Donald Trump in this last election, when he makes his determination as to who hes going to vote for, to me it always comes down to economics.

JEFF GREENFIELD: Glenn Clark is one of those Obama voters who went for Trump. Hes a longtime firefighter and the co-owner of this bar, Pub 36.

GLENN CLARKE: This is working class neighborhood, blue collar, more or less city employees.

JEFF GREENFIELD: So youre talking cops, firefighters, civil servants.

GLENN CLARKE: Yes.

JEFF GREENFIELD: Add a good number of construction and factory workers, and you have a neighborhood, where, like many around the country, a dramatic loss of votes cost the Democrats dearly.

So explain to me why a Democrat from a blue collar Philadelphia neighborhood voted for Donald Trump?

GLENN CLARKE: Served in the Navy, could not support Hillary, because of Benghazi, didnt trust her. Also dont trust a lot of the politicians today. Donald Trump has four years as a non-politician to make a difference.

JEFF GREENFIELD: For Brendan and Kevin Boyle, Trumps showing is a political threat and a personal wound.

BRENDAN BOYLE: Our dad came as an immigrant from Ireland when he was 19. He spent a lot of time cutting lawns and trying to get into a union. Eventually he was able to do that, was a warehouseman for Acme Markets for 25 years.

JEFF GREENFIELD: That that kind of security of union jobs and the kind of comfort that brought, thats not around much anymore much less, much less around. Is that an accurate perception?

BRENDAN BOYLE: Yes, thats completely accurate. Actually people feel more anxious than ever before and even worse than that is theyre really questioning whether the American dream still exists.

JEFF GREENFIELD: One of the symbols of the jobs that arent around anymore is the Nabisco plant

KEVIN BOYLE: You used to actually be able to smell the cookies being made where were sitting right now, we were that close.

BRENDAN BOYLE: So that plant existed for generations and was profitable. For a company that was profitable, still employed 320 people, and these were not minimum wage jobs. These were good family sustaining jobs. Well, it turns out Nabisco ends up getting bought by a different company. They decide that theyre going to layoff completely close the plant even though its profitable, because theyre building a brand new one in Monterrey, Mexico, where they can employ people for far less.

JEFF GREENFIELD: And which presidential candidate called out Nabisco for closing multiple plants?

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Nabisco closes a plant, they just announced a couple of days ago, in Chicago, and theyre moving the plant to Mexico!

JEFF GREENFIELD: To help reestablish the partys connection with working class voters. Brendan started the Blue Collar Caucus in Washington, now with 26 members, to push for higher wages and new manufacturing jobs.

HOLLY OTTERBEIN: They rail against trade deals, they have proposed bills that would make college free for students that get at least a 3.0 GPA

JEFF GREENFIELD: Holly Otterbein profiled the Boyle brothers for Philadelphia Magazine.

HOLLY OTTERBEIN: At the same time, there are parts of the Boyle brothers agenda that disappoints progressives in the party. In the past, Brendan has voted for pro-life legislation, although now hes been endorsed by Planned Parenthood and has kind of changed his mind on that issue. So that raises the question that I think some progressives in the party have, which is that If we try to go more aggressively for the white working class, do we have to sacrifice these things that are very important to the party? But a lot of Democrats are not convinced the party can or should rebuild its strength with the white working class. At last years national convention in Philadelphia, the party was more ethnically diverse than ever before, and social issues like abortion, gay rights, and gun control were front and center.

JEFF GREENFIELD: Joe DeFelice chairs Philadelphias Republican Party.

JOE DEFELICE: Trump just found a way to connect with them, and he was saying things that they believed in. And its strange to think right that a billionaire from New York City can connect with, you know, working class people in northeast Philadelphia. I mean being from New York, spending time in Philadelphia. He understands the neighborhoods, understands the people here.

JEFF GREENFIELD: DeFelice says the leftward drift of Democrats helped push working class voters into Trumps camp.

JOE DEFELICE: Look, Im not going to tell them how to do their jobs, Im a, Im actually happy that theyre going further and further to the left, makes my job a little bit easier // But if they continue to push like some of these leftist policies with regards to immigration or whatever, I think you know, were going to continue to keep those people.

JEFF GREENFIELD: Which is why the Boyles say Democrats need to be open to more moderate approaches on social issues.

BRENDAN BOYLE: We cant end up becoming the worst caricature that talk radio on the right says we are.

KEVIN BOYLE: I dont think theres any question that the Democratic Party is a pro-choice party, and well always support a womans right to choose, and its part of our party platform and should certainly stay that way. With that said, in Appalachia, the areas where Donald Trump was winning two to one, if we were running, or if we were putting litmus tests on the sort of candidates that we were recruiting. I think wed find it very challenging to keep those seats or to win those seats.

BRENDAN BOYLE: Now, Im clearly for stronger gun regulations. I sat in, participated in the sit-in with John Lewis on the House floor for 25 hours after the Orlando massacre, because I feel so strongly about the gun issue. That said, if we have that as a litmus test, were already in the deepest minority since 1928, well be even further in the minority.

JEFF GREENFIELD: Walking that tightrope is no easy challenge, especially when voters like Glenn Clarke see a potential champion in President Trump.

GLENN CLARKE: He spoke of jobs. He spoke of safety, security. He wants to make America great again. And anybody thats hoping that he fails cant truly call themselves an American.

JEFF GREENFIELD: So how do you convince skeptical white working class folks that, that they really ought to take this to heart.

KEVIN BOYLE: I think its about authenticity. When were the party of the little guy, and I know that sounds simplistic, but when people internalize that, I think that we do much better in elections, and thats what we have to be true to.

BRENDAN BOYLE: I really believe our party is at its best when were the Robert Kennedy coalition, that we are the party of blue collar workers, of all races, of all backgrounds, that we are the party of those who were left out and deeply believe in the American dream and want to achieve it. That is who the Democratic Party is in our soul, that is the best to win elections, but its also the best to govern. If were going to achieve progress in these areas, we need to it needs to be everyone and that includes white working class voters.

Read more here:
Democrats aim to reclaim the working class vote - PBS NewsHour

New York Times

Democratic Member to Quit Election Commission, Setting Up ... New York Times Ann M. Ravel has said she will cut short her term on the Federal Election Commission because of continued gridlock between the panel's three Democrats and ... Departing the Federal Election Commission MediumMedium all 18 news articles »

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Democratic Member to Quit Election Commission, Setting Up ... - New York Times

Erin Kelly, Deirdre Shesgreen, USA TODAY Published 11:48 a.m. ET Feb. 15, 2017 | Updated 7:01 p.m. ET Feb. 15, 2017

While introducing bipartisan legislation that would give Congress the ability to review any changes to sanctions on Russia, House Democrats spoke out against alleged ties between the Trump administration and Russia. (Feb. 15) AP

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer meets with reporters on Capitol Hill on Feb. 14, 2017.(Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP)

Democrats in Congress raced to every open microphone Wednesdayto demand a broad and independent investigation of Russian ties to Donald Trump's presidential campaign and the president's handling of information about his subordinates' contacts with Russia.

Democratic leaders said National Security Adviser Michael Flynn's resignation over his pre-inauguration telephone calls with the Russian ambassador and news reports indicatingadditional contacts between Trump's camp and Russian intelligence agents have raised a spate of new questions requiringan independent probe.

"Every White House press briefing and early morning tweet seemingly introduces new inconsistencies and contradictions that demand a full accounting," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on the Senate floor Wednesday. "Every report that suggests deeper ties between the Trump campaign and the Russian government needs to be followed up on and verified."

Read more:

White House under siege over probe into Russian contacts with Trump campaign

Plenty of unanswered questions about Michael Flynn's contacts with Russia

Donald Trump's ties to Russia go back 30 years

Senate Democrats convened an "emergency" meeting of their caucus on Wednesday to discuss their strategy for advancing investigations.

Immediately following that meeting, Schumer said Democrats had agreed on three principles to guide investigations:

"I've been in Congress for a long time; I've never seen anything like this," Schumer told reporters. "These reports and revelations should not pit the two parties against one another. They should unite the parties in pursuit of the full truth. We are Americans before we are Democrats or Republicans. Nothing less than our system of checks and balances, democratic institutions, the rule of law and our national security is at stake."

A group of 11 Democratic senators, led by Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, called for the appointment of an independent special counsel to investigate Flynn's contacts with Russia.

"An independent investigation is now necessary to determine what General Flynn did, who knew about it, and when,"the senators wrote in a Wednesday letter to Sessions. "To maintain the confidence, credibility and impartiality of the Department of Justice, we urge you to immediately appoint an independent Special Counsel to investigate collusion with the Russian government by General Flynn and other Trump campaign, transition, and Administrative officials."

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., speaks with reporters on Feb. 8, 2017.(Photo: Michael Reynolds, European Pressphoto Agency)

In a rare bipartisan approach to the issue, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the senior Democrat on the panel, wrote a joint letter to Sessions and to FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday requesting a Justice Department briefing and documents about the events that led to Flynn's resignation.

Specifically, the two senators are seeking details of Flynns reported communications with Russian officials, the Justice Departments response, and potential leaks of classified material. They asked for a briefing for committee members during the week of Feb. 27.

"We request that individuals with specific knowledge of these issues from both the FBI and Justice Department brief committee members and staff," the senators wrote. "We similarly request copies of the transcripts of Mr. Flynn's intercepted calls and the FBI report summarizing the intercepted calls referenced in the media. We anticipate that some of these documents may be classified, some may not, and others may contain both classified and unclassified information."

Feinsteinsaid she is satisfied for now that the investigation can be handled by the Judiciary and Intelligence committees.

I think we just need to move forward very aggressively," she said.

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., a member of the Intelligence Committee, said he supports any and all investigations into the matter. The Intelligence Committee is "thick and heavy" into its own investigation, he said, and he hopes the panel will call Flynn, Manafortand othersto testify in public sessions if possible.

"Lets bring them all in, Manchin said. Were very much concerned about being as public as we can up to the secure level."

Manchin said the panel's chairman, Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., is on board with conducting the probe "in the most open light that we can."

Read more:

The first 100 days of the Trump presidency

Trump, Russia and Flynn: A timeline of key events

Who's who with Trump and Russia? A look at the key players

Most Republicans on Tuesday said they supported investigating Flynn's contacts with Russia, but they suggested it could be handled by the House and Senate intelligence committees, whichare already probing Russian attempts to interfere in the election last year.

But Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told ABC News on Wednesday, If there are contacts between Trump officials and Russian intelligence operatives during the campaign, we need a joint select committee in Congress to get to the bottom of it and also look at Trump's business ties to Russia if it is true.

Graham said there should be a preliminary investigation first to make sure there is credibility to the allegations of repeated contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian intelligence operatives. If they are credible, Graham said, a joint select committee would be the best way to investigate.

Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Congress needed to find a non-hysterical but sobering way to get to the bottom of the allegations.

He said the constant dribble of damaging news about Trump and Russia was interfering with Congress ability to focus on urgent policy matters.

Its obviously disruptive to governing, Corker said. We need to figure out way to better handle this and I dont know what the answer is.

Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn. arrives on Capitol Hill on Feb. 9, 2017, for the committee's hearing about the future of U.S. relations with Russia.(Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, AP)

He said the Senate Intelligence Committee probe might be the best way for that to happen and expressed concern that an independent probe would simply drag the process out.

The last independent probe was a 2 year process, Corker said, referring to the commission created to probe the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Im not sure thats what the American people would sign up for."

Intelligence agencies announced last year that Russia was behind the hacking of Democratic Party email accountsin an attempt to undermine the presidential election.

Top House Democrats sent a letter Wednesday to White House Counsel Donald McGahn asking a series of questions about his office's review of Flynn's contacts withRussian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. The White House has indicated that Trump was alerted several weeks ago that Flynn had not accurately described the content of those calls, yet Flynn continued to serve while the counsel's office reviewed whether he had broken any laws by discussing U.S. sanctions with Kislyak.

The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday adopted a non-binding list of oversight activities for the year, saying the committee will continue to conduct oversight into allegations of misconduct by executive branch officials including any evidence that classified material had been leaked. The Republican majority on the committee rejected Democratic efforts to specifically promise an investigation of Flynn, but did agree that the committee can investigate any allegations of improper interference with American institutions or elections.

In a press conference Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said Flynn was "a wonderful man" who had been mistreated by "criminal" leaks from intelligence agencies.

Contributing: Paul Singer, Herb Jackson and Nicole Gaudiano

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Democrats press for Trump-Russia probes on all fronts

Guy Cecil 5:05 a.m. ET Feb. 15, 2017

Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in November.(Photo: Jack Gruber, USA TODAY)

In the months since President Trump's victory, Democrats have been debating whether we must focus onourparty's demographically diverse base or redirect our attention tothe white, working-class voters whodefected in historic numbers to Donald Trump.

This is a false choice. To be successful in 2017, 2018 and beyond, Democrats need to persuade and motivate all of these voters. And there is early evidence that the twogroups share enough concerns about their economic futures and the risks of the Trump presidency that Democrats can forge a unifying message and reassemble a winning electoral coalition..

Over the last month, Priorities USA commissioned an extended survey of two key categories of voters whose behavior was decisive in the 2016 election. The first was "swing" voters specifically, Trump supporters who had previously voted for Barack Obama at least once. The second group consisted of traditional Democratic voters,largelyAfrican Americans and Millennials,who simply failed to show up this time.

As might be expected, the latter group of voters was most surprised by Trumps victory and most vocal in its fear about what Trumps presidency will bring. But the swing voter group had serious concerns, too. Fully half of these voters said that they voted for Trump with reservations. Of these soft Trump supporters, only 35% have confidence he will be a good president.

The basis for concern among these two sets of voters was strikingly similar. Both groups said they are worried that Trumps temperament will get us into a war. Both are very concerned that he might make cuts to important government programs, including Medicare and Medicaid.

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Most importantly, both groups are concerned that a Trump-Republican agenda may end up favoring the wealthy, rather than people like them.

These voters swing voters and turnout targets alike are deeply concerned about their economic situation. They cite, for instance, how their income is falling behind the cost of living. As they continue to struggle, they have serious questions about whether the establishment, including the Democratic Party, will do anything to improve their lives.

But these voters are still not convinced Trump will make good on his promises to prioritize the working and middle class. They fear Trump and the Republicans will put the interests of wealthy Americans and corporate executives first. Soft Obama-Trump voters even raised concerns about the proposed tax on imports that would raise the costs of products that Americans buy.

All of this leaves an opening for Democrats to re-establish themselves as the party of the working and middle class. To capitalize on this, Democrats should work to position themselves against the agenda Republicans in Congress are set to advance. This means fighting to protect Medicare and Social Security from privatization efforts, and fighting for tax reform that prioritizes the middle class, rather than the wealthiest.

Democrats should also lean into infrastructure investmentand paid leave for new parents. Both groups of voters we analyzed named these as among the policies they most want to see enacted. Both were Trump campaign promises, so spotlighting Republican inaction on these issues presents another opportunity to show how Trump is betraying these voters.

Nor shouldDemocrats shy away from talking about the Republican bind on the Affordable Care Act. Repealing the law with no replacement at the ready is a real concern. Ensuring all Americans have access to affordable insurance is a top priority of these voters, and nearly half (46%) of Obama-Trump voters with mixed feelings say repealing Obamacare without a replacement in place is a major concern about Trump.

Trump delivers the death blow to ethics: Ross K. Baker

POLICING THE USA:Alook atrace, justice, media

Of course, identifying a message that resonates with these voters is only part of our challenge. We must also have the discipline and commit the resources to wage sustained persuasion and turnout efforts that reach voters where they live. That is harder than ever in a digital age, whenmore and more of these swing voters rely on social media for their news and can curate their feeds in ways that create an echo-chamber effect. We must find ways to break through these information filters.

Ultimately, our politics should be about addition and inclusion. We can'ttreat voters as a series of demographic boxes to check three months before the next election.

In 2017 and 2018, Democrats face an electoral map ofchallenges in red-state Senate contestslikeNorth Dakota, Missouri and Indiana, as well as enormous opportunities in gubernatorial and state legislative races. We must be fully committedto comprehensive campaigns that reach out to working and middle class families, whether they are traditional swing voters or part of the Democratic base. Our success depends on both groups. And more important, the heart and soul of our party requires both.

Guy Cecil is chairman ofPriorities USA.

You can readdiverse opinions from ourBoard of Contributorsand other writers ontheOpinion front page,on Twitter@USATOpinionand in our dailyOpinion newsletter.To submit a letter, comment or column, check oursubmission guidelines.

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Democrats have a viable path forward: Guy Cecil