To understand the favorable noises about Wal-Mart’s embrace of an employer mandate, it helps to remember the vitally important role played by Leslie Dach, a veteran Democratic fundraiser and the mastermind behind Wal-Mart’s media and government relations strategy. Lest we forget, Wal-Mart was a target of abuse among liberal Democrats as recently as the Democratic presidential primary, when then-Senator Obama represented the anti-Wal-mart forces. In 2007. Jeffrey Goldberg wrote an excellent dispatch on Dach’s early efforts.

Dach and Edelman have been innovators in their field. A press release issued in 2000 outlines a strategy that Dach has used repeatedly to good effect. “You’ve got an environmental disaster on your hands,” the document reads. “Have you consulted with Greenpeace in developing your crisis response plan? Co-opting your would-be attackers may seem counterintuitive, but it makes sense when you consider that N.G.O.s (non-governmental organizations) are trusted by the public nearly two to one to ‘do what’s right’ compared with government bodies, media organizations and corporations.” The document goes on to describe Amnesty International, the Sierra Club, and the World Wildlife Fund as “brands” that the public believes “do what’s right.”

Once again, co-option is yielding dividends.