The intention of JTS was for it to be Orthodox. That is a fact. Why deny it?
CJ in America really started postwar. It rose and fell with the move to the suburbs.
It came from pursuing the promise of The American Dream. Which has nothing to do with MO or Reform.
As much as we convince ourselves otherwise, the fact is that there is more of a gap between Conservative and the other non-Orthodox groups than between Conservative and Orthodox. There is a steady grade form extreme Orthodox to Conservative. After that, there is a steep drop. Then it’s another steady grade all the way through the new category of ‘Jews with No Religion’.