Strange disappearance of the "L" word

[TitanTiger 21,241]

The strange disappearance of the 'L' word

Larry Elder

March 4, 2004

When did Democrats stop calling themselves "liberal"?

Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., when asked whether he considered himself a liberal, treated the questioner as if she belonged to the House Committee on Un-American Activities during the McCarthy years.

Elizabeth Bumiller (New York Times): The National Journal, a respected, nonideologic (sic) publication covering Congress . . . has just rated you, Sen. Kerry, No. 1, the most liberal senator in the Senate. . . . How can you hope to win with this kind of characterization, in this climate?

John Kerry: Because it's a laughable characterization, it's absolutely the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen in my life.

Bumiller: Are you a liberal?

Kerry: . . . (L)ook, labels are so silly in American politics. . . . Do you know what they measured in that? First of all, they measured 62 votes. I voted 37 times; 25 votes they didn't even count because I wasn't there to vote for them. . . .

Secondly . . . they counted my voting against the Medicare bill, which is a terrible bill for seniors in America, they called that being liberal. Lots of conservatives voted against that. In addition, they counted my voting against George Bush's tax cut that we can't afford. I thought it was fiscally conservative to vote against George Bush's tax cut. They call it liberal.

Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio: Let me answer directly. I'm liberal. . . .

Dan Rather (CBS): Congressman, do you consider Sen. Kerry a liberal by your definition?

Kucinich: I don't think so, because he voted for the war. He voted for the Patriot Act. He supported NAFTA and the WTO. I would say that . . .

Rather: Rev. Sharpton, do you consider Sen. Kerry a liberal?

Al Sharpton: . . . I think that compared to some of us, no. I think we've made ourselves clear on that.

Oh.

The Americans for Democratic Action gives Kerry an even higher lifetime liberal rating than senior Democratic Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy. As mentioned, the National Journal rates Kerry as the chamber's most liberal member.

Still, just don't call a "liberal" a "liberal." Leftist Democratic Whip Nancy Pelosi of California also treats the "L" word as if it were toxic. She calls herself a "progressive."

"Fiscally conservative" Kerry wants to raise taxes on the rich, never mind that the top 5 percent of income-earners pay over 53 percent of income taxes, while the bottom 50 percent pay just 3.9 percent. Kerry expects to use his record as a decorated Vietnam vet to deflect the customary accusation against Democrats as "soft on defense." But, as a senator, he voted against nearly every major military munitions program, including those used in Iraq and Afghanistan.

So, how does Kerry plan to avoid the liberal label? Why, he voted for NAFTA and GATT, enacted into law by former President Bill Clinton, and supported by every living ex-president as well as every living ex-secretary of state. Yet now he criticizes NAFTA and GATT, demanding that foreign countries impose labor and environmental standards. Now follow this. Kerry opposes Bush's handling of the war in Iraq, calling it "unilateralist." But one can unilaterally tell a Third World country to enact worker protection rights or that it must impose environmental standards.

Kerry, the anti-liberal, also blasts away at what he calls "Benedict Arnold CEOs"

-- those who "outsource" jobs to other countries. Never mind that Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says free trade benefits the United States, and that, over time, American employment benefits "irrespective if we've had a trade deficit or a trade surplus, whether we've had high outsourcing or low outsourcing."

Regarding NAFTA, John Sweeney, a top trade analyst for the Heritage Foundation, found that a mere three years after NAFTA began, total trade between the U.S., Canada and Mexico had increased 43 percent, with U.S. exports to Canada increasing 33 percent, and exports to Mexico up 37 percent...

...Former President Bill Clinton, who signed NAFTA into legislation, said, "NAFTA means jobs, American jobs and good-paying American jobs. . . . NAFTA will generate these jobs by fostering an export boom to Mexico, by tearing down tariff walls..."

Already Mexican consumers buy more per capita from the United States than other consumers in other nations. . . . So when people say that this trade agreement is just about how to move jobs to Mexico so nobody can make a living, how do they explain the fact that Mexicans keep buying more products made in America every year? ...

http://www.townhall.com/columnists/larryel...e20040304.shtml

[Tigermike 3,715]

Flip Flop does not describe Mr. Kerry in this instance. I think CRAWFISH is much more appropriate. He sure backpedaled from his liberal roots doesn't he.

Many liberals call themselves progressives. When did they embrace that term. I realize progressive has been used for years, but it seems to have taken the place of liberal more and more. Maybe because a liberal has such a hard time being elected. do they think no one will notice? Or do they think that voters will perceive a progressive candidate as more moderate than a liberal candidate.

[rexbo 104]

I thought it was fiscally conservative to vote against George Bush's tax cut.

Huh??? Voting against TAX cuts or for TAX increases is NOT fiscally conservative. A fiscal conservative wants to LIMIT the amount of dollars going to the Government, not increase them. Liberals want high taxes to pay for their give away and pork barrel programs, therefore voting against a tax cut is a liberal thing, not a fiscally conservative thing. This guy continues to amaze me in his outrageous, unintelligent statements...

[Tiger Al 0]

I thought it was fiscally conservative to vote against George Bush's tax cut.

Huh??? Voting against TAX cuts or for TAX increases is NOT fiscally conservative. A fiscal conservative wants to LIMIT the amount of dollars going to the Government, not increase them. Liberals want high taxes to pay for their give away and pork barrel programs, therefore voting against a tax cut is a liberal thing, not a fiscally conservative thing. This guy continues to amaze me in his outrageous, unintelligent statements...

rexbo, is it your definition of 'fiscally conservative' to reduce revenue (tax cuts) while increasing spending (budget deficits)?

[rexbo 104]

rexbo, is it your definition of 'fiscally conservative' to reduce revenue (tax cuts) while increasing spending (budget deficits)?

No, a real fiscal conservative wants to reduce taxes AND reducing spending. I don't think our current Congress or Adminstration can be considered strong fiscal conservatives. Given the choice however of cutting taxes and not reducing spending (as we are currently), or increasing taxes and increasing spending (as Kerry will try to do), I would absolutely choose the cutting taxes plan of action. Reducing the tax burden on the economy has a much better shot of increasing the GDP and thereby actually increasing revenues to the Government.

[Tiger Al 0]

rexbo, is it your definition of 'fiscally conservative' to reduce revenue (tax cuts) while increasing spending (budget deficits)?

No, a real fiscal conservative wants to reduce taxes AND reducing spending. I don't think our current Congress or Adminstration can be considered strong fiscal conservatives. Given the choice however of cutting taxes and not reducing spending (as we are currently), or increasing taxes and increasing spending (as Kerry will try to do), I would absolutely choose the cutting taxes plan of action. Reducing the tax burden on the economy has a much better shot of increasing the GDP and thereby actually increasing revenues to the Government.

Could a viable third alternative been to have kept the taxes at their 2000 levels, maintained that current spending level and done something more constructive with the surplus?

[Tigermike 3,715]

rexbo, is it your definition of 'fiscally conservative' to reduce revenue (tax cuts) while increasing spending (budget deficits)?

No, a real fiscal conservative wants to reduce taxes AND reducing spending. I don't think our current Congress or Adminstration can be considered strong fiscal conservatives. Given the choice however of cutting taxes and not reducing spending (as we are currently), or increasing taxes and increasing spending (as Kerry will try to do), I would absolutely choose the cutting taxes plan of action. Reducing the tax burden on the economy has a much better shot of increasing the GDP and thereby actually increasing revenues to the Government.

Could a viable third alternative been to have kept the taxes at their 2000 levels, maintained that current spending level and done something more constructive with the surplus?

Assuming that were done Al, how would 9/11 of affected that surplus? How would the war on terrorism of affected that surplus?

[Tiger Al 0]

rexbo, is it your definition of 'fiscally conservative' to reduce revenue (tax cuts) while increasing spending (budget deficits)?

No, a real fiscal conservative wants to reduce taxes AND reducing spending. I don't think our current Congress or Adminstration can be considered strong fiscal conservatives. Given the choice however of cutting taxes and not reducing spending (as we are currently), or increasing taxes and increasing spending (as Kerry will try to do), I would absolutely choose the cutting taxes plan of action. Reducing the tax burden on the economy has a much better shot of increasing the GDP and thereby actually increasing revenues to the Government.

Could a viable third alternative been to have kept the taxes at their 2000 levels, maintained that current spending level and done something more constructive with the surplus?

Assuming that were done Al, how would 9/11 of affected that surplus? How would the war on terrorism of affected that surplus?

Could one or both of those things not fall into the category of "something more constructive?"

Instead, that surplus was given away and we are charging those costs to future taxpayers. Doesn't someone inevitably have to pay for it?