and FOX News have made me far more liberal and willing to identify as such the older I get. I'm sure I'm not the only one.

I'm a liberal.

Tears ran down my spine
I cried when they shot Mr. Kennedy
As though I'd lost a father of mine
But Malcolm X got what was coming
He got what he asked for this time
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

I go to civil rights rallies
And I put down the old D.A.R.
I love Harry and Sidney and Sammy
I hope every colored boy becomes a star
But don't talk about revolution
That's going a little bit too far
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

I cheered when Humphrey was chosen
My faith in the system restored
I'm glad the commies were thrown out
of the A.F.L. C.I.O. board
I love Puerto Ricans and Negros
as long as they don't move next door
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

The people of old Mississippi
Should all hang their heads in shame
I can't understand how their minds work
What's the matter don't they watch Les Crain?
But if you ask me to bus my children
I hope the cops take down your name
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

I read New republic and Nation
I've learned to take every view
You know, I've memorized Lerner and Golden
I feel like I'm almost a Jew
But when it comes to times like Korea
There's no one more red, white and blue
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

I vote for the democratic party
They want the U.N. to be strong
I go to all the Pete Seeger concerts
He sure gets me singing those songs
I'll send all the money you ask for
But don't ask me to come on along
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

Once I was young and impulsive
I wore every conceivable pin
Even went to the socialist meetings
Learned all the old union hymns
But I've grown older and wiser
And that's why I'm turning you in
So love me, love me, love me, I'm a liberal

Phil Ochs.

This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates
This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates
This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates
This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates
This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates

Sadly, "should" is a future word......not an "is"

I know what I want for Christmas this year, a full slate of solidly Democratic candidates that I can joyfully work for.

Because if you didn't, please be sure to remind that "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates". Because "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" is too good and too clear and too simple a message to pass up. I certainly think "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" is good and clear and simple and well worthy of being Said, READ, and SPREAD! But, dixiegrrrrl, if you forget to message "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" then I'll be happy to remind you to share "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates". And I will do likewise with "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" to serve as your backup.

Cuz "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" really is a message worth repeating.

OH SHIT, my apologies! I think I talked so much about "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" that I forgot to formally repeat "This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates" here, myself. Formally! And so:

"This should be a wake up call to Democratic candidates".

"... to kind of catapult the propaganda..."

Rinse, repeat....

you'll see that number go even higher.

Socialists for example, aren't liberal, but ARE progressive. I do agree that some liberals hide behind the term "progressive". It's a habit they got into in the 80s, 90s, and early Aughts.

I've also always contended that if you look at positions on ISSUES, people come down on the left side of the equation. That's the reason I hate those "self identification" polls like this. If you polled by issues a solid majority of people come down on the side of the left.

But they sure vote conservative at every opportunity. Maybe they should walk the walk more and talk the talk when it counts, like midterm elections.

From a Proud Liberal.

Thanks for posting!

Really, that's a recipe either party could use to win. The American public wants bold ideas, period. It just so happens that it's generally the Left that comes up with them. The Right usually only uses deregulation and tax cuts as solutions. People are tired of it.

It's in their nature to move ploddingly, if at all

nt

Advertising now they will vote to screw workers.

Between "they don't vote" and "they don't vote for crap conservadems."

it's not as easy to motivate people to vote AGAINST repukes

Where were they in the midterms? They need to realize that only voting in a presidential race is extremely detrimental to democratic governance and promotion and enactment of democratic/liberal policies.

comprise the solid base of the party, but they don't comprise the fat wallet of the party.

I think, sometimes, that the Third Way are Republican moles. Right down to their Reaganomics.

What do they mean by liberal? Are they essentially libertarians, i.e. liberal as long as it's not economics? Are they closer to the traditional populist position, lean conservative on social issues but liberal on economics? Liberal on everything?

I only ask because a lot of these people defined themselves as moderate or conservative not too long ago. I'd be curious exactly where their liberalism lies.

Unfortunately the electorate is constantly being misled and lied to.

The owners of this nation are spending hundreds of millions to convince the voter that they are not liberal.

Just look at the anti-liberal rhetoric coming from the far right (Fox "News", Limbaugh, Beck etc).

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almost all social issues - other than they may be an issue or two, ie anti weed because they have a drug addict relative.

They're also usually liberal on most fiscal issues, generally they're just "don't raise MY taxes"

Leaving our children a hospitable and sustainable ecosystem = Far left wacko.
Protecting the rights of labor, the disabled and minorities = Far left wacko.
No wars of aggression = Far left wacko.
No torture = Far left wacko.
Providing for the general welfare = Far left wacko.

Some folks can remember when the mainstream Democratic electorate was somewhere between openly racist and merely bigoted (remember that the Republican "Southern Strategy" converted southern Democrats), plus anti-abortion, homophobic, religiously conservative, mildly misogynistic and Democratic presidents and members of Congress had no qualms about being lifetime NRA members (however, the NRA was not nuts back then). You have no freaking idea of the bizarro world of a few generations ago...

Further reductions in taxes with particular consideration for low and middle income families.

The Federal minimum wage has been raised for more than 2 million workers. Social Security has been extended to an additional 10 million workers and the benefits raised for 6.5 million.

Continue and further perfect its programs of assistance to the millions of workers with special employment problems, such as older workers, handicapped workers, members of minority groups, and migratory workers;

Continue to fight for the elimination of discrimination in employment because of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry or sex;

Provide assistance to improve the economic conditions of areas faced with persistent and substantial unemployment;

Supports an immigration policy which is in keeping with the traditions of America in providing a haven for oppressed peoples, and which is based on equality of treatment, freedom from implications of discrimination between racial, nationality and religious groups,

We shall continue vigorously to support the United Nations.

- from the Republican Party platform of 1956

Of course, these were also the guys who brought us McCarthyism and the aforementioned Southern Strategy, so like I said, bizarro. I half expect historical pictures to show everyone wearing "evil twin" goatees.

pro immigration, tax the rich = we win.

We pay for these kinds of services and citizenship benefits through the "tax" of reduced wages and giving up OUR share of the economic gains of the last 30 years. THOSE are the kinds of things Americans work and pay and sacrifice for -- security and freedom -- and yet we're simply not getting them.

====================

... on Election Day.



===============================

,said JFK. If you haven't heard this, prepare to be as shocked that this guy ever got elected, as that FDR did.

Here's the quote I paraphrased-

You could people that call themselves conservatives some really mean questions but to the point

Should people go to jail and or be executed for adultry?

Should we take the right to drive and vote away from women?

Do men really deserve to be paid more for the same job as a woman, for that matter shouldn't women be staying home barefoot and pregnant?

Would you like to go back the standard 60 hour work week where families were still well below the poverty line?

Do you think ending slavery was a mistake?

Was life better pre-civil rights?

Should women who have had abortions face criminal charges? The doctor that performed them? What if her life was in danger? What if the woman will end up on some form of public assistance for the rest of her life?

I am sure there are dozens of other questions you could ask a person. But surprisingly enough most people will not be willing to go to jail over committing adultry and a whole lot of so called conservatives to that.

Come to the light, bring Bubba with you. Third Way is no way to be a liberal.

May this trend continue! Liberals rule!

Democratic candidates should embrace populist economic liberalism. Double taxes on the top 5%. Double the capital gains tax. Fight for a living wage in your community that is higher than the federal minimum wage and adjusts with inflation. Support unions and labor.

Distinguish yourselves from republicans. Run on an economic bill of rights. Make your message simple. Repeat it over and over. Don't say you'll accomplish all your goals. Say what your goals are and that you'll fight for them. Declare that you're not bought off by big corporate special interests. That you'll be transparent in who you meet with while in office. Read books on Huey Long, FDR, Teddy Roosevelt, Malcolm X, Shirley Chisholm, Robert Kennedy, George McGovern, Elizabeth Warren. Adopt their love of working people. And their hatred of those who rob them blind.

As a democratic socialist, I favor cutting the military budget in half, removing profit from health care, breaking up big banks, reducing the number of people in prison by half, free higher education, 80% marginal tax rates on income over $5 million. Get special interest money out of Congress. Make all voting days holidays. Guaranteed minimum income. And here's an idea whose time has come in our country - a limit on maximum wealth.

I vote for the most progressive candidate on every ballot. I support President Obama. Not on every issue. But I respect and admire him. He's a positive role model for me. I'm further to his left. I'm to the left of pretty much everyone in Congress. In western Europe they would call me a moderate, lol.

We on the left have a tremendous opportunity to speak clearly about how our policies benefit most Americans regardless of how they may identify politically. I think we do that by remaining positive.

All good things take time and hard work and a lot of dialogue. I don't subscribe to the theory that some here seem to have, that relentlessly attacking democrats is the way to go. Show the way forward so that people can see it benefits them and their brothers and sisters.

If you're young and progressive, consider running for office. We need bold bright young idealistic energetic people on every ballot involved in all local state and federal government. You may be surprised, and actually win!

TL, DR: Go left and win.

Considering your headline, I think the title of my post qualifies as dissonance.

You paying attention Elizabeth?

And it shows. It's a center right party. Good news overall, but just a reminder of how incredibly conservative the U.S. is.

Is that not the polling outfit that had Romney up by 8 pts and surging the day before the last Presidential election? LMAO

Reagan angered people about welfare queens. Bush's promised that everyone could have a house. Since the end of WWII, conservatives have warned that every social program that might lift the boats of all Americans was "Communist."

Problem is that Communism is all but extinct, and conservatism did not deliver the prosperity for the middle class that it promised.

And I have a funny feeling that the dishonesty of the conservative movement is going to become very apparent over the next two years.

I predict that the liberal movement will gain steam as more and more Americans recognize that we can work together toward building a better, more harmonious, more prosperous America without submitting ourselves to any cold, rigid ideology whether it be conservatism or Communism. Liberalism means trying to find the smartest policies to solve problems, testing them, ending those that don't work and benefiting as a nation from those that do. It's not rigid or cold. It's about being humans together.

The reliance of some Dems. on voters from demographics is overconfident. Massive resources on the right can derail this, namely unlimited money and control of the media. Lots of work to do.