| For more than twenty years, the word "liberal" seemed to have disappeared from the political world. But President Obama's speech appears to have revived it--even though the word did not appear in his inaugural address. In the aftermath of his speech, "liberal" was suddenly everywhere--by the right (with derision) and by the left (with relief). Most interestingly, the word appeared prominently in the mainstream news outlets that have typically avoided using a term that had evolved from being a basic political descriptor to a loaded piece of jargon used as an epithet by Republicans as avoided as a liability by Democrats. "OBAMA OFFERS LIBERAL VISION," a New York Times banner headline blared. "For His Second Term, a Sweeping Liberal Vision," said the Los Angeles Times. "A Speech That Embraced Liberalism," added Politico. |
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