It's becoming a term of common usage. And not a term of endearment mind you ...
Democrat Party (phrase)
wikipedia
[...]
Following his inauguration in 2001, President George W. Bush often used the noun-as-adjective when referring to the opposition party.[19] Likewise, it has been used by former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay,[20] House Minority Leader John Boehner,[21] Senator Charles Grassley,[22] Congressman Steve Buyer,[23] and other Republicans. [...]
Bush spoke of the "Democrat majority" in his 2007 State of the Union Address.[24] The advance copy that was given to members of Congress read "Democratic majority."[6] Democrats again complained about the use of "Democrat" as an adjective in the address. "Like nails on a chalkboard," [...]
Conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh uses the term almost exclusively when referring to Democrats.[27]
Alaska governor and Republican Party vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin used the term during the 2008 United States presidential campaign.[28][29] [...]
No wonder whenever I hear it, it always annoys the hell out of me -- it could be talking heads that hurl this intentional 2-word slight in the first place ...
Why do Republicans call their opposition "The Democrat Party" every chance they get?
Opinions vary, but it's not because they are trying to be "grammatically correct" ...
The “Ic” Factor
by Hendrik Hertzberg, NewYorker -- Aug 7, 2006
[...] The American Heritage College Dictionary, for example, defines the noun “Democratic Party” as “One of the two major US political parties, owing its origin to a split in the Democratic-Republican Party under Andrew Jackson in 1828.” (It defines “Democrat n” as “A Democratic Party member” and “Democratic adj” as “Of, relating to, or characteristic of the Democratic Party,” but gives no definition for—indeed, makes no mention of -- “Democrat Party n” or “Democrat adj”.) Other dictionaries, and reference works generally, appear to be unanimous on these points. The broader literate public also comes down on the “Democratic” side, as indicated by frequency of usage. A Google search for “Democratic Party” yields around forty million hits. “Democrat Party” fetches fewer than two million.
There’s no great mystery about the motives behind this deliberate misnaming. “Democrat Party” is a slur, or intended to be -- a handy way to express contempt. Aesthetic judgments are subjective, of course, but “Democrat Party” is jarring verging on ugly. It fairly screams “rat.” At a slightly higher level of sophistication, it’s an attempt to deny the enemy the positive connotations of its chosen appellation. [...]
[...] Luntz, who road-tested the adjectival use of “Democrat” with a focus group in 2001, has concluded that the only people who really dislike it are highly partisan adherents of the -- how you say? -- Democratic Party. “Those two letters actually do matter,” Luntz said [...]
So how should members the Democratic Party respond to these not-so-subtle put-downs from the Republican Party?
a) Nod and ignore it?
b) Confront and correct the political slur?
c) Reply in kind, with derogatory terms of our own?
So far finding a suitable naming calling label to counter with has proven challenging to say the least. Here are some of the common contenders:
Republicons
Republicant
Repugs
Rethugs
Neocons
Cons
Party of No
But none of these rubber & glue replies seem destined to rise to National prominence as the derogatory use of that label: Tax and Spend "DemocRAT Party."
Maybe we should just "let sleeping does lie"?
But in that case who are "the dogs" ... and who is doing most of the insidious lying?