Last week on Meet The Press, Chuck Todd featured Senator Bernie Sanders on his Meet the Candidates series. This is wonderful as Bernie is the right man for the right time. The rub is that he was introduced as a Democratic Socialist which was boldly displayed (see picture above). As we know, the word Socialist is toxic in America to most Americans. Most Americans would rather be stricken with the Ebola virus than call themselves Socialists. I love the fact that the great Senator from Vermont is a Democratic Socialist as I understand what that is; most people do not. This was no accident that Todd chose to flash Democratic Socialist across the tv screen -- he could have introduced him as the generic Independent from Vermont. The term Independent is a safe and complimentary word in today's politics. But no, Todd went with Socialist. Given this is Bernie's introduction to America on Meet the Press, as most people do not know him, the visual Todd chose was destructive to Bernie's image.
Ok, Todd called Bernie a Democratic Socialist and he is one. But, will he do the same to his Republican guests Rand Paul and Paul Ryan? Will he call them Radical Republicans or Extremist Republicans for their idolization of Ayn Rand and her political beliefs?
Todd simply could have called Bernie Sanders an Independent that will caucus with the Democrats, but he went much further than that. He expanded on the definition of what Bernie is (a Socialist) which happens to be a negative term for most in America. Will Todd go beyond calling Rand Paul and Paul Ryan simply Conservatives and tie them to their extreme beliefs? Will Todd call them out?
Sadly, even though socialism has done wonderful things for our country, it has been defined negatively by the media. Socialism has been demonized in spite of all the good it does, while the real demon lies in Republican politics (and few have the guts to go there).
It is about time we define some Republicans as EXTREMISTS. Many current Republicans are not moderate-styled Eisenhower Republicans, so let's not pretend they are. If the generic term of Democrat or Independent did not suffice according to Todd, then the generic term Republican or Conservative should not suffice either when introducing the Rand worshippers. If he is going to call out Bernie as an "extremist" in many people's eyes (even though there is nothing extreme about social security, Medicare, minimum wage, etc.), then he better do that to the other side. Any politician (Paul Ryan) that hands out Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged to his staff, should be called out for the extremist that he is. Rand Paul admits his admiration for Ayn Rand, so he should be called out, too.
If talking heads really want to do well for this country, they will stop demonizing socialism and start demonizing extreme radical-right-wingers who are dead set on destroying the middle-class. We better see an image like the one above that reads "Radical Republican" or "Extremist Republican" alongside Paul Ryan or Rand Paul's face -- I challenge them to be fair and balanced. What is more important to the lives of working-class Americans: The fact that Bernie Sanders is a Democratic Socialsit or the fact that Paul Ryan and Rand Paul are Ayn Rand Capitalists? Words matter...
Peace.