Remember when republicans tried to turn "liberal" into a dirty word?

[fried eggs]

Many liberals backed away from the label, opting for other terms, like progressive, centrist, etc.

Regarding the so called "enthusiasm gap," I wonder if the same phenomenon might be occuring with some President Obama supporters? He's ridiculed so much from the left and the right. I suspect that a lot of people who wholeheartedly support him try to act nonchalant about their support to avoid nasty comments made by purists and/or right wingers.

[Arkansas Granny]

1. I remember that they were pretty damned good at it, too. People still say "liberal" with

a sneer like they are talking about a disease or something.

[HubertHeaver]

2. At the same time they inadvertently turned the word

"conservative" into a code word for "proud racist".

[msongs]

3. and democrats have gone along with enthusiastically. nt

[liberal_at_heart]

4. I honestly don't understand

why being liberal means you have to agree with every single thing Obama does or be silenced if you don't. Obama is a moderate democrat. I'm a liberal. If I had my way, we would have fought harder for universal healthcare. Obama didn't even put it on the table. I believe we need to be implementing education policies similar to those of the countries that are leading in education are doing. Obama has actually supported charter schools which has not proved any more effective than public schools and has actually funneled federal money away from public schools. Marijuana would not be a class 1 illegal drug. The bank regulations would have been much tougher. There are many policies on which I disagree with Obama. That being said. I also believe in compromise. I think that Obama has tried to compromise even though the republicans refuse to compromise with him. I think he has done many great things. My family has benefited greatly from the Affordable Care Act. I voted for him in '08 and will vote for him this time. I just completely reject out of hand that I must walk lock, stock, and barrel with him. I am an American and it is my right to disagree with my president.

[loves_dulcinea]

7. thank you

well spoken

[JaneyVee]

5. I wear Liberalism like a badge of honor. Have you seen the other side?!

We don't have the sheer amount of crazy they have. I let it be known I am FAR from a RWer. Identifying as a Liberal lets it be known that I am not a fan of ignorance & anti-intellectualism like the GOP is.

[kimbutgar]

6. I have a T-shirt with a large red heart and a tear coming down saying Bleeding heart liberal

I wear it proudly all the time. Brought it at the Newsmuseum in Washington DC.