Raising Taxes Isn't “Left-Wing Radical”!

Since the moment I began researching my book “Hostile Takeover” at the end of George W. Bush’s first term, I’ve been consumed with how America’s political vernacular is subtly skewed to prefer certain legislative outcomes and preclude others. We see it in the debate over social programs, where those committed to cutting Social Security are not only portrayed as working to strengthen the program, but also billed as “moderates” despite their position on the decidedly radical, not-moderate outskirts of public opinion. We see it in how President Obama’s inaugural speech is depicted as advocating a “leftist” agenda, despite polls showing that nearly every policy he advocated is supported by a majority of all Americans — not just those on the left. And, no doubt, we see it in how the Obama administration labels its liberal critics “fringe” even though those critics who are advocating policies in the mainstream center of public opinion.