Following the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday, many eyes have turned to the man seen as Chavez’s likely successor: Venezuelan Vice President Nicolas Maduro. While it’s unclear if he’ll be able to match his fallen predecessor’s global profile, Maduro is a staunch supporter of the socialist revolution championed by Chavez, calling it the “superior human state” during a recent speech. Many believe Maduro will emerge the victor of upcoming presidential elections given Hugo Chavez’s win last October. (Photo via Congress of the Republic of Peru) source
Check this out: “Progressive” is viewed more positively than “conservative” and every other political label in America.
The real question: Should we get beyond labels and start focusing on views? It’s a pitch that’s been floating around a little while.
Megyn Kelly: “Hey, Mitt, everyone else on the stage calls Obama a Socialist. Why didn’t you? Huh?! HUH?!?!”
This graph, courtesy of the New York Times, has been making the rounds today, and it’s worth examining. Note that health care reform, much-maligned by the right as deficit-killer, cost less than even the most inexpensive of George W. Bush’s policies (that policy being Medicare Part D). Note also that the Bush tax cuts alone added more to the deficit than all of President Obama’s new policies combined — and that’s including projected spending over the course of a theoretical second term. source
As a follow-up to last night’s post, it’s probably good to point out that when you’re building propaganda pieces, the tone is everything. So, showing images of supporters of socialism at a Democratic Party rally doesn’t seem so bad on its own. But when you add the Russian National Anthem like our friends at the Koch-brothers-funded Americans for Prosperity, it takes a sinister tone. We’d say “disagree with socialism, don’t demonize it,” but we know that Americans for Prosperity receive so much money that they can pretty much do whatever they want. Oh wait, according to the rules on 501(c)(3) nonprofits, they shouldn’t be making videos like this at all. source
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