Thank the Liberals*

November 12, 2012
Operating under the principle that America is, at heart, a country with a strong liberal foundation, liberal political commentator and syndicated radio show host Colmes (Red, White and Liberal) points out the many contributions of liberals that Americans enjoy to this day. Colmes cites the usual liberal litany of policies like Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and civil rights. But he also stresses the right to privacyâa right not accepted by many conservative jurists, yet acknowledged by conservative Supreme Court justice Samuel Alito in a ruling on the government's use of GPS devices to track people's movements. Colmes gleefully asserts the hypocrisy of conservatives who cry out for religious freedom while denying it to Muslims, and their questionable use of statistics (such as Newt Gingrich's claim that Obama "put" more people on food stamps than any other president, when in fact that honor belongs to George W. Bush) and forgetfulness when it comes to deficits (Reagan left office with a $3 trillion deficit; Clinton left office with a surplus). This is clearly a case of singing to the choir (though Colmes hopes to help conservatives find their "inner liberal"), but the author is entertaining and informed, and his well-reasoned treatise has the potential to start, and possibly even end, more than a few arguments.