White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs laughed when asked about a Republican effort to rename the Democratic Party. Some members of the RNC are proposing to rename their opposition the "Democrat Socialist Party."
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White House laughs at GOP idea to call Democrats “Socialists”
By Jimmy Orr | 05.15.09
Well, add one more person to the list of people laughing at an effort in the Republican Party to rename their opposition the “Democrat Socialist Party.”
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was asked about the rebranding effort today in his press briefing.
“Given the challenges that they face, that’s exactly the way I would be using my time too,” he said chuckling.
Agenda
As we explained yesterday, one of the agenda items at a special meeting of the Republican National Committee next week is to formally rename the Democratic Party. Much like the successful effort to rename French fries “Freedom fries.”
If the resolution passes, it effectively does nothing — except create great enjoyment at MSNBC. It has no power.
According to the resolution, it calls “… on the Democratic Party to be truthful and honest with the American people by acknowledging that they have evolved from a party of tax and spend to a party of tax and nationalize and, therefore, should agree to rename themselves the Democrat Socialist Party.”
That’ll happen.
Offended
There is one group offended by the resolution. The Socialists.
“It’s objectionable,” Frank Llewellyn told the Washington Independent, “because they’re giving socialism a bad name by associating it with the Democrats, who are the second-most capitalist party in the world. The election of this president, sadly, hasn’t changed that.”
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2. moderate man | 05.15.09
Well if the republicans want to rename the democratic party Socialist they should rename themselves the Grand Old Authoritarian Party (the patriot act, water boarding, etc.)
People need to realize that the far right is just as bad as the far left. Both lead to destruction.
Were Jesus on earth today he would be labeled a radical bleeding heart liberal and the Sanhedrin would be the Republican party with Rush Limbaugh as Caiaphas.
3. Pedro | 05.15.09
LMAO!
Why? Doesn’t the Republicans have something better to do? I mean, if they want to do that, then they should change their name to “Rich People who are afraid of change and diversity party”. “Rich People’s Party” for short.
4. Michael | 05.15.09
GOP hysteria is amazing. Now they pulled Gingrich up and hes foaming at the mouth too. Guess it’s too much to expect them to admit they were ever wrong about anything, they just will keep lying, stonewalling, and distorting.
6. Govan10 | 05.15.09
Perhaps the Republican Party should rebrand themselves as the Southern Baptist Party, to clarify their own image.
7. basementfrog | 05.15.09
Well, I changed my mind.
Let’s call the republican party the party of the anti-christ.
Or better still, The Party of the Nazi Anti-christ.
I like it.
8. StPeteSue | 05.15.09
No, let’s call them “Nazi Rich People-Who-Are-Afraid-Of-Change-And-Diversity”
9. basementfrog | 05.15.09
OK
for all christian and progressives, lets start calling the republicans the Party of the Rich Nazi Anti-christ.
10. Lewis | 05.15.09
While this is largely a publicity stunt, there is some basis for the re-defining of the democrat party. The democrat party HAS shifted to the left. JFK, Scoop Jackson, Harry Truman would barely recognize the party. The current democrat party has NO military hawks, has NO fiscal/budget hawks, has general disdane for small business, is beholden to the unions, and is a bastion for secular humanist. The democrats want the US to turn into Western Europe. We should go ahead and use the political party names of Western Europe. Social Democrats, Leftist, and Green for the current democrats. Conservatives for the majority of the republicans. Then some splinter parties that would have libertarians who would limit government, promote individual rights, but would be out of step with social conservatives.
The democrat party of 25 years ago is not the same as the current version of the party. What you call it, is a matter for debate and how honest the media will be.
12. Dave | 05.15.09
Haw-haw Lewis, you just proved the point made previously. You can’t handle change! The Republican party has also changed a lot, you think Abe Lincoln or Teddy Roosevelt would recognize it? Naw… you’re just a bunch of sticks in the mud at this point, and the tide is comin’ in. Tying to use old labels on an evolving political landscape is really just a tool for name-callers who know they can’t win the argument on logical grounds.
13. Bender | 05.15.09
To Lewis: You are right, the Democrat party has changed. It has evolved with the majority of the population of the country. The Republic party has not. Which one is outdated and irrelevant? In other words, who cares what the party was 25 years ago.
14. Bill | 05.15.09
To Lewis’s point about dems shifting left, I couldn’t disagree more. Both parties have shifted right on the structural issues that affect the shape of society’s distribution of goods. Fact is that Eisenhower and Nixon were to the left of many current Democrats. Eisenhower preserved and expanded the New Deal and warned us about the danger of the military industrial complex. Nixon considered a gauranteed income plan and engaged in wage and price-fixing. You may be confusing social change like increasing tolerance for gays as a sign of Left/Right drift. Those issues are not the important ones in terms of what living conditions our citizens will enjoy (or endure). On the important issues both parties have moved right, and it has been for the worse. If only we could get a president as liberal as Eisenhower(R) we could restore the social safety net and balance the budget.
15. Bill Sturgis | 05.15.09
Real simple… The GOP becomes the Neocon party. Ultra conservative, close minded, fearful of change, claim to be Christian but obviously read a different Bible, really don’t care about anyone but themselves, assume the rest of us are all ignorant fools and we should just line up and cave in to their all powerful BS. Yep, that about sums it up.
16. Rob | 05.15.09
Haha at people calling the republican party authoritarian. A little self reflection by democrats would reveal that their policies are infact more attuned to fascism and authoritarian styles of government through government regulation, taxation and control.
17. Dean | 05.15.09
So instead of providing alternative ideas and solutions to today’s problems, the gop resorts to wasting their time on THIS? And they wonder why they are sitting on the side lines.
A perfect icon for the gop is a crotchety old man who sits in the corner grumbling and drooling all over himself.
18. Zach | 05.15.09
Rob, you seem to be leaving out the fact that Democrat taxing policy involves taxing everyone, not just the people that can’t afford it. GOP policy says, “Don’t tax the rich! $100,000 in taxes would REALLY hurt their billion-dollar bank accounts! Oh, and don’t ever tax when we’re in trillions of dollars of debt that we caused when we had a surplus!”
19. poj | 05.15.09
Absolutely agree with Rob…if you all want to drive the same car and make the same money and have no freedom…keep Obama in office
20. Common Sense | 05.15.09
Democrats , Republicans…it doesn’t matter they are all the same just a bunch of sleazy politicians.
The founding fathers of this country would be horrified to see what the federal government has become. The current tax policy is based on how much pain the populace can take not on how much is required to run an efficient government. STOP SPENDING MY MONEY LIKE A DRUNKEN SAILOR and GET OUT OF MY PERSONAL LIFE.
21. Rob | 05.15.09
Zach, the “rich” are the ones that are paying the taxes in the first place. And for the record, the Democratic party does not believe that “everyone’s” income should be taxed. They only want to tax the income of the rich and tax it heavily! (see FDR’s 90% top marginal rates, and Carter’s 70%) And your reference to the supposed “billion dollar bank accounts” of the republicans is a flawed one, liberal legislators install plenty of loopholes for their supporters and themselves in every new tax scheme they develop.
Now if you want to talk about taxation on the poor through “cap and trade” or a “sugar tax” you should understand those programs will disproportionally hurt the poor. Electricity rates will rise, and companies will be forced to make layoffs to accommodate new tax burdens on their balance sheets.
Keeping everyone poor (through taxation) and dependent on the government through government programs (like socialized medicine, welfare, etc) is a very authoritarian model of government. Letting people keep their money and doing with it as they wish is an individualists model of government.
22. eric | 05.15.09
i think we should keep obama in office since it is the american way to keep a president for at least his or her elected term. gop is the no freedom party. scare everyone into believing we’re safer if we send troops to iraq so more die there than in 911 attack. if you need a job join the military so we send you for 2, 3, or more tours. poor vets are getting the shaft. we should have dealt with afganistan first before it got further out of hand. and we should have learned a lesson from the ussr when they were there too. gop freedom means do as you wish as long as i think its ok.
23. eyeonthevalley | 05.15.09
The GOP is so arrogant, they tell the american people, that doing what got us here will get us out. That is the definition of insanity but wait there’s more. They then tell the democrats (who aren’t completely innocent for the mess) that what they are doing to extract us from our economic woes is completely wrong. I don’t know about you but I am insulted.
24. matt | 05.15.09
let the almighty righty reagan say it, are you better off now than you were 4 years ago? don’t get too excited, the right wingers will still be there when their time comes back around.
25. Pondering It All | 05.15.09
How about Grumpy Old People? That way they can still keep the GOP acronym.
By the way: If you are going to bail out critical financial institutions, you have two choices. 1) Give them money 2) Buy shares of their company, with the hope of getting paid back later.
Choice #2 is being criticised as “Nationalization”, but choice #1 is much, much worse! It would just be redistribution from the taxpayers to the rich, with no repayment ever. Be careful what you ask for…
26. just the facts | 05.15.09
when the left starts telling you what doctor to see, and what medical care you can have, what car you can drive, and how long you can run your air , conditioner, and how much you can make (except the unions, movie stars and people that don’t pay their taxes so the “rich” can pay it for them), you will move more to the right and be glad you did. No I am not happy with the GOP, however I do think they trust the people the make the right call for their families and this country not some social worker from the windy city that has not knownledge of that this country is what is best for our nation…unless your want to be like Europe and have the goverment do the thinking for you. If you have to have the government do your thinking for you, you should not be in GOP Party
27. Jacob | 05.15.09
Politics has made kindergartners out of the average American. No wait, that would be an insult to kindergartners.
29. ryurgin | 05.16.09
Why does it matter if republicans tend to be more successful than their peers? Isn’t this some kind of clue that conservative philosophy is more correct than flawed socialist philosophies?
30. laurie | 05.16.09
I started to say it’s amazing, but then I realized that it is right in character for the republicans to be completely out of step with what’s important in the world. Words cannot express how mind-blowingly idiotic and narcissistic these “grown” men (mostly, as it’s the GOP) can behave. WOW!
31. Don | 05.16.09
Uh, if I’m not mistaken, the only group who can change the name of the Democratic party is…………..the Democratic party. And yes, it is the Democratic party, not the “Democrat” party, as some repubs would like us to believe.
32. Frumious | 05.16.09
Let’s not call the Republicans anything. They’ve become completely irrelevant, and acknowledging them only extends their painful, yet somewhat humorous (but oh, so loud and screechy!), descent into oblivion.
33. MichaelG | 05.16.09
26. just the facts | 05.15.09
when the left starts telling you what doctor to see,
“Too late, insurance companies all ready do that”
and what medical care you can have,
“Again, too late, insurance companies all ready do that”
what car you can drive,
“What difference does it make any more…they all look alike. No wonder they are all going broke”
and how long you can run your air , conditioner,
“Obviously doesn’t live in FL where the power company will give you lower rates so they can put a box in your home so they can turn your air conditioner off during peak hours”
and how much you can make (except the unions, movie stars and people that don’t pay their taxes so the “rich” can pay it for them), you will move more to the right and be glad you did. No I am not happy with the GOP, however I do think they trust the people the make the right call for their families and this country not some social worker from the windy city that has not knownledge of that this country is what is best for our nation…unless your want to be like Europe and have the goverment do the thinking for you. If you have to have the government do your thinking for you, you should not be in GOP Party
“And the above reference is a shining example of No Child Left Behind. I’m not really sure what Just the Facts is trying to say here. Europe doesn’t want the USA being like them. They would have no one to laugh at. Didn’t we just come out of 8 long years of our government thinking for us, telling us what to do, when to do it and ensuring we were scared of anyone one not exactly like ourselves? Anything has to be better than what we’ve had for the past 8 yrs.”
34. francoduina | 05.16.09
Yes, Grumpy Old People is appropriate. We must be patient with those old, grumpy people, they have not many teeth left to bite…
35. curious | 05.16.09
Picking up on francoduina’s neat-n-sassy comment “We must be patient with those old grumpy people, they have not many teeth left to bite…” — how ’bout any brains left to construct coherent sentences? Take a look at #26: “…I do think they trust the people the make the right call for their families and this country not some social worker from the windy city that has not knownledge of that this country is what is best for our nation…”
Extra credit for any kid who can parse that one!
37. JoefromQC | 05.16.09
Raise your hand if you are enjoying the implosion of the GOP??
Hopefully when it’s all over they will be divorced from the religious right, so we can have a real choice between parties again…..
39. Old Mo | 05.16.09
Einstein once said “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
It is the disadvantaged who habitually elect Democrats - yet are still disadvantaged… hmmm…
40. insectamantidae | 05.16.09
I am reminded of the time my big sister changed my name to “it”…. for stealing her sweater. (I was 3, at the time.) For an entire 5 days, I am told, she kept it up. Eventually, like all bullies, she got bored with it and gave up.
Now I am the one in the family with a nice sweater, decent car, nice home, college education and piles of books I love to read everywhere.
Beat that, grumpy old ******.
41. Ryan Stover | 05.16.09
I think Grumpy Old People is about as accurate a description as you can have of today’s Republican Party. Someone in this forum said it right: it’s in the Republican’s character to be completely out of step with what’s important in the world. And the out-of-stepness extends on just about every issue I can think of: e.g. gay couples are being denied hospital visitation rights for the ones they love but Grumpy Old People will just continue to ramble about the threat posed to the traditional family by these “new” families.
These Grumpy Old People make me sick. The only thing I find comfort in is that they’re becoming a shrinking minority by the day. I teach at a university in Kansas (about as conservative as it gets) and even here I’m hard pressed to find anyone young who identifies with Grumpy Old People. When a party sticks with the values of the past you can only expect it to become the party of the past. Like Howard Dean said back 2004, who in their right mind, if they’re a minority group, economically underprivileged, gay, or just plain young and thinking for themselves would want to be a republican?
42. still-trying | 05.16.09
Somebody get moderate man back on his meds. Does anyone know where the adults can leave comments?
43. TomB | 05.16.09
I would like to remind all the giddy Dems of that day Gore lost and the democratic party was “done” Well they won because the GOP went to far and the dems will lose because they will go to far the American people are not hard core left or hard core right.
Ps It drives me nuts when people say Obama has a mandate he won what 53% of the vote?
44. gloriamundi | 05.16.09
Everybody needs to look up the definition of fascism, and they will see how fascist tenets have become dominant in the Republican party. Do you think they would object to being called the Fascist party, even though the definition is such a good fit?
Personally, I am still enjoying the new term “Repugnicon.”
45. GEORDIE | 05.16.09
@Lewis
Actually, since the general range of European politics, both in and out of power, is in pretty much the same boat as the Democrats, and way to the left of the Republicans, why don’t the Republicans agree to call the Democrats “Christian Democrats” and call themselves “Monarchists?”
46. Tony P. | 05.16.09
I like the suggestions to clearly re-brand the Republican Party as authoritarian in response. If nothing else, it helps to jam their effort and perhaps not allow it to take so mindlessly among their own followers. I don’t think the White House smugly laughing off the threat is a great response.
Sadly,this re-branding stuff can work and is damaging in a number of ways. For example, children totally take it in at face value. Many adults do too…more than will admit it.
48. Homunculis | 05.16.09
This is the kind of thing that makes me tell people I’m an independent. In principle I can understand the discussion or even some of the frustration, but this kind of thing produces a view of clownish performances as viewed from a circus. Not serious discussion.
But that being said, I got a good laugh off of this. lol the offended party was hilarious. It made the article.
49. gjdagis | 05.16.09
Actually, they should change their name if only to reflect the reality of what they truly stand for. The democrats have moved SO far to the extreme left that they hardly resemble the party of old. They stress overbearing government to the detriment of the peoples’ rights and freedom.
50. Ra88 | 05.16.09
Only if we can rename the Republican Party to the American Fascist Party, or the Totalitarian Thug Party, the “I’m afraid of change” Party, the Dinosaur Party, the “We will bring about Armageddon and prove Jesus was ‘merican” Party, the Theocracy Party, the Christian Patronizer Party…any of those will do from the point of view from this ex-Republican and now Independent Free-thinking, church-fearing Christian. Love God, just can’t stand His “fan club.”
51. Martuni | 05.16.09
This is a great idea! I want to get in on this. I hereby declare that henceforth the “Republican Party” shall be referred to as the “Republican Anti-Social Party”. “Anti-Social” being a psychological reference, not a political one.
52. jaxwife | 05.17.09
Why do you mostly only publish comments by the left? All I see are attacks on republicans here. I wrote a well thought our reply, and you ignored it. I can only come up with one reason, you are steering the comments in the favor of the statist.
53. PissedOff Patriot | 05.17.09
@just the facts | 05.15.09 “and how long you can run your air , conditioner”
Just like the plan in California (under GOP leadership) to REQUIRE all new homes to have a control unit that allows the Power companies to not only turn on and off your AC and Heat, but to set the temperature as well.
These ideas come and go. Usually people see them for what they are - STUPID. Does not matter if they come from the left or the right.
“No I am not happy with the GOP, however I do think they trust the people the make the right call for their families and this country”
Like the Patriot Act which lets a SINGLE individual determine if ANY individual in the USA is a danger to National Security. That means my spouse could be picked up and detained without any notification, held incommunicado and with no recourse to challenge that SINGLE individual’s assessment. Really good for my family. Wouldn’t you say so? What if it were your spouse or child? I am making less now than I was a couple of years ago - even though I am at the same job/employer. This due solely to the policies of the GOP. Before you start throwing labels around, look at the entire body of work.
54. Fat Chants | 05.17.09
Wow. You people all really need something better to do with your time, if you want to be able to discuss things like “freedom” with any seriousness. Reading this thread has been the most wasteful 3-4 minutes of my year so far. Are you all like eight years old? Wow.
55. NRP | 05.17.09
A radical and vocal minority has hijacked the Republican party. Maybe it’s time for the serious Republicans to split and form the New Republican Party (NRP) without these buffoons.
56. kevin | 05.18.09
“We, the people, in order to form a more perfect union, to establish justice, and insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty, for ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution for the United States of America.”
School house rock. around the 70’s.
we should all read it before forming opinions on who is worse. Read and understand.
1 out of 6 aint bad, no?
57. Michael | 05.18.09
More bold new ideas from the GOP - Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele says Democrats in Washington want to take away the rights of law-abiding Americans to buy and own guns.
Wow, I can see why this guy is your new chairman. I am sure this will resurrect your party!
58. Dean | 05.18.09
The rich should pay alot more in taxes if for no other reason than the fact they live in a country and have a workforce available to them that enriches them to the point of pure greed.
If the wealthy have all the power to dictate pretty much everything in America, then hardworking Americans have a right to expect a decent wage and affordable health care. Its all about what a so-called ‘christian’ nation would call for. But then again, capitalism, conservatism and christianity cannot function in unison because 2 of of the 3 is all about material and money and 1 is about the fair treatment for humanity against the powerful and greedy.
59. fdbiddle | 05.19.09
It’s interesting to hear how so many are interested in receiving the earnings of others.
60. stormkite | 05.19.09
Dave (#12), I think Abe would recognize today’s GOP.
After all, he led a war against them…
61. Sam | 05.19.09
Okay. I guess then the Republican Party can become the American Theo-Facsist Party? It’s another very accurate description.
62. Some Jerk | 05.19.09
Fat Chants: “Wow. You people all really need something better to do with your time, if you want to be able to discuss things like “freedom” with any seriousness. Reading this thread has been the most wasteful 3-4 minutes of my year so far. Are you all like eight years old? Wow.”
Translation: I have nothing relevant to say about anything, so i’ll just complain about irrelevancies instead. Sounds very familiar…
63. John | 05.20.09
“if you want to be able to discuss things like “freedom” with any seriousness”
You know what is funny to me… “Freedom” In a country founded by Slave owners who wanted to be “FREE”… is Laughable… “Freedom” in a country that incarcerates a larger percentage of its population that ANY OTHER COUNTRY IN THE WORLD!!!.. is Laughable… “We gotta fight in Iraq for Freedom in America”… is laughable (if it weren’t so damn tragic!!)…. So Lets talk about Freedom… but not until your serious about it, and aren’t just using it as a rallying cry or a catch phrase….
I hate to tell all you blindly loyal Republicants…. That “FREEDOM” your always fighting to save and are so damn afraid of losing… is something you have never had or ever will have!! it is just a fantasy just another catch phrase to get your vote…
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Jimmy Orr has worked in politics for the majority of his professional career working for two U.S. Senators, two Governors and one President. Most recently, Orr served as White House Spokesman and Internet Director for President George W. Bush and Special Advisor to Governor Schwarzenegger for Internet Communications.
David Cook is Washington bureau chief of The Christian Science Monitor and host of the Monitor's newsmaker breakfasts. He was the Monitor's editor from 1994 to 2001. Cook is a graduate of Principia College, served in the U.S. Army, was a Bagehot Fellow at Columbia University, and is a member of the Gridiron Club, Washington's oldest journalistic organization.
1. james h | 05.15.09
Much like the successful effort to rename French fries “Freedom fries.”
lol, the subtle satire here makes me smile.