The New Road

Liberal is bad?

I replaced the word liberal in some of Bush's debate rhetoric:

That's what [those having political or social views favoring reform and progress] do. They create government-sponsored health care. Maybe you think that makes sense. I don't. 

They don't name him the most [generous; bounteous; open-handed] in the United States Senate because he hasn't shown up to many meetings. They named him because of his votes. And it's reality.

First, the National Journal named Senator Kennedy the most [tolerant of the ideas and behavior of others] senator of all. And that's saying something in that bunch. You might say that took a lot of hard work.

How is it that liberal has become a bad word? How is it that we could have people on the radio saying that "an open mind is like an open garbage can".