Classical liberalism

Classical liberalism is by definition almost the complete opposite of contemporary American liberalism. Classical liberal doctrine evolved during The Age of Enlightenment of the 17th and 18th centuries. It stressed individual freedom, free markets, and limited government. The "classical" prefix was added later to distinguish this original form of liberalism from the modern social liberalism.
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Norma Rae

The 1979 film Norma Rae tells the story of Norma Rae Webster as she tries to organize the small textile factory in Alabama where she is employed. Norma Rae is guided by a dedicated labor organizer from New York. Norma Rae eventually leads a strike which leads to the successful formation of the their union.
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Daniel Patrick Moynihan

“Somehow liberals have been unable to acquire from birth what conservatives seem to be endowed with at birth: namely, a healthy skepticism of the powers of government to do good.”

-- Daniel Patrick Moynihan, United States Senator.
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Dennis Kucinich

"We have weapons of mass destruction we have to address here at home. Poverty is a weapon of mass destruction. Homelessness is a weapon of mass destruction. Unemployment is a weapon of mass destruction."

-- Dennis Kucinich, United States Congressman.
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Aristotle

"Of all the varieties of virtues, liberalism is the most beloved."

-- Aristotle, Greek Philosopher.
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Bond v. Floyd

The Supreme Court case of Bond v. Floyd voted 9-0 and ordered Georgia's legislature to seat the duly elected state senator, Julian Bond, a civil rights activist denied his seat for publicly supporting Vietnam War draft resisters. The Court stated that criticizing U.S. foreign policy does not violate a legislator's oath to uphold the Constitution.
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Indispensable Chomsky

"Understanding Power: The Indispensable Chomsky" is previously unpublished discussions of sociopolitical analyst Noam Chomsky. The book contains a wide array of themes and critiques, especially of U.S. foreign policy. Chomsky cites the civil rights and the anti-Vietnam War movements as positive events that have made citizens more critical of the mass media.
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Jon Stewart

"I celebrated Thanksgiving in an old-fashioned way. I invited everyone in my neighborhood to my house, we had an enormous feast, and then I killed them and took their land."

-- Jon Stewart, American entertainer.
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Will Durant

"Sixty years ago I knew everything; now I know nothing; education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance."

-- Will Durant, American author.
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Rosa Parks

Buses were desegregated in Montgomery, Alabama on this day in 1956. More than a year earlier, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat at the front of the "colored section" of a bus to a white passenger, prompting her arrest. In response, the Montgomery black community launched a bus boycott, which led to the desegregation of the bus system.
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Joe Klein

"Diversity has been written into the DNA of American life; any institution that lacks a rainbow array has come to seem diminished, if not diseased."

-- Joe Klein, American author and journalist.
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Jeff Bingaman

"I support concrete and progressive immigration reform based on three primary criteria: family reunification, economic contributions, and humanitarian concerns."

-- Jeff Bingaman, United States Senator.
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Oliver Stone

"I think experience will teach you a combination of liberalism and conservatism. We have to be progressive and at the same time we have to retain values. We have to hold onto the past as we explore the future."

-- Oliver Stone, American entertainer.
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Andrew Young

"President Jimmy Carter was a citizen soldier. Ironically, he was considered weak because he didn't kill anybody and he didn't get anyone killed."

-- Andrew Young, United States Congressman.
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Jennifer Granholm

"If you are going to be progressive, then you have to make progress. And that sometimes depends on breaking a few legs."

-- Jennifer Granholm, Governor of Michigan.
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Wag the Dog

The 1997 film "Wag the Dog" stars Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman. Just days before the Presidential election, and being caught in a scandalous affair, a presidential advisor contacts a top Hollywood movie producer to concoct a war with Albania in order to divert attention of the voting public. The film is loosely based on the novel American Hero by Larry Beinhart.
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Jimmy Carter

"Government is a contrivance of human wisdom to provide for human wants. People have the right to expect that these wants will be provided for by this wisdom."

-- Jimmy Carter, President of the United States.
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Democratic Quotes

"I propose a New Deal" - 1932 U.S. presidential campaign theme of Franklin D. Roosevelt.
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Andrew Vachss

"Journalism is what maintains democracy. It's the force for progressive social change."

-- Andrew Vachss, American author.
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Andrea Dworkin

"All personal, psychological, social, and institutionalized domination on this earth can be traced back to its source: the phallic identities of men."

-- Andrea Dworkin, American social activist.
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Kate Millett

"Politics is repetition. It is not change. Change is something beyond what we call politics. Change is the essence politics is supposed to be the means to bring into being."

-- Kate Millett, American social activist.
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Upton Sinclair

Upton Sinclair is considered the father of journalistic muckraking. The Pulitzer Prize author wrote over ninety books, including his 1906 novel The Jungle, which caused a public uproar over the meat packing industry and led to the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act. His writing prompted Teddy Roosevelt to coin the term "muckraker".
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The Brady Campaign

The Brady Campaign works to pass and enforce sensible federal and state gun laws, regulations, and public policies through grassroots activism, electing public officials who support common sense gun laws, and increasing public awareness of gun violence. Former Reagan White House Press Secretary James Brady was nearly killed as a result of an assassination attempt on Reagan in 1981.
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John Dewey

"Education is a social process. Education is growth. Education is, not a preparation for life; education is life itself."

-- John Dewey, American philosopher.
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General William Westmoreland

"War is fear cloaked in courage."

-- General William Westmoreland
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The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a policy organization working on fiscal policy and public programs that affect low- and moderate-income families and individuals. CBPP helps shape public debate over budget and tax policies in terms of the needs of low-income families. It also examines the short- and long-term impacts of policies on the health of the economy. See cbpp.org.
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William E. Gladstone

"Liberalism is trust of the people tempered by prudence. Conservatism is distrust of the people tempered by fear."

-- William E. Gladstone, British Statesman.
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John Kerry

"When we walk away from global warming, Kyoto, when we are irresponsibly slow in moving toward AIDS in Africa, when we don't advance and live up to our own rhetoric and standards, we set a terrible message of duplicity and hypocrisy."

-- John Kerry, United States Senator.
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Reverend Amos Brown

"This is the first lesson that must be learned. If you don’t think for yourself, somebody else will do your thinking for you. And whoever does your thinking will be your master, and you their slave."

-- Reverend Amos Brown.
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Kofi Annan

"Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family."

-- Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations.
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Health care

The United States spends twice as much on health care per capita than any other country, according to National Center for Health Statistics. Meanwhile, life expectancy at birth in the United States is an average of 78.14 years, which ranks 47th in highest total life expectancy compared to other countries, according to the CIA Fact book.
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Reed v. Reed

A 1971 Supreme Court decision overruled an Idaho Probate Court judgment that "males must be preferred to females" in appointing administrators of estates. In Reed v. Reed, both parties sought to be named the administrator of their son's estate. The Court concluded in a unanimous decision that the law's dissimilar treatment of men and women was unconstitutional.
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Syriana

George Clooney won an Oscar for his role in the 2005 film Syriana. The film depicts several characters who are involved in the geo-political events of a shifting Middle East country and its oil industry. Clooney plays a CIA agent who untangles unscrupulous national and corporate interests in securing oil drilling rights in the midst of a planned regime change.
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Drum Major Instinct

The Drum Major Institute for Public Policy is a non-partisan, non-profit think tank generating ideas that fuel the progressive movement. The foundation was founded in 1961 during Civil Rights Movement. Its name was inspired by Dr. King's often used phrase "drum major instinct" meaning the instinct to be a leader. See drummajorinstitute.org.
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Jon Stewart

"I celebrated Thanksgiving in an old-fashioned way. I invited everyone in my neighborhood to my house, we had an enormous feast, and then I killed them and took their land."

-- Jon Stewart, American entertainer.
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Louis Farrakhan

"There really can be no peace without justice. There can be no justice without truth. And there can be no truth, unless someone rises up to tell you the truth."

-- Louis Farrakhan, Islamic Minister.
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2008 U.S. election data

According to the Census Bureau's 2008 U.S. election data, the state of Minnesota and the District of Columbia recorded the highest voter turnout, each with voting rates of about 75%. Hawaii and Utah were among the states with the lowest turnouts, each with approximately 52%. By sex, women had a higher voting rate (66%) than males (62%).
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Charles Rangel

Democratic congressman Charles Rangel has represented upper Manhattan, New York since 1971. Rangel's legislative history includes gun control, affordable housing, urban renewal, and economic prosperity. His legacy includes the "Rangel Amendment", a 1987 tax code law to deny foreign tax credits to U.S. companies investing in South Africa, dealing a crippling blow to South African apartheid.
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Louise Slaughter

"If ever we had proof that our nation's pollution laws aren't working, it's reading the list of industrial chemicals in the bodies of babies who have not yet lived outside the womb."

-- Louise Slaughter, United States Congresswoman.
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Geraldine Ferraro

New York democrat Geraldine Ferraro was the first female Vice Presidential candidate representing a major American political party. Ferraro was the running-mate of Walter Mondale on the democratic ticket in the 1984 presidential election. Ferraro rose to prominence in the house of representatives during the 1980s. She also served on Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2008.
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E.J. Dionne

"For conservatives, the sins that matter are personal irresponsibility, the flight from family life, sexual permissiveness, the failure of individuals to work hard. For liberals, the gravest sins are intolerance, a lack of generosity toward the needy, narrow-mindedness toward social and racial minorities."

-- E.J. Dionne, Jr., American author and journalist.
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Tallulah Bankhead

“I read Shakespeare and the Bible, and I can shoot dice. That's what I call a liberal education.”

-- Tallulah Bankhead, American entertainer.
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Red vs Blue

The terms Red state and Blue state have come to differentiate between states voting conservative versus states voting liberal. Although color-coded maps had been used in previous elections, the terms were reportedly originated and coined by political journalist Tim Russert during the controversial 2000 Presidential election.
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Jeannette Rankin

"You can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake."

-- Jeannette Rankin, United States Congresswoman.
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Robert Byrd

West Virginia democrat Robert Byrd was first elected to the Senate in January 1959 and holds the record as the longest-serving member in the senate's history. Byrd has held many leadership positions: Senate Conference Secretary, Majority Whip, Minority Leader and twice Majority Leader. He is currently President pro tempore of the United States Senate.
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Eleanor Clift

"Politics is so much about serendipity that we've got to have a bigger pool of women, so that when people drop out of the process, you've got others to turn to."

-- Eleanor Clift, American author and editor.
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Bill Clinton

"It's Time to Change America" - 1992 U.S. presidential campaign theme of Bill Clinton.
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Lyndon B. Johnson

"We must open the doors of opportunity. But we must also equip our people to walk through those doors."

-- Lyndon B. Johnson, President of the United States.
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The American Prospect

The American Prospect is a monthly political magazine dedicated to liberal ideals. The magazine was established in 1990 as a counter to the growth of intellectual conservatism during the 1980s. The American Prospect's mission: to rise to the momentous occasion that confronts all Americans who seek a just society built on our greatest traditions. See prospect.org.
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Harry S. Truman

"It is time that all Americans realized that the place of labor is side by side with the businessman and with the farmer, and not one-degree lower."

-- Harry S. Truman, President of the United States.
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Slate

Slate is a daily online magazine founded in 1996. Slate's liberal editorial focus offers analysis and commentary about politics, news and culture. Slate was initially owned by software giant Microsoft and later sold to the Washington Post. Slate features a variety of columnists, blogs, online communities, and the highly popular Doonesbury Cartoon. See slate.com.
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Thomas Hobbes

"The first and fundamental law of Nature, which is, to seek peace and follow it."

-- Thomas Hobbes, English philosopher.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt

The 1936 election victory of Franklin D. Roosevelt marked one of the largest electoral margins in modern presidential election history. With the backing of nearly every voting block in the nation, FDR's New Deal platform carried every state except Maine and Vermont over Republican candidate Alf Landon. The final landslide tally was 523 electoral votes to 8.
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Mario Cuomo

"There are few things more amusing in the world of politics than watching moderate Republicans charging to the right in pursuit of greater glory."

-- Mario Cuomo, Governor of New York.
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Woodrow Wilson

"He kept us out of war" - 1916 U.S. presidential campaign theme of Woodrow Wilson.
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Morris Raphael Cohen

"Liberalism is an attitude rather than a set of dogmas - an attitude that insists upon questioning all plausible and self-evident propositions, seeking not to reject them but to find out what evidence there is to support them rather than their possible alternatives."

-- Morris Raphael Cohen, Jewish philosopher.
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Mary Frances Berry

"If Rosa Parks had taken a poll before she sat down in the bus in Montgomery, she'd still be standing."

-- Mary Frances Berry, Chairperson of the United States Commission on Civil Rights
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Eugene McCarthy

"As long as the differences and diversities of mankind exist, democracy must allow for compromise, for accommodation, and for the recognition of differences."

-- Eugene McCarthy, United States Senator.
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The Commonweal Institute

The Commonweal Institute is an alliance of independent thinkers leading conversations in media outlets and social networks about progressive approaches to solving problems. The Institute's core values are human rights, civil liberties, participatory democracy, justice, strong and caring communities, and responsible global capitalism. See commonwealinstitute.org.
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President Obama

In October 2009, the Norwegian Nobel Committee presented the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 to President Obama for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples. President Obama became the third sitting U.S. president to win the prize, following Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 and Woodrow Wilson in 1919.
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Bill Maher

"We have the Bill of Rights. What we need is a Bill of Responsibilities."

-- Bill Maher, American entertainer.
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The USA PATRIOT Act

The USA PATRIOT Act, signed in response to the 911 attacks, greatly expanded the power of law enforcement agencies. Critics of the law cite several constitutional issues: indefinite detentions of immigrants; search without consent; electronic searches without court order. Several legal challenges have been brought against the act. Federal courts have ruled that a number of provisions are unconstitutional.
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John F. Kennedy

John F. Kennedy is the only president to have won a Pulitzer Prize. His famous inaugural address statement was "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." As president, he created the Peace Corps and supported federal funding increases for education and Medicare. Many of his progressive policies were passed after his death.
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Al Sharpton

"If Charlton Heston can have a constitutional right carry a rifle, why can't grandma have a constitutional right to health care?"

-- Al Sharpton , American social activist.
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Capital punishment

In looking at capital punishment, the Supreme Court concluded in the 1972 case of Furman v. Georgia that the imposition of the death penalty in some cases constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. In this case, William Furman was sentenced to death. He tripped and fell while fleeing a burglary causing his gun to fire killing the resident of the home.
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Mary McGrory

"Baseball is what we were, and football is what we have become."

-- Mary McGrory, American journalist.
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Jay Leno

"The Bush administration said today there is a lot of support for us to attack Iraq. Exxon, Mobil, Texaco, Chevron, they're all lining up."

-- Jay Leno, American entertainer.
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The Clean Air Act of 1970

The Clean Air Act of 1970 established comprehensive federal and state regulations to limit emissions and signaled a major shift in the U.S. government's role in air pollution control. Major amendments were added to the landmark act in 1977 and 1990. The Act was the first major environmental law in the U.S. to include a provision for citizen suits.
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David Letterman

"I know these jokes aren't great, ladies and gentlemen, see this is the problem you run into when you're between impeachments."

-- David Letterman, American entertainer.
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Salon

Salon is an online daily magazine devoted to progressive and liberal politics of America. In addition to politics, the site also features articles and reviews on culture, music, books, films, and technology. Salon also is a place for online discussion. Salon was first published in 1995 and is based in San Francisco. See salon.com.
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