The Republican Party was much more kinder to liberals in the 1950s.
You mean... when they didn't use the term as an insult?
Realignment of the two parties.
When John McCain and Barack Obama had one of their 2008 presidential debates, McCain mentioned Teddy Roosevelt. I think McCain mentioned something leadership from Roosevelt he'd like to emulate (had he been the winner). Funny how few picked up on that, what with Teddy having been the 1912 nominee in the Progressive Party (after the blowup with his Republican Party and incumbent/Teddy's successor William Howard Taft).
