American exceptionalism (or “greatness”) : America is great, but needs to be made great again.
“the answer will not come from Washington”: says all of those Beltway politicians running for President. Thus, by definition, the answer cannot come from any of them.
class warfare: there is no such thing as class warfare in America, therefore you must make good on tax cuts to the rich.
complicating the moral question: what the GOTP says when they actually mean there is no moral issue involved, as in water boarding, drone strikes against US citizens, “shoot to kill” orders on unarmed citizens, etc.
consumers: the logical end product of all the non-union jobs in the service sector or “information economy” (see below); the new normal of what people are willing to settle for as the ultimate purpose of life. The irony is that the individualism and dignity of consumers is being consumed by the Megadata Deathstar.
cruelty, cupidity, mendacity: what Dems are accused of whenever they offer some idealistic vision of economy equality, civil rights, or human dignity.
entrenched incumbents: Dems. GOTP incumbents are just that, but never characterized as “entrenched.”
fables: any core Dem issue: inequality, climate change, gender wage gaps, racism. All mythological beasts in the liberal imaginary.
redistribution: there has indeed been a massive redistribution of wealth this century–in all administrations. Contrary to public opinion, though, the resdistribution has largely consisted of a massive wealth transfer to the GOTP.
responsibility: somehow, “being responsible” always translates into the call for budget cuts and draconian social safety net cuts, never economic stimulus.
Politiscripts, by Richard Roth 