Monday night the speakers at the Republican Convention sang very different melodies of persuasion.  Some, like Nikki Haley and Senator Tim Scott, were lyrical and somewhat conciliatory. Others, like the notorious St. Louis McCloskeys and the abrasive Donald Trump, Jr., were caustic crows, Heckle and Jeckle, with little to add to the campaign but shrill caws.

The most talented labelist was Trump, Jr. who tossed off “Beijing Beiden” and “Loch Ness Monster” without skipping a beat.  He also sang the campaign favorites, “socialist” and “radical left” showing his versatility as a labelist.  He launched a few at some of his favorite cultural targets: “radical Islamic terrorism”  and “movie moguls” and the “eastern elites.” Generally he did his father proud by setting off word bombs within minutes of each other.

Even the more measured Nikki Haley and Tim Scott took up the socialist chorus, offering dire predictions of the future under Joe Biden. Despite the Vice-president’s choice of a moderate running mate and clear separation from Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, Republicans could not resist painting him with the “socialist” brush.  Trump, Jr. even promised Biden would lead us into a “socialist utopia,” which sounded a lot better than he meant it. I think Donald Jr. meant “dystopia.”

The Republicans did not disappoint with their labeling exploits, especially those that distorted their opponent’s record as a “socialist.”  They used the term as a radical lens to see the Democrats as an image the party rejected in the primaries by sending Bernie Sanders down to defeat. It is not that Sanders or Warren might not turn up in a Biden administration, but that they will work within his well-known moderation from the middle of the road.  The “socialist” refrain of the Convention is the most pervasive distortion of the opposition.

With more to come, it is probably premature to close the books on labeling. Keep an ear out for, not only the old favorite “socialism,” but some new labels on the Republican hit parade.