May 26, 2015
The democratic socialist moniker that Sanders proudly claims can be toxic in some parts of the American political landscape, and it will certainly alienate many conservatives as well as some liberals, says presidential historian Julian Zelizer at Princeton University. But, Zelizer points out, over the last century, socialists have at times made a significant mark in national politics and even some presidential campaigns. (Zelizer is author most recently of "The Fierce Urgency of Now: Lyndon Johnson, Congress, and the Battle for the Great Society.")