From WNYC in New York, this is NPR's On the Media. I'm Bob Garfield.

And I'm Brooke Ladstone. On March 6th, on Air Force One, President Obama was asked by a New York Times reporter whether he was a socialist.

Let's take a look at the budget. The answer would be no.

He went on to defend the fiscal responsibility of his budget.

He didn't tackle the socialism question.

The issue must have weighed on him, though, because soon after he landed, he called up the

Times.

You know, it was hard for me to believe you were entirely serious about that socialist question.

I did think it might be useful to point out that it wasn't under me that we started

buying a whole bunch of shares of banks. It wasn't on my watch.

The pot, according to Obama, is calling the kettle pink.

The socialist charge has been used in reference to Obama's tax policy,

his handling of the banking crisis, his stimulus package, and his budget proposal.

But it first gained attention on the campaign trail.

And Ohio Plummer asked Senator Barack Obama why he wants to hike his taxes if he believes in the American dream.

Did Senator Obama answer him and win him over?

On the phone now is Joe Owerzelbacher.

Joe, did he win you over?

No, not at all.

He said he wants to distribute wealth.

And I mean, I'm not trying to make statements here, but I mean, that's kind of a socialist viewpoint.

The S-word popped up again in recent weeks, amid rumors of a program for nationalizing

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