They always have been. The name ‘liberal’ is just a cover for their real operation - statism.
And Slavery is Liberty...it’s 1984 all the way.
What’s in a name?
A lot of them have quit using the term 'liberal' and started using the term 'progressive' because they realized how toxic the word liberal has become. They got away with that only because the illiterate mass of fools known as the American sheeple don't know any history. Vladimir Lenin and his merry band of Bolsheviks used the same term 'progressive' to describe their movement. And we all know how well that turned out.