(CNN) Vice President Joe Biden disparaged socialism while addressing the World Economic Forum in Switzerland on Wednesday, as his own political party finds itself with a self-described "democratic socialist" leading in some state polls.

"We need -- not just in my country, but in other countries -- a more progressive tax code. Not confiscatory policy, not socialism, a tax code," Biden said. "Everybody pays proportionally a fair share. This is not meant to penalize everybody."

"We need a more progressive tax code -- not confiscatory policy. Not socialism. A tax code." -VP Biden #wef16 — Vice President Biden (@VP) January 20, 2016

The phrase -- according to the vice president's office, not a specific reference to Sen. Bernie Sanders , the Vermont senator who identifies as a democratic socialist but caucuses with Democrats -- was embedded in a larger speech that hit some of Biden's most frequently touted policies: economic fairness, boosting the middle class and encouraging corporate responsibility.

It wasn't the first time members of the administration have sought to explain their policies by highlighting what they are not. President Barack Obama defended his economic agenda against claims of socialism, most recently in 2014.

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