Frustration with political institutions and the current state of affairs in America is running high. A Gallup report shows that confidence in most of our institutions is at a low 27 percent. A Pew Research poll revealed that six in 10 Americans think the country’s best days are behind us. The frustration is real, and it helps explain the otherwise inexplicable appeal of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Many people still do not know what the Democratic Socialists of America stand for, although their platform is easily available. The proposals are patently absurd, and all of this would be quite amusing if it were not for the desperate way that people are turning to it and voting for its candidates. In difficult times, people can make poor choices, and the DSA is definitely one. And yet DSA members hold more than 250 public offices in the country today, and many more have won primary elections in recent weeks.
The first thing to understand about the DSA is that it may be “of” America, but it is not “for” America. Their proposals constitute a complete rejection of American institutions, the Constitution and our economic system. The party platform says quite clearly, “We need a new political system.”
Their party platform is beyond extreme. Abolish the presidency and the Supreme Court and replace them with some executive and judicial offices that are subordinate to Congress, and abolish the Senate. Defund the police, abolish all prisons and defund our military, so that the United States could not wage any war — including a defensive one — under any circumstances.
The only specific foreign policy goal in their platform is, of course, to “free Palestine” and establish a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. Leaving aside the question of whether or not this is antisemitic, it clearly calls for the elimination of the state of Israel.
What kind of view of human nature lies behind this absurd list of goals? A simple-minded one. The DSA seems to have embraced the Communist Manifesto that all crime and conflict are caused by corrupt institutions, not human nature. Eliminate the institutions, and everyone will live together in peace and harmony. They call for a classless society and assume a world without war and poverty can be achieved.
These ideas were foolish and dangerous when Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote them, and they still are. As the old expression goes, “If my grandmother had wheels, she would have been a bicycle.” Hypotheticals do not make something real. Fantasies of a utopia might sound appealing to those gripped by frustration, but they don’t become achievable just because they are appealing.
The DSA also calls for “a future without capitalism.” It is important to understand that the United States does not have a pure capitalistic economy. Social Security and Medicare are, in fact, socialist modifications of capitalism. Not all socialist ideas are bad.
But the DSA asks us to imagine a world where we have no bills to pay and all services are provided by the government, including food, energy, medicine and transportation. The government would take over all major corporations. As we know from history, those who were inspired by this Marxist dream actually empowered terrible, corrupt tyrannies, where money and power were concentrated in a small, ruling group.
American institutions are not working well right now, and capitalism is a flawed economic system. Reform is always a reasonable response to real problems. However, the Democratic Socialists of America are making promises that no one can keep, and they are not just calling for reform. They are demanding a revolution — as did Marx and Engels — and are prepared to tear down the entire American regime in the name of these empty promises.
The Democratic Party needs to distance itself from these extremists, who do not care about the Democratic Party, even as they are presenting candidates to voters under the Democratic Party label. And every Democratic Socialist who is elected gives the Republican Party a new way to condemn the Democrats. They should protect themselves from these left-wing extremists.
All Americans need to get engaged in the political process. Stay informed. Vote. And listen carefully to serious proposals for reform. No country can flourish without reforming itself over time. Reform is needed, but it needs to be realistic reform.
The problems we are facing in America are not solved by giving in to frustration.
The Democratic Socialists of America identify issues that resonate with people today, but their proposals will not improve Americans’ lives. Their talk of a bright future for all masks an ugly reality.
Solomon D. Stevens is the author of “Religion, Politics, and the Law” (co-authored with Peter Schotten) and “Challenges to Peace in the Middle East.” He wrote this for InsideSources.com.
