Don’t Panic… The DSA May Have Just Lost America

A few days ago, the 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮 officially released their new national platform.

Almost immediately, people began to panic.

Then 𝗝𝗗 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 warned that, under the right conditions, a socialist could someday win the presidency.

𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

I smiled.

Because after reading every page, 𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗦𝗔 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁.

𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆.

Of course, it didn’t help that Vice President 𝗝𝗗 𝗩𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 came out on The Joe Rogan Experience and warned that, under the right conditions, a socialist could one day win the presidency.

I think the Vice President was making an important point. If Republicans fail to address issues like housing affordability, economic opportunity for young Americans, and the rising cost of living, frustrated voters will eventually start looking elsewhere.

𝗜 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴.

Where I respectfully disagree is what happens after Americans actually read the Democratic Socialists of America’s platform.

Could economic frustration make socialist candidates more appealing?

𝗔𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆.

Could they continue winning primaries, local races, and even some statewide elections?

𝗖𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗹𝘆.

But after reading this platform from beginning to end, 𝗜 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗷𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

If you read my satirical post yesterday, my goal wasn’t simply to make people laugh.

𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗷𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗯𝗹𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿—not only by the Democratic Socialists of America, but by every Democrat who has chosen to publicly align themselves with that movement.

Donald Trump has won the presidency twice. Whether you supported him or opposed him, one thing should be obvious:

𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘃𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗱𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀, 𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗺𝗶𝗱𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺𝘀.

Tens of millions of people who normally don’t participate suddenly show up when the White House is on the ballot.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴.

One thing the Democratic Socialists of America have done extremely well is understand activism.

Their leaders are not career politicians. They do not own businesses. Many have very little experience in the workforce.

𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 “𝗻𝗲𝘄” 𝗳𝗼𝗿 “𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲.”

They know how to organize, motivate supporters, build community, and most importantly…

𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘀.

New York is a perfect example.

Democratic socialist candidates found success in a Democratic primary with turnout of roughly 17% of registered Democrats.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

That’s a highly motivated minority outperforming an unmotivated majority.

For years, most Americans assumed Democratic Socialists simply wanted free healthcare, affordable housing, and free college.

And honestly…

𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀?

The debate used to be about compassion versus arithmetic.

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸?

But after this platform…

𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱.

The debate is no longer simply about healthcare or housing.

𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀.

𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗧𝘂𝗲𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟭𝟰, 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 — 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 (𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲–𝟮𝟳 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺)

• Abolish the U.S. Senate.

• Abolish the Electoral College.

• Replace the President with an executive chosen by and subordinate to Congress.

• Replace the Supreme Court with a judiciary chosen by and subordinate to Congress.

• Expand the House of Representatives and adopt proportional representation and ranked-choice voting.

• Place the largest corporations and essential industries under public ownership.

• Impose aggressive wealth taxes on wealthy individuals and corporations.

• Defund the Department of War (Department of Defense), end foreign wars, and close overseas military bases.

• Abolish ICE, grant amnesty for all immigrants regardless of status, provide a path to citizenship, and end visa caps and quotas.

• Extend voting rights to permanent U.S. residents (non-citizens) and restore voting rights to incarcerated people and those with criminal convictions.

• Guarantee universal healthcare at no cost, including reproductive and gender-affirming care.

• Create publicly owned housing, establish universal rent control, and guarantee housing as a right.

• Require a 32-hour work week with full pay and benefits and a living minimum wage.

• Provide free public education from pre-K through college and cancel all student debt.

• Move toward abolishing the police and prison system by redirecting funding to public services.

• End all U.S. military and economic aid to Israel, recognize a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, and prosecute U.S. and Israeli leaders over the Gaza conflict.

• End U.S. sanctions and embargoes on countries including Cuba, Venezuela, and Iran.

𝗢𝗞…

You’ve now read the list for yourself.

𝗦𝗼 𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.

How many of you are still fearful?

How many honestly believe the majority of Americans are reading this list and saying…

“You know what… you can suck it, Founding Fathers. Your time is over.”

“Yeah, baby… give me more of this!”

𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁.

I believe most Americans—Republicans, independents, and even many traditional Democrats—will realize this goes far beyond healthcare or housing.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀.

That’s why I’m not panicking.

𝗜’𝗺 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴.

Because ideas don’t win simply because they exist.

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲.

The Democratic Socialists of America have now told America exactly what they want.

𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗶𝘁.

𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺.

𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝘁.

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲.

I already know where I think they’ll land.

𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼 𝘁𝗼𝗼.