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Socialism Isn’t on the Rise—Liberalism Is

Since the rise of Bernie Sanders and, more recently, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, I’ve noticed many on the Right wondering if college kids are soon going to start pining for gulags and five-year plans. After all, a recent Gallup poll shows Americans ages 18-29 prefer socialism to capitalism (51 percent to 45 percent).

David Azerrad of the Heritage Foundation was on Tucker Carlson last night to sort through all of this. He notes that no, Millennials are not mini-Lenins and Trotskys in waiting. Instead, they are reacting to what they perceive as the faults of capitalism for causing the 2008 financial crisis. Socialism means a helping hand of the government, as opposed to rich guys having their chauffeurs drive over beggars in the streets, or so they claim.

Feeling no pushback from “conservatism,” liberalism has mutated into another, more virulent strain. Government regulation and bureaucratic oversight is the answer to our every problem. And any dissent from orthodoxy will be punished, as is occurring on college campuses and in boardrooms alike.

Here’s David’s full response.

And when you’re done with watching the interview, please check out David’s full-length essay in The Weekly Standard (Glenn Simpson didn’t give him these talking points, I promise) on how to interpret the rise of socialism among younger Americans.

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About Tom Doniphon

Tom Doniphon is not, as you may imagine, an iconic character from John Ford's greatest western. He is, rather, a writer in the Midwest. The moniker, suffice to say, is a pseudonym.