America is in the midst of a rolling descent into an era of increased popularity for socialism, both at home and in its foreign policy abroad. The Biden Administration has been more heavily influenced by socialist-leaning progressives than any other. It is a reflection of the extraordinary strength of the Progressive wing of the Democratic Party.
The expanded meddling of Washington into the once-dynamic American economy has produced the same results found in other socialist states: unnecessary shortages of basic goods, dramatic inflation, reduced personal freedom, and a lack of confidence in the future.
A 2021Axios poll notes that “Just half of younger Americans now hold a positive view of capitalism — and socialism’s appeal in the U.S. continues to grow…socialism has positive connotations for 60% of Black Americans, 45% of American women and 33% of non-white Republicans. Those numbers have grown over the past two years from 53%, 41% and 27%, respectively. Only 48% of American women view capitalism in a positive light, down from 51% two years ago. Today, 18-34 year-olds are almost evenly split between those who view capitalism positively and those who view it negatively (49% vs. 46%). Two years ago, that margin was a gaping 20 points (58% vs. 38%).”
The leftward lurch is unsupported by any record of success for the debunked philosophy.
In a Forbes interview, Kristian Niemietz, raised a salient point
“Over the past hundred years, there have been more than two dozen attempts to build a socialist society. It has been tried in the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Albania, Poland, Vietnam, Bulgaria, Romania, Czechoslovakia, North Korea, Hungary, China, East Germany, Cuba, Tanzania, Laos, South Yemen, Somalia, the Congo, Ethiopia, Cambodia, Mozambique, Angola, Nicaragua and Venezuela, among others—not counting the very short-lived ones. All of these attempts have ended in varying degrees of failure.”
Some have attempted to point to China as a socialist nation that has attained some measure of economic success. They ignore the reality that the Communist giant only prospers by selling to capitalist nations, frequently using underhanded methods such as slave labor, and downright illegal methods such as intellectual property theft and industrial espionage.
Examine a closer example. As Venezuela fell more completely under socialism’s sway, the results were dire. “According to Gallup, 71 percent of Venezuelans say they can’t afford food, 47 percent say they can’t afford shelter, just 15 percent say they are satisfied with the availability of quality health care, and 35 percent say they are satisfied with their standard of living. Thirty-six percent of Venezuelans, 51 percent of those between 15 and 29, say they would leave the country permanently if they could,” reports Star Parker.
As socialism becomes more popular at home, Progressive politicians have pushed the White House into friendlier ties with socialist regimes abroad.
Biden administration officials met with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in Caracas earlier this Spring. They ignored Juan Guaidó, the opposition leader whom the United States recognizes as this South American nation’s rightful president, who wasn’t even informed of the meeting.
The rather humiliating reversal of U.S. policy towards this odious socialist dictatorship has long been a goal of the Progressive left. In a letter to President Biden, several progressive Democrats commended him for his diplomatic overture to the South American totalitarian regime.
There can be little doubt that Venezuela under socialism is both an economic and human rights disaster. A recent U.S. State Department analysis found that “the authoritarian regime led by Nicolas Maduro usurped control over all branches of government: executive, judicial, legislative, the offices of the prosecutor general and ombudsman, and the electoral institutions. In December 2020 the Maduro regime organized parliamentary elections that were rigged in favor of the regime, and approximately 60 countries and international bodies publicly declared the elections were neither free nor fair… There were credible reports that members of security forces committed numerous abuses, and a 2020 United Nations report concluded there were reasonable grounds to believe that Maduro regime authorities and security forces committed crimes against humanity.”
Hopefully, as Americans endure the results of this disturbing trend, the majority can reverse the trend before the political and economic results become too deep.
Illustration: Pixabay