On November 3, more than 200 socialists are running for political offices at the national, statewide, and local level who generally support the Democratic Socialists of America’s 2026 midterm platform called the Workers Deserve More Program.
Meanwhile, over the past few years, socialism has become more popular than ever in America.
Overall, 43 percent of American adults view socialism “positively,” according to a recent Gallup survey. Among young adults, 57 percent of those aged 18 to 34 view socialism more “positively” than “capitalism.”
A vast majority of young voters want socialism. Based on a 2025 Heartland/Rasmussen poll, 76 percent supported nationalization of major industries “to give more control and equity to the people.” More than half of young voters also want a democratic socialist to win the White House in 2028.
Whether you believe that politics is downstream from culture, or vice versa, socialism has become a force in both. Specifically, “democratic socialism.”
But democratic socialism is no different from Leninism, Stalinism, or even Maoism in that it is economically unviable.
Through a strict economic lens, socialism is doomed to fail because the government cannot “create wealth.”
The DSA’s Workers Deserve More Program assumes that the government can provide “free” stuff like housing, healthcare, college, and so much more.
But the DSA provides zero numbers or math to back up that assertion.
In total, the Workers Deserve More Program includes up to “$212 trillion in new spending over the next decade,” the Cato Institute noted to little fanfare.
Now, let’s do some arithmetic.
The U.S. national debt is $40.4 trillion. Total “state debt” is $1.1 trillion. Total “local debt” is $2.2 trillion. All told, national, state, and local governments are about $44 trillion in debt.
So far this year, the federal government has spent $7.4 trillion while raising only $5.4 trillion. So, the national deficit is more than $2 trillion this year.
The total GDP of the U.S. economy this year is approximately $33 trillion. But the ratio of debt to GDP is 123 percent, which is not good.
The federal government’s budget has not been balanced for more than 20 years, and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) forecasts $2 trillion deficits for years to come. In fact, by 2036, the CBO predicts an annual deficit of $3.1 trillion pending no new additional spending.
As if this is not bad enough, consider that the two biggest spending programs, Medicare and Social Security, will face insolvency within the next few years.
In other words, national, local, and state governments are saddled with debt, paying more to fund existing debt, and therefore simply cannot afford $200 trillion in new spending.
But the DSA counters that all this can be funded with “aggressive wealth taxes on the richest individuals and corporations.” Hmm, the DSA also says that it would “establish public ownership of the largest corporations.”
Nevertheless, even if you confiscated every penny from every billionaire and soaked corporations, it would “cover only a fraction” of the $200 trillion.
The dirty secret is that the DSA agenda means high taxes for the middle and working class.
The other nasty secret is that the DSA’s Workers Deserve More Program will require massive money printing.
Unlike state and local governments, which are still somewhat bound by the laws of balanced budgeting, the federal government can print money.
When in need, printing more money has been the “answer” in Washington, D.C. for decades.
But Americans are reaping the consequences of reckless money printing from the Biden administration in the form of stubborn inflation.
Earth to Americans: The DSA’s agenda would create Weimar-like hyperinflation.
And for those falling for the DSA’s “free” stuff nonsense. Here is an elegant explanation from Cato: “A price of $0, or any price below that which would be set by the market, does not create abundance.”
Services and goods are never “free.” Healthcare facilities and equipment are very expensive. Medical devices like MRI machines do not grow on trees. Doctors and nurses are not indentured servants.
Of course, I realize that logic, arithmetic, common sense, pragmatism, and reason are not core qualities of socialists. Neither are truth, fairness, or equality.
Power attainment, by any means necessary, is the code of socialism. The ends always justify the means.
Offer them “free” stuff; hope they buy it. That is the DSA strategy. Caveat emptor, America.
Chris Talgo (ctalgo@heartland.org) is editorial director at The Heartland Institute.