The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are collecting election victories across the Country. As they do, certain Establishment Democrats are distancing themselves from the DSA. However, the plain truth is that the DSA is a natural extension of the modern Democrat Party.
Keep in mind that the policies of the DSA include support for the Green New Deal, trans rights, labor rights and union organization, universal childcare, defunding if not the elimination of the police, publicly funded healthcare and antiwar positions. To support all of that, their candidates have vocally supported taxing the rich.
The DSA builds its ranks through community organizing, protests, and its high-profile elected leaders, such as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, U.S. Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), and others. Its website asks viewers to “Start your own DSA chapter!”
If all of the above sounds familiar, it is because they are natural extensions, if not actual, mainstream positions of the Democrat Party.
Take a look.
- The Green New Deal. Support for the Green New Deal is featured prominently on the DSA website. It was public policy during the Biden Administration. Nearly every Democrat in Congress supported it. Thus, DSA’s current support of it can hardly be considered extreme among Democrats.
- Universal healthcare. The DSA supports universal, government-provided healthcare. Thirty years ago, publicly funded healthcare among Democrats was championed by Hillary Clinton. It was known as Hillarycare. President Obama advanced that concept with Obamacare. Countless Congressional Democrats support publicly funded universal healthcare today – and not just to U.S. citizens. Leading candidate for the Democrat nomination for President Gavin Newsom gives it to many, including those here illegally. Obviously, the DSA’s current support of universal healthcare can hardly be considered extreme among Democrats. Indeed, the DSA is late to the Democrats’ universal healthcare party.
- The Antiwar Party. The DSA is against the war in Iran and Gaza. It is nearly the official position of the Democrat Party to be against the Iran War and Gaza. Since the 1960s, the Democrats have been the anti-war power to one degree or another. Once again, the DSA’s position is either plainly the same or a natural extension of the modern Democrat Party.
- The Tax The Rich Party. The Socialists of the DSA support taxing the rich. Meanwhile, the Democrats uniformly demand the rich pay their “fair share.” Biden regularly chanted that mantra, as do Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), AOC and Mamdani — despite the top 10 percent of income earners paying over 75 percent of the federal income tax. Gavin Newsom, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders all support a wealth tax. Sanders nearly won the Democrat nomination in 2020 before it was wrested from him, and Newsom and Warren are considered very mainstream Democrats. Thus, the DSA’s tax position is hardly outside mainstream Democrat thinking.
- Trans Rights. Support for trans rights is featured prominently on the DSA website. It was the official policy of the Biden Administration to advance trans rights and he appointed a trans individual as assistant secretary of health. Gavin Newsom publicly rebuked the recent Supreme Court Decision on trans rights, and California still champions trans rights. Congressional Democrats put forth the Transgender Bill of Rights and the Equality Act and repeatedly voted against Republican bills to protect women’s sports. In other words, and once again, the DSA’s position is in line with most federally elected Democrats.
- Community Organization and Protests. One strategy of the Democrats is countless public demonstrations, including paid protestors, against all things Trump and ICE. Indeed, the Democrats are the Party of Protests as they were in the 1960s. The DSA follows that model along with Obama’s community organization model and support of Labor issues.
- Defund the Police/Open Border. Kamala Harris, the last Democrat nominee for President, supported defunding the police, as have countless Democrat officials across the nation over the last decade. The same can be said of open borders. The DSA’s support of police defunding and open borders is right in line with that thinking.
- Anti-Israel Position. While not all Congressional or Senate Democrats are anti-Israel, a great many are. According to MS NOW, recent polling showed that “somewhere between 72% and 77% of Democrats believe that Israel committed genocide in Gaza.” A good deal of the anti-Israel, if not antisemitic, sentiment is reflected on the liberal schools' campuses of America, including many a protest. Indeed, DSA candidates often take that sentiment to new heights. Nevertheless, it is a sentiment that resides firmly in the Democrat Party.
- Anti-American views. Recent polling has found that Democrats’ pride in America has plummeted to historic lows. Mamdani chose July 3rd to sit at George Washington’s desk to express his disdain for America. Other DSA candidates have also expressed intense anti-America views, aligning themselves with Democrats across the Country.
- Socialism. Finally, a “firm 32% of Democrats indicated they like democratic socialist” politicians, and, “among self-described liberal Democrats, 52% like politicians who identify as democratic socialists," according to a report from the New York Post.
Those are no small portions of the Democrats, and their preference did not arise overnight. As I wrote over in 2021, Democrats emphasize permanent government programs over short-term election victories. They have been playing the long game for decades—one that emphasizes permanent government programs over short-term election victories.
Today, in the United States, our governments guarantee some level of cradle-to-grave subsidies for nearly everyone – even those here illegally. All of those programs set a strong foundation for a socialist future.
The fact that the DSA publicly declares its support for that socialism only makes it more transparent than the modern Democrat Party, which moves with a more stealth footing to the very same socialism.
Nevertheless, despite the “shock” of some Democrats, the DSA is a natural offspring of the modern Democrat Party, and as the 2026 Midterms approach, there is no moderation in sight for the DSA or the Democrats.