The Democratic Socialists of America are having a moment, with candidates winning Democratic congressional primaries in New York and Colorado. Given the demographics of these districts, some will certainly be elected to the House in November.

Sympathetic Democrats often argue that these folks simply want to import a Nordic-style welfare state to the United States. In fact, the party’s agenda is far more radical, as many of its most vocal proponents speak longingly about Marx and Mao. But don’t take our word for it. It’s all spelled out in writing.

Last week, the DSA released its “program,” dubbed “Workers Deserve More.” It outlines what party members have in mind. Let’s just say that capitalism — which has created more wealth and pulled more people out of poverty than any system the world has ever known — isn’t on the agenda.

In addition to eliminating the Electoral College and Senate while making the presidency and the judiciary subordinate to the House, DSA members envision the nationalization of “the largest corporations” along with “universal rent control” and “guarantees” for gender transition surgeries. Health care will be free “with no premiums, co-pays or deductible.” All public higher education will be “tuition-free with no out-of-pocket cost for room and board.” Child care and pre-K? All free.

The “program” seeks to abolish “cash bail,” while some members openly call for closing prisons. DSA supporters also advocate for open borders and increased welfare for illegal immigrants, vowing to “end all immigrant detention and deportations, immediate amnesty for all immigrants regardless of current immigration status, and provide access to jobs, labor rights and social services to all immigrants.”

On foreign policy, the DSA sides firmly with Hamas terrorists while arguing against sanctions on “countries whose governments act independently of the United States, such as Cuba, Venezuela and Iran.”

Party enthusiasts would pay for all this free stuff with “taxes on the richest earners, for-profit corporations, large inheritances and private colleges and universities.” A wealth tax is also in the playbook. The fact that all these confiscatory levies wouldn’t come close to covering the actual costs of this pipe dream is never addressed. Details, details.

This is too much to bear for even some diehard progressive Democrats. Over the weekend, CNN’s Van Jones took to social media to rant about the DSA potentially undermining the Democratic Party in the long run. “Supporting Hamas is not progressive. ‘No police, no prisons, no borders’ is not progressive. Celebrating the murder of Israeli civilians is not progressive. These ideas are REGRESSIVE,” Jones wrote.

He’s right. Rather than offering a way forward, the DSA’s “program” is a recipe for rampant poverty that emits a strong stench of 1917.

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