A spectre is haunting America — the spectre of… Nevermind.
Karl Marx’s infamous prefatory to “The Communist Manifesto” (“A spectre is haunting Europe…”) is a cocktail of audacity, admonition and aspiration. Though Marx’s stateless, classless utopia will likely never come into being, it’s not for lack of trying. However, socialism — the state from which communism ostensibly evolves — is thriving globally. And, improbably, democratic socialism is holding its own in the U.S. at the moment.
Zohran Mamdani, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), was elected mayor of New York City last fall. His acceptance speech was broad in scope. Mamdani name-checked Eugene Debs, the five-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America. He channeled Bill Clinton and Barack Obama by imploring his audience to hang on to hope.
Perhaps most surprisingly, Mamdani delivered a few lines that were reminiscent of the father of his primary opponent, Andrew Cuomo: “For as long as we can remember, the working people of New York have been told by the wealthy and the well-connected that power does not belong in their hands. Fingers bruised from lifting boxes on the warehouse floor, palms calloused from delivery bike handlebars, knuckles scarred with kitchen burns: these are not hands that have been allowed to hold power.”
The late, legendary governor of New York, Mario Cuomo, was renowned for the vivid imagery and proletarian prose of his speeches. Mamdani alluded to the elder Cuomo as “a great New Yorker.” One wonders whether this was an attempt to soothe his rift with Democrats.
Perhaps the best-known part of the speech came when he defiantly declared: “I am young … I am Muslim. I am a democratic socialist. And most damning of all, I refuse to apologize for any of this.”
Clips of that portion of the speech were replayed between two and three billion times. (I know because I counted each instance.) Yet, what Mamdani said immediately after that was the most telling: “And yet, if tonight teaches us anything, it is that convention has held us back. We have bowed at the altar of caution, and we have paid a mighty price. Too many working people cannot recognize themselves in our party, and too many among us have turned to the right for answers to why they’ve been left behind.”
Though the mayor lambasted Donald Trump eight times in his speech, this lament was not directed toward him or other Republicans. Rather, it was pointedly aimed at the Democratic Party, particularly its elites who opposed Mamdani tooth and nail. Pick your cliché. It was a “shot across the bow.” It was a “come to Jesus moment,” which is interesting given that Mamdani is Muslim. In short, it was an affirmation that Democrats must reckon with Democratic Socialists. Someone please check on James Carville. Quickly.
While it is not at all clear that Mamdani’s victory or Abdul El-Sayed’s senatorial candidacy in Michigan herald a sustainable trend, many Democratic voters are willing to give democratic socialists a second look. (Notably, though El-Sayed is not a member of the DSA, he very much shares its DNA.) The point is that the “s-word” is no longer an automatic kiss of death. Bernie Sanders was an anomaly; Zohran Mamdani might be a bellwether.
It’s worth noting that socialism is not the same as communism, and democratic socialism is not the same as either of the two.
It’s worth noting that socialism is not the same as communism, and democratic socialism is not the same as either of the other two. Most of the people who know the differences among these systems are more likely to at least consider voting for a democratic socialist. Most of the people who don’t know the differences don’t care about nuance; they just know that they’re supposed to hate socialists because they’re, you know, communists …
In any case, one of the reasons that Donald Trump won the presidency twice is that he was more than willing to turn “conventional wisdom” on its head. Criticism of his methods is a moral mandate, but learning from him is a political imperative.
Messaging, of course, is crucial. Bill Clinton said, “I feel your pain.” Donald Trump said, “I am your retribution”. It’s about vision, both in the now (“I see you”) and in the future (“I see a better America for you”).
Less than a year ago, I authored a column titled “Donald Trump the… Socialist?”. Among other things, I wrote:
“Trump also crafted a deal in which the U.S. government will levy a 15% tax on computer chips that Nvidia and AMD sell to China. (We all know how much Republicans love increasing taxes.) Interestingly, U.S. tech companies balked when President Biden tried to get them to buy more chips from Intel, which makes China’s eagerness to acquire them somewhat curious.
How unusual is all this for a Republican? Senator Bernie Sanders, who is an avowed Democratic Socialist, applauds Trump’s investment decisions. Equally as important, Senator Rand Paul is apoplectic over these offenses to Republican orthodoxy. Still, at this point, Trump remains extremely popular among the party faithful. Ronald Reagan has officially left the building.
Not coincidentally, government ownership in private enterprises is a feature of the three most common forms of authoritarian government: socialism, communism, and fascism…”
I concluded the column with the following: “In any case, Republicans might want to rethink using ‘socialist’ as an epithet. The ‘rubber and glue’ retort that we all used as kids is in full effect.”
In the end, struggling Americans are increasingly less concerned about politicians’ party affiliation and much more interested in what they will deliver for them. Enter Trump, who Republicans would have castigated as a “RINO” just a few years ago. Also enter Mamdani, who resonates with millions when he says: “As has so often occurred, the billionaire class has sought to convince those making $30 an hour that their enemies are those earning $20 an hour.”
I can’t decide whether Democrats or Republicans should fear the DSA more. What I do know is that “business as usual” is rapidly going out of business.
Contact community leader Larr Smith at larry@leaf-llc.com.
