Venezuela’s downfall should be a wake-up call to fans of ‘democratic socialism’ |
After President Donald Trump‘s shock move to oust former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, the national debate has focused on the legality and wisdom of such a drastic step. But, while those debates are all important, a broader lesson is falling under the radar: the story of Venezuela’s downfall as a wake-up call for the misguided American leftists promoting so-called “democratic socialism.”
Given the bloody and brutal historical record of socialism, American leftists — from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) to the new mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani — wisely rebranded their preferred political agenda to something different, “democratic socialism,” to avoid being lumped in with the authoritarian regimes of the 20th century. This rebrand has been so successful that recent polling found 62% of young Americans aged 18 to 29 view socialism........