The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is advocating for a foreign policy agenda that critics argue aims to weaken the United States' global influence and empower adversarial regimes. The group's new platform, titled “Workers Deserve More,” outlines several key proposals that challenge traditional U.S. foreign policy tenets.
Key Proposals and Criticisms
The DSA's platform calls for significant reductions in military spending, including the closure of U.S. military bases abroad. It also suggests halting what it terms "economic warfare" against countries like Cuba and Iran, and ceasing all assistance to Israel. Furthermore, the DSA advocates for ending immunity for U.S. war criminals and prosecuting individuals implicated in the Gaza conflict.
Megan Romer, a national co-chair for the DSA, affirmed the organization's stance on defunding the Pentagon in a Fox News interview, stating, "Absolutely." The DSA's agenda also includes a shift towards public ownership of major corporations and essential industries, a move critics contend would lead to reduced economic growth, innovation, and international influence for the U.S.
Melat Kiros, a Democratic nominee for Colorado’s 1st Congressional District and a DSA member, has stated that U.S. policy made the 9/11 attacks “inevitable,” and that illegal immigration is a result of America “destabilizing countries in order to mine them for resources.” Romer has echoed the sentiment that America bears responsibility for global instability.
Stance on International Relations and U.S. Allies
The DSA has expressed strong opposition to policies supporting Israel, with some members making controversial statements. Darializa Avila Chevalier, a candidate for Congress, has stated, “Israel doesn’t exist,” and participated in a pro-Hamas rally in October 2023. Romer defended Chevalier's participation, suggesting she might have attended the rally herself and described the Hamas October 7 rampage as “largely inevitable.”
The organization has also shown support for regimes often at odds with the U.S., such as Cuba and Iran, and has been described as encouraging any regime that stands against the United States.
Generational and Ideological Context
With an average age of around 30, the DSA's membership is notably young, comprising many Millennials and Zoomers who did not experience the Cold War or the collapse of the Soviet Union. This demographic is seen by some as contributing to a perceived naivete about socialist economic systems.
Critics point to figures like Sen. Bernie Sanders, an 84-year-old prominent socialist, as an influential figure who has lived through the historical outcomes of various socialist experiments, including those in China, the Soviet Union, Cuba, Venezuela, and Iran. The article suggests that while Sanders has a college degree, his views are rooted in "willful ignorance" of historical socialist failures.
The DSA's membership is described as predominantly white and college-educated, and not representative of the proletariat they claim to champion. The article draws parallels between the DSA's current agenda and the historical actions of figures like Lenin and Trotsky, whose socialist movements are blamed for widespread destruction and devastation.
Daniel J. Samet, a Jeane Kirkpatrick Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, authored the analysis, asserting that the DSA's agenda mirrors that of historical socialist movements that led to national ruin.