The Specter of Socialism

On the GOP's obsession with socialism

America has undoubtedly seen better days. People on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly dissatisfied with the state of our country, albeit for wildly different reasons. According to Pew Research, in the 2020 election Trump voters cared most about the economy, crime, gun rights, and immigration. While there is admittedly some variation between polls as to which issues most motivate conservatives, one issue never tops the list: socialism. 

The specter of socialism nevertheless continues to be invoked by GOP leadership and Con Inc. talking heads as if it were the single greatest threat to America. One particularly egregious example of this occurred in the wake of Virginia Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin’s recent victory. Youngkin skillfully campaigned on issues that mattered to Virginians: most notably, ending critical race theory and the LGBT indoctrination of children. Over the course of the following days, however, we were told by the usual suspects that Youngkin won because he opposed socialism. The error with this, though, is that Youngkin’s campaign rarely if ever even used the term. 

There are many reasons why socialism is an unideal boogeyman for the right. Firstly, socialism is an incredibly broad, ambiguous term. Some define it as “the government doing a thing,” like requiring driver’s licenses or building roads – things most people aside from ardent libertarians find unobjectionable. According to this definition, the military, which the GOP and Con Inc. unquestioningly support, would also be considered socialism. The traditional, for lack of a better word, definition of socialism is different: state-ownership of industry. This is what Marx had in mind with his advocacy for the dictatorship of the proletariat. But is that we’re up against? Are George Soros, Jeff Bezos, and those who attend the Davos conference eager to see their considerable wealth nationalized? Certainly not. 

As such, it’s often unclear at times just what exactly the GOP is claiming to oppose when it denounces socialism. Of course, we could point to policies like the Green New Deal, tax hikes, or an expanded welfare state, as relatively socialistic policies which the GOP opposes. Although most in the dissident right would likely oppose the aforementioned policies, we understand that, however harmful they might be, we have far bigger fish to fry. 

America is besieged by globalism – not socialism. Our elites aren’t laboring to bring us toward a dictatorship of the proletariat. Instead, these oligarchs and their political puppets are trying to consolidate wealth and power for themselves at our expense. This ruling class exerts power through elected officials, talking heads, and institutions on both sides of the political aisle. It isn’t an inherently right or left issue, but the only serious opposition to globalism exists on the right. And, at this point, to defend civilizational values is to be right-wing.

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