REMAKING AMERICA
50
Proposals in the Democratic Socialists of America Agenda and the Debate Over
What They Would Mean
Introduction:
Read the Agenda Before You Judge It
There are moments in American
politics when we should stop arguing about labels and start reading what
political organizations actually propose.
This is one of those moments.
The Democratic Socialists of America
has published an extraordinarily ambitious political program. Rather than
relying upon what Republicans, Democrats, television commentators or social
media personalities say about democratic socialism, Americans can read DSA's
proposals themselves.
And they should.
DSA does not merely advocate a
larger social safety net or somewhat higher taxes.
Its 2026 program describes
capitalism itself as something that ultimately should be replaced. Its
constitution states that the organization rejects an economic order based upon
private profit and instead favors popular control of resources and production, economic
planning and more equitable distribution.
Its new political program goes
considerably further.
DSA describes a future in which
healthcare, housing, education, energy, transportation and other necessities
would increasingly become public goods rather than conventional profit-making
businesses.
It advocates public ownership of
America's largest corporations and essential industries.
It proposes universal rent control.
It advocates canceling student debt.
It supports a 32-hour workweek with
full pay and benefits.
It proposes a federal jobs
guarantee.
It seeks to phase out fossil fuels.
It advocates abolishing ICE.
It supports extending voting rights
to permanent residents who are not American citizens.
It proposes abolishing the Electoral
College.
It proposes abolishing the United
States Senate.
It would dramatically expand the
House of Representatives.
Most remarkably, its program calls
for replacing America's existing presidential and judicial structure with an
executive and judiciary selected by and subordinate to Congress.
DSA's longer-term objective is even
more fundamental.
It calls for a new constitution and
what it describes as a democratic socialist republic.
Those positions deserve serious
examination.
But accuracy matters.
The Democratic Socialists of America
is not synonymous with the Democratic Party. DSA's own electoral
organization says its objective is eventually creating an independent socialist
political party. Indeed, DSA itself frequently criticizes Democratic Party
leaders.
At the same time, democratic
socialists and progressive Democrats sometimes run on Democratic ballots, and
there is continuing debate within the Democratic Party about how much influence
its socialist and progressive wing should have.
That relationship is therefore real,
but complicated.
There is another distinction worth
making.
Socialism, democratic socialism,
Marxism, social democracy and Soviet-style communism are not interchangeable
terms.
Karl Marx advocated replacing
capitalism and understood history substantially through conflict between
economic classes. DSA similarly uses the language of class conflict and
explicitly seeks a society beyond capitalism. Those similarities make
comparison with Marxist thought legitimate.
But modern DSA advocates electoral
organizing and democratic political action, rather than simply reproducing the
political system of the former Soviet Union.
The serious question therefore isn't
whether every socialist experiment throughout history was identical.
They weren't.
The serious question is this:
How much of America's existing
constitutional and economic order should Americans be willing to replace?
Consider what DSA itself proposes.
1.
Moving Beyond Capitalism
DSA explicitly envisions a future
beyond capitalism.
Critics argue that competitive
private markets have been enormously important to innovation, entrepreneurship
and American prosperity. DSA argues that capitalism concentrates economic power
unfairly.
2.
A New Constitution
DSA calls for creating a new
democratic constitution.
This represents considerably more
than amending individual provisions of the existing Constitution. It raises
fundamental questions about whether America's present constitutional framework
should continue.
3.
A Democratic Socialist Republic
The organization's ultimate vision
is the establishment of what it describes as a democratic socialist republic.
4.
Abolishing the United States Senate
DSA proposes eliminating the Senate.
That would remove one of the two
chambers Congress has possessed since 1789 and fundamentally change the
constitutional compromise giving states equal Senate representation.
5.
Replacing the Presidency
DSA proposes replacing the existing
presidency with an executive chosen by and subordinate to Congress.
Critics would argue this would
fundamentally alter the separation of powers.
6.
Replacing the Existing Supreme Court Structure
DSA similarly proposes a judiciary
chosen by and subordinate to Congress.
Opponents would argue that judicial
independence exists precisely so judges can sometimes rule against political
majorities.
7.
Abolishing the Electoral College
DSA favors eliminating the Electoral
College and changing how presidential power is structured.
8.
Expanding the House of Representatives
DSA advocates a larger House.
Supporters believe that would
improve representation. Critics would question the size and structure required.
9.
Proportional Representation
DSA proposes replacing today's
congressional electoral structure with proportional representation.
10.
Replacing the Two-Party System
DSA favors development of a
multiparty political system.
11.
Ranked Choice Voting
It supports ranked choice voting
throughout American elections.
12.
Public Financing of Elections
DSA advocates publicly financed
elections as part of eliminating private financial influence.
13.
Eliminating Citizens United
It seeks reversal of the
campaign-finance framework established by the Supreme Court's Citizens United
decision.
14.
Eliminating Lobbyists' Influence
DSA seeks sweeping restrictions on
lobbying and private money in politics.
15.
Voting Rights for Permanent Residents
One particularly consequential
proposal would extend full voting rights to permanent U.S. residents, rather
than limiting federal voting to American citizens.
16.
Voting Rights for Incarcerated People
DSA supports voting rights for
people currently incarcerated.
17.
Washington, D.C. Statehood
DSA supports making Washington, D.C.
a state.
18.
Public Ownership of Major Corporations
DSA advocates public ownership of
America's largest corporations and essential industries.
That represents one of the clearest
departures from America's traditional private-enterprise model.
19.
Economic Planning
DSA's constitution explicitly embraces
economic planning and popular control over resources and production.
20.
Aggressive Wealth Taxes
The organization proposes
substantial additional taxation of wealthy individuals and corporations.
21.
Healthcare as a Public Guarantee
DSA supports universal healthcare
without individual charges at the point of service.
22.
Public Hospitals and Clinics
Its program calls for substantially
expanding publicly operated healthcare facilities.
23.
Free Medical Education
Medical education and professional
training would become publicly funded.
24.
Housing as a Human Right
DSA argues that housing should be
guaranteed as a right rather than treated primarily as a market commodity.
25.
Publicly Owned Housing
The organization advocates massive
construction of publicly owned social housing.
26.
Universal Rent Control
DSA supports rent controls
nationally.
Critics argue broad rent controls
can discourage construction and investment; advocates contend they protect
tenants from displacement and excessive increases.
27.
Regulation of Investment Properties
The organization advocates stricter
controls over residential investment ownership.
28.
Canceling Student Debt
DSA favors eliminating existing
student loan debt.
The debate here includes both relief
for borrowers and fairness to taxpayers and people who previously repaid their
loans.
29.
Tuition-Free Education Through College
DSA supports publicly funded
education from prekindergarten through higher education.
30.
A 32-Hour Workweek
The organization proposes a 32-hour
workweek.
31.
Full Pay Despite Reduced Hours
Its proposal calls for maintaining
full compensation and benefits while reducing standard working hours.
32.
A Higher Living Minimum Wage
DSA advocates substantially
increasing minimum compensation.
33.
Federal Jobs Guarantee
The organization proposes
guaranteeing employment through federal policy.
34.
Stronger Union Power
DSA seeks substantially greater
organizing, bargaining and striking power for labor unions.
35.
Worker Control
Its long-term vision involves
workers gaining considerably greater control over workplaces and economic
decisions.
36.
Public Ownership of Energy Infrastructure
DSA's Green New Deal vision includes
publicly owned energy systems.
37.
Phasing Out Fossil Fuels
The program calls for transitioning
away from fossil fuels.
The central dispute is how rapidly
this could occur without undermining energy affordability, reliability and
American energy security.
38.
Public Transportation Expansion
DSA advocates enormous public
investment in mass transportation infrastructure.
39.
Reparations
The organization supports
reparations addressing historical slavery and racial discrimination.
40.
Abolishing ICE
DSA explicitly proposes abolishing
Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
41.
Ending Immigration Detention
It calls for ending ICE detention
and deportation policies.
42.
Amnesty for Undocumented Immigrants
DSA advocates legal status for
immigrants regardless of their current immigration status.
43.
Eliminating Visa Caps and Quotas
Its immigration vision includes
ending existing numerical restrictions on legal migration.
44.
Moving Toward Abolition of Police
DSA's program describes redirecting
police funding as steps toward eventually abolishing the existing police
system.
That is substantially more sweeping
than ordinary debates over police reform.
45.
Moving Toward Abolition of Prisons
Its program similarly envisions
ultimately replacing America's current prison system.
46.
Ending Qualified Immunity
DSA supports removing legal
protections that currently apply to police officers under specified
circumstances.
47.
Reducing America's Global Military Footprint
DSA advocates major reductions in
American military activity overseas.
48.
Closing Overseas Military Bases
Its foreign-policy platform calls
for closing U.S. military installations abroad.
Supporters see this as ending
interventionism. Critics argue America's global military presence deters
adversaries and supports allies.
49.
Ending Military and Economic Aid to Israel
DSA advocates terminating American
military and economic assistance to Israel and strongly supports Palestinian
political objectives.
50.
Building an Independent Socialist Political Movement
Perhaps the most important point is
one that corrects a common misconception.
DSA does not describe its ultimate
objective as taking over the Democratic Party.
Its 2026 electoral strategy says it
is committed to building an independent mass socialist party capable of
ending capitalism and establishing its conception of working-class democracy.
That is an important distinction
Americans across the political spectrum should understand.
Conclusion:
The Debate America Should Actually Be Having
After examining these fifty
proposals, Americans should resist two temptations.
The first is pretending that none of
this matters.
It matters enormously.
The second is exaggerating the
evidence by claiming that every Democrat in America has adopted every DSA
proposal.
That isn't true.
In fact, DSA itself criticizes the
Democratic Party and seeks eventually to build an independent socialist
political movement.
There are nevertheless significant
areas where progressive Democrats and democratic socialists cooperate, and
several DSA-aligned politicians participate in Democratic electoral politics.
Voters therefore have every reason
to ask Democratic candidates individually where they stand.
Do you support capitalism or
ultimately want to replace it?
Would you abolish the Senate?
Would you replace the presidency?
Should the judiciary become
subordinate to Congress?
Would you support writing an
entirely new Constitution?
Should noncitizen permanent
residents vote in federal elections?
Should America's largest
corporations become publicly owned?
Should the federal government
guarantee employment?
Should there be nationwide rent
control?
Should ICE be abolished?
Should immigration quotas disappear?
Should America's existing police and
prison systems ultimately be abolished?
Should the United States close its
overseas military bases?
Those are legitimate questions.
There is also an important
historical discussion surrounding socialism.
Marxist theory and DSA ideology
share significant concepts, particularly their emphasis on economic class,
criticism of private capital and desire to move beyond capitalism.
But Americans should be careful with
the statement that "socialism has never worked anywhere."
History is more complicated.
Countries commonly cited as
successful examples of Scandinavian "socialism," such as Denmark and
Sweden, retain extensive private ownership, competitive markets and capitalist
businesses while maintaining much larger welfare states.
At the opposite extreme, centrally
planned communist economies such as the Soviet Union experienced chronic
economic inefficiencies and ultimately political and economic collapse.
Those historical distinctions matter
because political labels can conceal enormous differences in actual policy.
America's constitutional structure
deserves equally serious attention.
The Founders deliberately divided
federal authority among Congress, the presidency and judiciary.
They divided Congress itself between
the House and Senate.
They created mechanisms intended to
make enormous political transformations difficult.
The objective was not efficiency.
It was restraint.
Power was divided because
concentrated political power can become dangerous regardless of which political
movement controls it.
That is why DSA's constitutional
proposals deserve particular scrutiny.
Abolishing the Senate, restructuring
the presidency, changing the Supreme Court's independence and writing a new
constitution would represent fundamental transformations of American government.
Supporters believe America's
existing institutions insufficiently represent ordinary citizens and give
wealthy interests disproportionate influence.
Opponents believe those same
constitutional institutions provide indispensable checks against temporary
political majorities and concentrations of power.
That is the debate worth having.
And Americans should demand
specificity from politicians.
Don't merely ask whether someone is
a Democrat.
Don't merely ask whether someone is
a Republican.
Don't assume that
"progressive," "liberal," "socialist" and
"Democrat" mean precisely the same thing.
They don't.
Instead, ask candidates exactly what
they believe.
Ask them about private property.
Ask them about capitalism.
Ask them about socialism.
Ask them about immigration.
Ask them about policing.
Ask them about taxation.
Ask them about the Senate.
Ask them about the Supreme Court.
Ask them about the presidency.
And above all, ask them about the
Constitution.
America's political future should
not be decided through frightening labels from one side or utopian promises
from the other.
It should be decided through facts.
DSA has done something useful in one
respect: it has told Americans what it wants.
Its 2026 program is unusually
explicit.
It envisions a fundamentally
different economic system and, eventually, a fundamentally different
constitutional structure.
Some Americans will consider that
transformation long overdue.
Others will consider preservation of
America's constitutional republic and market economy indispensable.
But nobody should have to guess what
is being proposed.
Read it.
Study it.
Challenge it.
Defend it if you believe in it.
Oppose it if you do not.
And require every candidate seeking
your vote to tell you exactly where he or she stands.
Because when political organizations
begin talking about replacing economic systems, abolishing constitutional
institutions and writing new constitutions, Americans should pay attention.
The future of the country is too
important to do otherwise.
The most consequential claims above
come directly from DSA's current program: its website advocates a society
beyond capitalism, a new constitution, abolition of the Senate, replacement of
the existing presidency and Supreme Court structure, public ownership of major
corporations, abolition of ICE, and movement toward abolition of police and
prisons. DSA's constitution separately states its commitment to popular control
of resources and production and economic planning.
Just as importantly, the evidence
does not support calling DSA and the Democratic Party "absolutely
the same." Reuters reported in August 2026 that very few Democratic
candidates are DSA members and that the Democratic Party does not share the DSA
platform, even as some Democrats welcome DSA voices in the party's broader
ideological debate
