Democratic Socialists of America propose radical overhaul of US govt
The Democratic Socialists of America want to fight for working-class Americans by offering free healthcare and abolishing the U.S. Senate. What else does their "Workers Deserve More" platform say?
Emily R. CondonThe recently released platform for the Democratic Socialists of America is titled "Workers Deserve More" and it includes some proposals to ease cost of living for working families that are popular among many progressives, such as free healthcare and pre-K.
"You have no debt. You don’t need health insurance," the platform’s website says, laying out its vision for American social democracy. "You don’t pay a mortgage or have a landlord, because comfortable housing is a human right."
The platform, released July 14, drew widespread backlash from conservatives. Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson reacted to the platform calling it "communism" by "barbarians," while slamming the more radical policies like eliminating the U.S. Senate or having the president selected by Congress.
"This isn’t just Common Sense vs. Crazy anymore," Johnson wrote on X. "It’s Common Sense vs. COMMUNISM."
Although not all self-described democratic socialists are in the Democratic Socialists of America, the DSA is an increasingly influential player on the left. Members include New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, all Democrats. Three Democratic nominees for U.S. House of Representative seats – Darializa Avila Chevalier and Claire Valdez in New York and Melat Kiros in Colorado – also belong to the group, as do a growing list of state and local officials.
A third of Democrats identify as democratic socialists, according to a July 30 CNN poll, but it's possible that quite a few of those are not familiar with some of the DSA's more unusual suggestions for overhauling the U.S. government. A July 28 Reuters/Ipsos poll revealed that 47% of Americans say they don't understand democratic socialist policies.
While President Donald Trump and his GOP allies slam democratic socialists as "communists," the Democratic Socialists of America is defining its own brand in the new platform.
The 120,000-member organization's policy roadmap has three sections:
- Thriving Working-Class Communities
- Working-Class Foreign Policy
- Working-Class Democracy
Reforming democracy
"Working-Class Democracy" aims to increase access to the electoral system by expanding voting rights beyond citizens to all permanent residents. It would also restore the right to vote to those stripped of it for a criminal conviction, and it calls for statehood for Washington, DC, and self-determination of U.S. territories, such as Puerto Rico and Guam.
The platform also calls for structural changes, some of which would require amending the U.S. Constitution, including:
- Abolishing the U.S. Senate. Democratic Socialists of America co-chair Megan Romer told FOX News that the Senate is an "anachronistic institution. It comes from the British House of Lords," and was created to "protect power" and ensure "the people didn't have too much of a say.
- Expanding the House of Representatives to an unspecified number
- Replacing the two-party system with a "multi-party democracy"
- Abolishing the Electoral College and having Congress elect the president and Supreme Court
- Implementing ranked-choice voting in all elections
- Ridding the system of lobbyists and “dark money” - or funding from election Super PACs who do not need to disclose donors
On businesses, the platform calls for making large corporations public, implementing "aggressive wealth taxes" and empowering workers to unionize.
Government aid and support for individuals
Under "Thriving Working-Class Communities" proposals, the Democratic Socialists of America look at solutions for everyday people. Health care for all, housing for all and the Green New Deal are more well-known left-leaning policies included in the category. Workers Deserve More also includes:
- "Freedom to Flourish:" calls for 32-hour work weeks, paid family leave, free education and a livable minimum wage.
- "End Mass Incarceration and Police Immunity:" This would “demilitarize” police departments and “empower civilian oversight bodies” as initial steps in a process that would ultimately abolish police departments and the prison system.
- "Finish Reconstruction:" The United States post-Civil War period of reintegrating Confederate states back into the Union and establishing rights for freed former slaves, known as the Reconstruction Era, ended with an 1877 political deal to pull federal soldiers out of the South, opening the door for Southern politicians to pass Jim Crow segregation policies. The DSA platform says reconstruction is not done and aims to lift up minority and indigenous communities through honoring tribal treaties and enacting reparations. It would ultimately “end the legacies of slavery and colonialism.”
- "Feminism for All:" Working class women are at the forefront of this agenda that “ends policies that oppress bodily autonomy” such as restrictive abortion, contraceptive and transgender transition bans. It also calls for "queer liberation" – or complete freedom for LGBTQIA+ communities via dismantling the social constructs of gender, capitalism and the patriarchy.
Disengaging in world affairs
The "Working Class Foreign Policy" section of the platform lays out the Democratic Socialists of America's view on how the United States should be involved – or not involved – in geopolitics and foreign intervention around the world.
They call for providing a path to citizenship for "all immigrants regardless of status" and easing requirements in an immigration policy that would abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ending all ICE detention and deportations.
"Free Palestine," is another goal that would include ending all U.S. military aid to Israel and "Prosecute U.S. and Israeli leaders responsible for the genocide in Gaza."
Perhaps the most radical program is the "End the U.S. War Machine" section which calls to "defund" the Department of War, closing overseas US military bases and prosecuting U.S. war criminals in line with the International Criminal Court. Supporting and employing veterans is also included. It is unclear if the proposal aims to entirely abolish the agency that oversees U.S. military action, but Romer said in the FOX News interview that the it "absolutely" calls for defunding the Pentagon.
Finally, it calls for disengagement in non-domestic issues by ending blockades, embargoes and sanctions, specifically naming those targeting Iran, Cuba and Venezuela.
"People around the world deserve to live their lives without U.S. interference," the Democratic Socialists of America write.
Are leaders in Washington behind the more radical positions?
USA TODAY reached out to Ocasio-Cortez, Mamdani, Tlaib, Kiros, Avila Chevalier and Valdez to ask if they support the "Workers Deserve More" platform – including calls to abolish the Senate and Electoral College, defund the Department of War, close military bases, end economic sanctions against Cuba, Iran and Venezuela and to replace the president and Supreme Court.
Valdez's campaign office declined to comment, and the other politicians did not respond.
Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee and Texas Rep. Greg Casar were formerly endorsed by the organization, but both no longer identify as members of the Democratic Socialists of America.
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