OPINION:
The radicals assembled in Chicago this week under the banner of joy and hope, but their rhetoric was filled with anger and hatred. Their actions and proposals, however, are far worse for the future of America.
All the warnings of a Marxist regime are there: a political coup, government control of the economy through price controls and heavy regulations, manipulation of government agencies and the courts to punish political opponents, censorship, unwillingness to talk to independent media outlets, government determined outcomes, religious persecution, and the list goes on and on.
Just months ago, President Biden carried every primary and caucus on the Democrat side. He had more than enough delegates committed to him to win the nomination, yet Vice President Kamala Harris is now the standard bearer for his party. There was no medical emergency. No change of heart. Mr. Biden was pushed out. It was a modern-day political coup.
Democrats were scared Mr. Biden would lose big and take others with him. A poor debate performance gave them an opening. He was, however, in trouble long before then because of public dissatisfaction with high prices, border crisis, and violent crime.
Shifting to the vice president gave Democrats a chance to change the narrative and lose the “too old to govern” mindset. Still, voters are upset over prices, so the Harris-Walz campaign ignored the facts that high levels of government spending, a shift away from energy independence, and mounds of red tape were driving up inflation and prices. Instead, they decided to blame corporations for high costs and propose price controls.
A government-run economy does not work. Venezuela was once a thriving country. Look what cost controls via socialism did to that once prosperous nation. Cuba, North Korea, and the former Soviet republics are all case studies for why government control of the economy does not work. The price controls proposed by Ms. Harris are likely to lead to higher prices or shortages in supply (like the lines for gas in Venezuela).
Similarly, there are real concerns that the federal government offering $25,000 to first time homebuyers would drive up the cost of housing. Higher education is a prime example of the failures of our government in Washington, D.C. Despite massive increases in federal student loan assistance, tuition has gone up by more than three times the rate of inflation over the past 35 years. Instead of spending more taxpayers’ dollars on aid, we should be doing more to reduce factors that drive up prices of higher education and housing.
Government mandates to use electric vehicles and bans against natural gas when there are not adequate supplies of alternative energy sources like solar and wind will lead to an economic meltdown in the future. Instead of giving consumers choices, radicals want to strangle the market and allow the heavy hand of big government to make the decisions.
It is not a reach to suggest that the reason for these proposals is not to lower costs but to make Americans more dependent on the government. Again, this is a major warning before a nation becomes an oppressive Marxist regime.
A federal judge dismissed a case against former Mr. Trump, but several others remain. Even if the former president was guilty of the charges in New York, defendants would typically be charged with a misdemeanor and not a felony. In the past, Members of Congress have unveiled actions taken by federal agencies like the Internal Revenue Service to target conservatives.
Censorship on college campuses should be the early warning signs for the nation. Of all places, a college should be the place where free speech is revered and yet it is this place where it is most typically under attack. At Young America’s Foundation, we routinely fight to protect the rights of conservative students to have a voice on campus or even on social media. Marxists use phrases like “disinformation” to drown out views they find objectionable.
Typically, Mr. Biden appears to have a list of names (with photos) of reporters to call on with predetermined questions. Marxists typically do not want to be challenged by an independent media.
Eventually Marxist regimes tell the people the size of their home, modes of transportation, and even how many children they must have in their family. We see this in Communist China today. They use phrases like equity to justify their actions.
Christians and Jews are under attack today. It is not enough to be tolerant of others’ beliefs. Those who do not fully embrace gender confusion are told they are discriminatory or even transphobic. Jewish students on campus are particularly under attack from radicalized students who support terrorists involved with Hamas.
The radical left today is set on taking our country on a path towards an oppressive Marxist regime. We must never let that happen in America.
• Scott Walker is president of Young America’s Foundation and served as the 45th governor of Wisconsin from 2011 to 2019.
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