A new platform from the progressive Democratic Socialists of America is sparking Republican attacks. NEW YORK (AP) — A new platform from a progressive group that’s notched several recent primary victories is becoming fodder for Republican attacks, as the GOP looks to frame Democrats as extremists and communists ahead of November’s midterm elections. Although the Democratic Socialists of America’s Workers Deserve More platform doesn’t necessarily line up exactly with the candidates’ own agendas, prominent Republicans over the weekend decried it.
The DSA platform proposes drafting “a new constitution” with significant changes to the structure of the U.S. government, including abolishing the Senate, replacing the president and the Supreme Court with leaders picked by Congress and allowing all permanent U.S. Alongside those changes, the platform, published earlier this month, calls for a number of social reforms.
“The barbarians are inside the gate — and Democrats are WELCOMING them in,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., wrote on X. “Communism is no longer a far fetched threat. It is here on our SHORES!” The Wall Street Journal’s conservative-leaning editorial board also warned about the agenda, calling it radical and writing that the job of Republicans and willing Democrats is to educate the country about it.
But it cautioned Republicans to avoid communism attack lines, saying they wouldn’t resonate with younger generations. The left is also split between progressive and moderate wings that have different ideas about the best policies to carry the Democratic Party forward. But the DSA platform has created an opening for Republicans to attack Democrats with a broad brush as they look for an edge in races that will determine which party has a majority in Congress next year.
President Donald Trump this year has returned to an old habit of calling Democrats communists, saying they want to “destroy the traditional American way of life.” Other Republicans have followed suit, turning to more comfortable territory after months spent defending their party as disgruntled Americans fume about foreign wars and the high cost of living. DSA agenda calls for dramatic overhaul of government and society The DSA’s vision for the country laid out in mid-July proposes major changes that the group says can in part be achieved…
Summary from source