A factor behind Bernie Sanders' appeal: Changing attitudes toward socialism
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When a New York Times reporter whether his domestic policies suggested that he was a socialist in 2009, the president responded with a laugh: 鈥淭he answer would be no.鈥
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After the interview, Mr. Obama called the reporter back to elaborate on his answer, saying, 鈥淚t was hard for me to believe that you were entirely serious about that socialist question.鈥澨
鈥淭hat socialist question鈥 has taken on a new form these days, revolving around in the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination: Bernie Sanders.听
While Obama chuckled at the thought of socialism in that interview six years ago, Mr. Sanders has repeatedly upheld his socialist views throughout his presidential campaign by largely targeting income inequality. Hillary Clinton has also made income inequality a major plank in her 2016 campaign platform. But, arguably, Sanders has a more consistent claim to the subject.
During a breakfast hosted by 海角大神 in June, Sanders avoided questions about his campaign opponents and steered the discussion towards the 鈥enormously serious problems鈥 he hopes to improve: 听听
鈥淪hould college education be available to all regardless of their income?听
鈥淲hy are we the only major country on Earth without a national health-care program guaranteeing health care for all people?
鈥淲hy is the middle class of this country disappearing?
鈥淚s it moral that we have massive wealth and income inequality?"
These questions may resonate with low-income Americans who are seeking effective solutions. According to a Pew Research Center survey from 2011, low-income Americans (43%) are as higher-income Americans (22%) to view socialism positively.
More recent data show a slight shift towards the once-out-of-favor ideology among several groups.
In response to a Gallup poll in June, of surveyors said they would vote for a socialist if their party nominated one, while 50 percent said they would not. Only three years ago, the Pew Research survey found that of Americans reacted positively to the word 鈥渟ocialism,鈥 while 60 percent reacted negatively.听
And Sanders鈥 call to go 鈥溾 may appeal to one group whose political views tend to fall in a grey area: Millennials.
The 2011 Pew Research survey showed that among 18-to-29-year olds, 49 percent had a positive view of socialism, while 47 percent had a positive view of capitalism.
Younger Americans aren鈥檛 as set on their political views as their parents or grandparents because socialism means different things to different generations, Michelle Diggles, a senior political analyst at liberal think tank Third Way, .
"For older people, socialism is associated with Communism and the Soviet Union and the Cold War," she said.
"But the oldest Millennials were 8 years old when the Berlin Wall fell. They have never known a world where the Soviet Union exists ... The connotations associated with the word 'socialism' just don't exist with millennials."
Though Sanders鈥 views on , such as climate change, campaign finance reform and the regulation of Wall Street, align with those of many Americans, time will tell whether the rest of the country is ready for a socialist president.听