Rising Support for Socialism Highlights Deep Discontent with U.S. Capitalism

A recent opinion piece points out that while socialism enjoys growing approval, capitalism’s favorability has slipped below half, and the author argues that only reforming capitalism can curb socialism’s appeal.

The author observes that polls now show socialism gaining mid-to-high-30s support, while capitalism’s positive rating has fallen to 54%, a figure the writer deems disgraceful for the nation that birthed modern capitalism. He attributes this decline to a version of capitalism practiced over the past four decades that is corrupt, monopolistic, and socially inefficient. Referencing the New Deal era, he highlights Franklin Roosevelt’s tax reforms, Keynesian public works, union-friendly legislation, and strengthened antitrust enforcement, which together produced the “Great Compression” of income inequality and robust growth in the 1960s. In contrast, today’s economy suffers from wasted human potential, unchecked monopoly power, a trillion-dollar-plus oligarchy led by figures such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, and algorithmic pricing that penalizes consumers. The author argues that only by instituting humane reforms—fair wages, universal health care, targeted public investment, and progressive taxation—can the United States halt socialism’s rise and restore a functional capitalist system.