Commentary: Big Tent Ideas

JENNY BETH MARTIN: A Socialist Victory – And A Warning For America’s 249th Birthday

Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani at the Resist Fascism Rally (Bingjiefu He / Wikimedia Commons)

As America prepares to celebrate the 249th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence – a document steeped in the principles of individual liberty, limited government, and the inalienable rights of man – voters in New York City sent a different kind of message. Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a self-described “Democratic Socialist” and avowed critic of capitalism, has won the Democratic primary for mayor against a slew of more moderate rivals – doubling down on a worldview that is increasingly popular among the rising generation yet fundamentally at odds with the values that made the American experiment the most successful in human history.

Mamdani’s victory is not just a local story – it’s a warning siren. He ran on a platform of rent freezes, wealth redistribution, and hostility toward Israel in the midst of an international crisis. He says he does not like capitalism and called for “the end goal of seizing the means of production.” This is the language of grievance, not growth, of coercion, not opportunity. And yet, he won – handily.

The win reflects more than just the preferences of one city’s electorate. It’s emblematic of a broader political current sweeping through the Democrat Party and the under-40 electorate in particular. Mamdani is part of a group of young left-wing lawmakers – including the likes of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar – who see American power and prosperity not as accomplishments to be lauded and preserved but as systems of oppression to be dismantled.

They are entitled to their views. But the rest of us should be alarmed at how little appreciation this faction shows for what has made America exceptional: free enterprise, political pluralism, and individual responsibility. As we approach America’s 250th birthday next year, we must ask: What happens when a rising generation no longer believes in the basic ideals of the Founding?

It is no accident that America became the most prosperous, innovative, and generous nation on Earth. The Founders created a republic designed to limit the power of government, protect private property, and foster personal liberty. These principles unleashed the dynamics of a free people. In the span of less than three centuries, the United States led the industrial revolution, defeated fascism and communism, put a man on the moon, and lifted hundreds of millions around the world out of poverty – largely through a commitment to capitalism and democratic institutions.

But you wouldn’t know that listening to Mamdani and his fellow travelers. In their narrative, America’s economic system is a rigged game, and success is synonymous with exploitation. They reject the market as a source of opportunity, favoring state control as the path to justice. They see patriotism as naïve and tradition as oppressive. And rather than fix what’s broken within our institutions, they aim to tear them down and build something wholly different in their place.

They are not just misguided, they are dangerous. There’s nothing compassionate about policies that replace private initiative with bureaucratic dictate. The socialist dream of a government-managed economy has been tested – and failed – everywhere, from the Caribbean to Eastern Europe, from Africa to Asia. Socialism yields stagnation, scarcity, and, often, state-sanctioned repression. That a candidate who openly endorses such ideas is gaining traction in the United States is not a sign of progress. It’s a symptom of historical amnesia.

The Mamdani movement derives in part because civics education in America has atrophied. Generations of students have grown up learning more about America’s sins than its achievements, more about its contradictions than its ideals. The result is a cohort deeply skeptical of American exceptionalism, trained to see their country not as a beacon of liberty but as a bastion of inequality. The vacuum left by this failure of education is being filled with populist ideologies dressed in the rhetoric of justice but rooted in resentment.

None of this means the country is doomed. But it does mean the defenders of liberty, markets, and constitutional government have work to do. The response to Mamdani-style socialism isn’t to mirror its radicalism, but to reaffirm what has worked for nearly 250 years. That means reforming public schools so they teach the truth about America – warts and all – but also about its genius. It means re-engaging young people in debates over policy with evidence, not slogans. And it means showing, through policy and example, that capitalism – tempered by ethics and rule of law – remains the most effective force for human flourishing ever devised.

Zohran Mamdani may have won a primary. But it’s the American ideals he rejects that have won the test of time. As we mark the 249th Fourth of July, we’d do well to remember them – and redouble our commitment to pass them on.

 Jenny Beth Martin is Honorary Chairman of Tea Party Patriots Action. 

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Bingjiefu He / Wikimedia Commons)