New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez hasn't been shy about her distaste for capitalism, and she made her feelings even clearer during a recent interview with Yahoo Finance’s Andy Serwer.
Here's what she said:
"I believe that in a broad sense because when we toss out these big words, capitalism, socialism, they get sensationalized."
"And people translate them into meaning things that perhaps they don’t mean. So to me, capitalism at its core, what we’re talking about when we talk about that, is the absolute pursuit of profit at all human, environmental, and social cost. That is what we’re really discussing.”
"And what we’re also discussing is the ability for a very small group of actual capitalists — and that is people who have so much money that their money makes money, and they don’t have to work. And they can control industry. They can control our energy sources. They can control our labor. They can control massive markets that they dictate and can capture governments. And they can essentially have power over the many. And to me that is not a redeemable system for us to be able to participate in for the prosperity and peace for the vast majority of people."
AOC's definition of "capitalism" is as unfairly negative as possible, but that's not why we're covering this story.
We're more concerned about the system AOC wants to replace capitalism with. Because, at the end of the day, someone will have to decide what to do with the resources and ingenuity that resides in the United States. If private citizens can't be trusted to control our country's economic activity, who can?
Like all socialists, AOC believes the government should shoulder that responsibility. In other words, she wants to do it.
She doesn't believe everyday Americans can be trusted with the "means of production." She characterizes these "capitalists" as a small group of billionaires, but everyday Americans operate thousands of businesses across the country.
If AOC and others like her get their way, these Americans will be beholden to a tidal wave of government regulation and taxes. Government bureaucrats, directed by politicians like AOC, would impose crippling regulations designed to promote "equity" and reduce the size of businesses that get "too big."
Politicians would also pass sky-high taxes to redistribute wealth from successful businesses to unsuccessful businesses and fund huge, corrupt government welfare programs. These programs would seek to impose "income equality" by taking money from productive parts of the economy and sending it to unproductive parts.
This is the alternative to capitalism. This is the dream of socialists like AOC, and it's exactly the system a Convention of States can prevent.
An Article V Convention of States is called and controlled by the states and has the power to propose constitutional amendments. These amendments can limit the power, scope, and jurisdiction of the federal government, and place clear boundaries around federal power. Amendments can explicitly keep the feds out of healthcare, energy, and the economy, and shrink the federal budget to prohibit socialist policies.
Over five million Americans have voiced support for the movement to end the socialist threat, and 17 of the necessary 34 states are on board. To join the team in your state, sign the petition below!
