Senator Bernie Sanders seems to have promised his followers everything under the stars in the 2016 election. From tuition-free college to free healthcare for all, what’s not to like?
In the past few weeks, the self-proclaimed democratic socialist’s campaign has had a resurgence, claiming victories in the Western states of Idaho, Utah, Alaska, Hawaii, and Washington.
Interestingly, millennial voters who support Sanders are more willing to embrace his brand of socialism over a more market-based economy. But do they know exactly what they’re getting into?
Upon reading Sanders’s proposals, I reasoned that they could be workable based on some of the following caveats:
1) The presumption that all college students will successfully graduate on time
2) The presumption that a quality job is guaranteed after completing college
3) The presumption that quality healthcare will be available when you need it
4) The presumption that all millennials will be healthy to begin with, thus placing less of a burden on healthcare programs
5) The presumption that millennials have a sense of personal responsibility
Sanders’s proposals are sound on paper. If America were in a geopolitical and economic vacuum, there could be an endless supply of tax dollars to fund his programs. If there are more expenditures being paid out than revenue coming in, however, Sanders’s programs will operate wholly on deficits, thus becoming prone to insolvency. Currently, the American economy is growing at a very anemic rate. It could be a long time before America becomes prosperous enough for revenue to be generated through higher taxes on all Americans.
But let’s say the super-rich foot most of the bill. Think back to the caveats mentioned earlier. In the long-term, with the absence of a booming economy, Sanders’s programs could potentially fail. Rationing resources would be the only practical measure to keep these programs on an even keel. That means millennials may not get the best education or healthcare they need or want, when they need or want it.
Throw amnesty for illegal immigrants into the mix and you don’t have enough resources for the rest of American citizens who, presumably, ought to be the number one priority. Denmark, one of the countries Sanders wishes to model America after, is currently struggling to support its native population in addition to the influx of refugees/migrants.
While Sanders glorifies Scandinavian models of socialism and projects his own apparent misconceptions when speaking on countries like Denmark, he forgets that a model for one country may not fit another. Population demographics and culture are important confounding factors that can alter the viability of his programs. Politicians like Sanders and President Obama are fostering a culture of dependence on the government, which may cause the millennial generation to lack a sense of personal responsibility and self-determination.
When the government becomes the sole-arbiter for making decisions, accountability becomes an afterthought and millennials may lack the aptitude to make good decisions for themselves. Making bad choices, such as spending more than you can afford and having an unhealthy lifestyle, can exacerbate this culture. That being said, not everyone is born into the same circumstances, but people must figure out how to take care of themselves and make decisions based on a case-by-case basis. A one-size-fits-all solution may be fine as a safety net, but not as a crutch.
So could Sanders’s proposals actually work?
Based on the caveats mentioned earlier and assuming all men and women are of equal intellect, aptitude, and health in a prosperous economy, they can. At least on paper.
