It's safe to say that socialism
is having a moment in American politics right now.
And that's freaking a lot of people out.
So we sent our newest correspondent,
Jaboukie Young-White, to find out why.
YOUNG-WHITE: For years, grumpy old white dudes
have been telling us that socialism is total bullshit.
Socialism leads to decline and ruin.
This system crushes human souls.
But as The Daily Show's new Senior Youth Correspondent,
-(cheering) -I know that millennials right now
think socialism is totally on trend.
I popped some Molly and hit the street
to find out why, even though the olds hate it,
the kids love socialism.
Uh, I think socialism is great.
I think you should definitely help
whoever you could in any situation.
I (bleep) socialism just because (bleep) anything
-that's helping black people out. -Okay.
So you're socialism curious.
-Yeah, well, I'm in college. -Right.
Do you hate billionaires?
Low-key? Yeah.
You look at Jeff Bezos, he doesn't look human.
I mean, I think the idea of socialism is... on point.
I mean, I don't really know what socialism means
to be completely honest with you.
YOUNG-WHITE: Oh, it's okay. We're all confused.
If there were only someone we could talk to,
someone with some deep experience on the subject.
When I started doing this sort of piece on socialism,
I knew that there was really only one politician
who I could talk to about it.
So, yes, my question is, do you know AOC?
-Sure. -And, um, what's her availability?
Like, if you could put us in touch maybe.
Like, y-you-- you want to speak to her?
-Yeah, maybe-- I just figured, you know. -(laughs)
YOUNG-WHITE: Seriously, you can't talk socialism in America
without going to the OG, Senator Bernie Sanders.
I believe in a society where all people do well,
and not just a handful of billionaires.
YOUNG-WHITE: Could he be the oldest millennial in America?
You know that capitalism has given us
a bunch of really dope things, right?
iPhones, cars, hamburgers,
the Avengers movies, the opioid crisis.
So why are young people like myself very open to socialism?
Your generation, the younger generation,
will in all likelihood,
have a lower standard of living than your parents.
Your generation is leaving school more deeply in debt,
having a much harder time finding affordable housing.
The jobs that you get will pay less.
So the idea of creating a society
with more egalitarianism
I think is very appealing to young people.
Okay. Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh.
Yeah, yeah.
I feel the Bern.
I see what you're talking about now.
WHITE-YOUNG: I admit it, Democratic Socialism
looks pretty fine on his Tinder profile,
but are we gonna vibe when we meet IRL?
If you go to countries like Denmark or Sweden,
you're gonna see very little poverty.
You could leave your job, you could start a new business.
You and your family still have health care as a right.
So I could quit The Daily Show and be fine?
Absolutely.
-Well, it was great meeting with you. -(laughs)
All right, that's a wrap.
So under President Bernie, we'd be more European
like Denmark or Narnia.
But try telling that to the haters.
It's a terrible system, it's never worked.
And in order for it to work at all,
you got to kill several million people to make it work.
YOUNG-WHITE: Karol Markowicz has written
on why socialism needs to be canceled forever, period.
Millennials have been raised in such prosperous times
they just think that, "Oh, we can make it even better
with this insane plan to share the resources."
You know, I would love capitalism,
if it just weren't for all the sick people
and all the poor people who can't afford health care.
Is there a way for me to enjoy capitalism without those things?
If the solution is socialism,
it's gonna make us all equal in our poverty.
But if everyone is poor, isn't that kind of cool
'cause we're all experiencing the same thing?
So it'll be like, "Hey, like,
the bread line was extra long today."
And I'd be like, "Oh, my God, yeah, it was.
That guy is super observant and, like, funny."
Not so much. No.
I was born in the Soviet Union.
My great-grandfather was killed in a gulag
because he owned a business,
and socialists decided that was no longer legal.
WHITE-YOUNG: That's truly horrific.
Would Bernie be sending small-business owners
to forced labor camps?
Obviously, Soviet Union
was an authoritarian society
with no democratic rights, and I think if you know history,
you'll know that democratic socialists stood up
and fought against that.
You can look about what existed in the Soviet Union
or in Venezuela...
that is not what I'm talking about at all.
So no one's going to the gulag?
Well, except-- No.
-Uh, okay. -(laughs)
WHITE-YOUNG: Fact check: the examples of failed socialism
that critics use are not socialist democracies,
but authoritarian states led by corrupt,
ruthless, and paranoid dictators.
But I do have one real problem with socialism.
I like money.
You know, TV's going kind of good for me right now,
and I'm thinking of writing a successful book.
Is socialism still for me if I'm a millennial millionaire?
I mean, it depends on what's your heart.
If what you say in your life is,
"All I want to do is make as much money as I possibly can
and screw everything else, I don't give a damn."
Yeah, no, I don't think democratic socialism
is your cup of tea, but if you have a decent heart,
and you say, "Look, I'm doing really well.
"But you know what? I also want to be a contributor
"to the well-being of society,
so I'm gonna pay my fair share of taxes.”
YOUNG-WHITE: Wow. I could have my CBD-infused,
gluten-free cake and eat it, too.
I'm liking the socialism thing more and more.
And Bernie made me feel so good,
I decided to share something.
-I brought you a present. -That's cool.
-So... So... -All right. Anticipating.
Oh, oh.
That's beautiful.
Yeah, thank you. I made it myself.
When you are elected president,
where do you think you're gonna put this in the White House?
I'll put it up some place.
I-I don't know the exact room.
But it's beautiful and I thank you for it.
YOUNG-WHITE: You're welcome, Bernie.
Enjoy.
Jaboukie Young-White, everyone.