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The appeal of socialism remains strong and is expanding, even in America’s capital of capitalism.
With democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani’s victory in New York City’s mayoral race, the movement has gone mainstream, bringing promises of rent freezes, free child care and a sweeping expansion of government power. Supporters call it compassion; history calls it something else.
FOX Business’ David Asman took viewers inside the battle of ideas shaping the nation’s future in “FOX Business In Depth: Socialism Threat and the Future of Capitalism” this weekend, revealing why the very system that fueled America’s economy for so long is now being questioned by a new generation.
“It’s really remarkable what I’m seeing out of my generation, and yes, I’m optimist,” Campus Reform reporter Emily Sturge said in the special.
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Sturge speaks to members of her generation, Gen Z, every day. Despite Gen Z’s embrace of Mamdani in the Big Apple, she remains hopeful the generation is fueling a larger conservative revival, with more young adults turning to faith, patriotism and family values.
“I reported Generation Z’s shift to the right in the November election and, since then, I’ve also reported Gen Z’s boom in patriotism in faith and family values, Gen Z’s shift to the right, shift to Christianity, traditional family values, things of that sort,” she said.
Still, the progressive influence of higher education — something frequently covered in her reporting — is noted as a possible culprit behind the mindset shift that fueled Mamdani’s win.
“College is a place where it’s one of the only places where bad ideas can keep living because they never get tested against reality,” FOX Business contributor Brian Brenberg noted during the program.
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“Professors study these things, they love the ideas of what socialism promises, [but] they never have to do them in real life. They spend their academic career filling kids’ heads with these ideas. Kids who have to go out in the real world.”
That disconnect, the special explained, has helped socialism’s appeal take root among students and young professionals facing rising costs and stagnant wages.
According to recent surveys, nearly half of college-aged Americans now say they prefer socialism over capitalism, indicating disillusionment with the current economic state.
The prospect is deeply concerning for those like New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, who fled the former Soviet Union for a better life under a free market economy and the American dream.
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“This is the country, this is the place where our parents taught us, if you work hard, you could be anything you want to be, and that’s exactly what happened. We came here, we didn’t speak English. We had to get accustomed to a new country, to a new life, to a language. We became doctors, we became lawyers,” she said.
“I’m a member of the government in the largest city in the world, and the idea that everything that we escaped is coming here is absolutely unbelievable.”
Vernikov, who represents a more conservative area where many former Soviet Union residents live, said her constituents are “absolutely devastated” by what has taken root in the U.S.
“We all feel the same way about this,” she added.
John Catsimatidis, billionaire businessman and owner of the New York City-based grocery chain Gristedes, also appeared on the special, warning that doing business under Mamdani’s watch will be “more difficult.”
“We are hoping that Governor Hochul… is tough enough to lean on him to make sure he does the right things,” he said.
“Then we have President Trump, who’s one tough guy, and he has said to me and has said to people that the fact is that the federal funds will keep moving to New York, but I suggested to him maybe putting a monitor in to make sure the money is spent properly…”
“FOX Business In Depth: Socialism Threat and the Future of Capitalism” airs both Saturday and Sunday at 9 a.m. ET, highlighting the defining economic debate of our time and the choice that lies ahead for America’s next generation.
Fox News Digital’s Madison Colombo contributed to this report.
