During an interview with PBS’s “Firing Line” released on Friday, Democratic U.S. House nominee Melat Kiros responded to the history of socialism, paired with Communism ending in mass death by saying that “the historical record is also one that doesn’t show the full story as well, right? Our country has a long and storied history of intervening and trying to prevent any kind of government that was trying to deliver back more power to working people from succeeding in any meaningful way.”
Host Margaret Hoover asked, [relevant exchange begins around 21:20] “I wonder if it concerns you that so many people think of socialism first in its most iconic and historic failures, and in sort of — paired with a Communist system, to really being proven to end in rivers of blood and millions of millions dead. And that a, perhaps, more refined definition of your version of socialism might have more appeal.”
Kiros answered, “Maybe. I think looking at the historical record is also one that doesn’t show the full story as well, right? Our country has a long and storied history of intervening and trying to prevent any kind of government that was trying to deliver back more power to working people from succeeding in any meaningful way. And I also think that, when folks think of capitalism, I think they think of free markets and competition and innovation. And I think of monopolies.” Kiros added that you get monopolies with unencumbered capitalism and said she isn’t a Communist.
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
Read the full article here