Far-left politicians want to annihilate property rights. A large share of young voters are buying into it – a red flag that our school systems have become socialist indoctrination factories.
On Monday, one of the far left’s agenda setters, Sen. Bernie Sanders, called on the federal government to confiscate half the value of each of the nation’s largest artificial intelligence companies. He’s targeting OpenAI, Anthropic (creator of Claude), and xAI for starters.
Making his announcement on Facebook and in a New York Times opinion piece, Sanders said he’ll introduce a bill in Congress to slap these companies with a 50% ownership tax – literally grabbing company stock without paying anything for it – in shocking defiance of the U.S. Constitution.
It’s straight out of the playbook of Lenin, Castro, or another communist dictator – expropriating private property for government use.
Here’s Sanders’ flimsy argument: “Since A.I. is built on the collective knowledge of humanity, the wealth it generates must benefit humanity.”
Sorry, Senator. All inventions and breakthroughs are built on the knowledge we already have. That same argument could be used to demand half the stock of a biotech company that produces a cancer cure, or a musical composer who writes a hit.
Who would invest or invent if the government could swoop in and take half?
Sanders’ bill is going nowhere while there’s a Republican majority in Congress.
But ignore it at your peril. It’s a warning. Confiscating property is the left’s latest talking point to remedy inequality and pay for ever-expanding public benefits.
Sanders borrowed the idea from two law professors: Jeremy Bearer-Friend of the George Washington University School of Law and Sarah Polcz of the University of California at Davis School of Law. Lawyers, can you believe it?
The Constitution’s “takings clause” – Bill of Rights, Amendment Five – bars government from taking property without providing “just compensation.”
Ivory tower universities like to reward faculty for their imaginative proposals, not for sticking to what the law allows. Polcz and Bearer-Friend admitted their idea would be challenged in federal court as unconstitutional. Sanders couldn’t care less.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani agrees. He warned at his inauguration that he was going to introduce New Yorkers to the “warmth of collectivism.” His new “Block by Block” housing plan proposes transferring building ownership from current owners to what he calls “responsible stewards”; this includes handing buildings over to tenants. Another outrageous attack on property rights.
Pay attention to how fast Democratic Socialists of America candidates spouting collectivism are making headway. Last week’s primaries produced outright wins or runoff advancements for more than a dozen candidates in five states backed by the DSA.
Who likes these ideas? Gen Z voters who have a rose-colored view of socialism, communism, and collectivism.
According to a Heartland Institute/Rasmussen Reports poll at the end of 2025, nearly 60% of likely voters aged 18 to 24 want a democratic socialist in the White House in 2028.
Mandani captured 78% of under-30 voters in November, according to an ABC exit poll.
The DSA – at one time the haven of radical retirees – is now powered by the young. It saw the average age of its membership plunge from 68 to 33 in less than a decade.
The leftist indoctrination in K-12 schools, as well as universities, is largely to blame for the youth vote’s enthusiasm for socialism and communism. A staggering 62% of voters ages 18-29 hold a favorable view of socialism, and 34% favor communism.
That’s what they’re taught in school. CoolKid Facts, a popular education website, teaches students that communists believe “the state should provide every citizen with their basic needs … and no one is above anyone else.” Sounds utopian. No mention of the brutalities, starvation, and mass murders committed in the name of communism by Lenin or Stalin, Mao or Pol Pot, Castro or Che Guevara.
In New York state social studies classes, communism and socialism are presented as two economic systems that make things more equal and fair, with no historical references to the atrocities committed by socialist and communist regimes, confiscating property.
Wisely, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a new law last year requiring that public school students in Florida be taught “the brutal realities of life under communism.” Texas passed a similar law. That’s one way to counter the heavy-handed indoctrination by the teachers’ unions.
Let’s make sure students also learn about the takings clause and why protecting property rights is essential to economic growth. Confiscating capital is the fastest way to kill an economy.
Sanders’ AI confiscation scheme is just the beginning. Allow that industry to be nationalized, and the left will soon target others, destroying our economy and our personal liberty. The best defense – the only defense – is an educated electorate. Considering the misguided attitudes of many Gen Z voters, there’s no time to waste.
Betsy McCaughey is a former Lt. Governor of New York State and Chairman & Founder of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths. Follow her on Twitter @Betsy_McCaughey.
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Let’s be honest, everything anyone has ever learned about voting is what they learned in Jr high and high-school. Essentially it was a popularity contest, qualifications be damned. Now these so called older people still think it’s the same popularity contest except instead of a useless homecoming queen and king they’re voting for free stuff.
These uninformed voters unknowingly cut their throats and those of their fellow Americans. Informed voting requires subjective evaluation of what is best, not because of how they look or the lure of promised lies that never quite seem to materialize.
GenZ Generation better wake up, they claim they don’t have anything now. Under Socialism they will be forced to live in Democrat Established Ghettos…live in sub-par apartments instead of homes…stand in food lines at state run stores…….Ride the mass Transportation instead of comfortable cars. Take off your rose colored glasses.
These GenZs go ga ga over Sanders but they never ask him, “Hey Mr. Sanders…you own three homes why don’t your put your money where your mouth is and donate two of them, and use the money to share with the people. Don’t hold your breath …it’ll never happen.
All kids hear in school is how wonderful socialism is and how bad capitalism is….All the more reason to Home School!!
Nick Shirley spoke with a Cuban refugee and was shocked at what he had to say. We need an education campaign, bring in the people from Venezuela and Cuba. Show them films of the Cold War. The female swillers with hair on their chests due to all the hormones. Make sure people see what is happening in New York.
Maybe we should have contests and send them to live in a “Dream” country for a year. The youth needs to be awakened to reality.
One afternoon in August of 1980, visiting East Berlin, changed my mindset.
Better dead than red!
These “young voters” have been brought up with the PARTICIPATION TROPHY MENTALITY. I get the same whether or not I finish first or last. Doing the work, or doing absolutely nothing, to get the brass ring. FREE STUFF BY TAXING EVERYBODY BUT ME……
The liberal promise: “You will own nothing and like it.”
Ke in mind that liberals want to lower the voting age so that the indoctrinated youth can vote the liberal candidates into power.
Bernie Sanders is the most despicable member of the Senate — and that is saying a lot. He is a self-hating antisemitic Jew – the worst kind, who sells out his own people (though I’m sure he denies they even are his people). He actually holds up the arm of Platner the Nazi and buddies up to him, supporting his campaign in Maine. Sanders, Jew at least by heritage, helping elect a Nazi. Sanders would have been one of those helping the Jews enter the gas chambers had he been in Germany in WWII. He will do anything for power though he’s never even held a real job. Why do they keep electing him?! If I could say anything to Sanders (Mr. Bluster, who’s never done a thing for even one of his constituents. Why do they keep voting for this disgusting man?) I would tell him to eat dirt (the term for otherwise unacceptable language I’d like to put here.).
These young folks are following the magic “free” bouncing ball. Nothing in this life is free. They don’t realize someone has to pay for free stuff. Of course, looking at Cuba, China, Russia, etc. those citizens are not getting anything free. The top leaders have anything that they want, but the poor citizens don’t own anything and sometimes don’t have food, water, electricity, homes, and other items. These young folks are not taught American history, math, reading and other government laws. I feel sorry for them.
Mommy and Daddy have been giving them a free ride for years, so why not the government? Mamdani and that chick out in Oregon have never had a REAL job and are in their 30s/40s. Uncle Bernie never had a real job before getting on the government teat!
The Democrats and their allies are all enemies of our country and the American people! Why are the true Americans and patriots of country tolerated having them here to destroy our democracy! Time has come to stop them at all cost!
Right “out of the gate” this article summed up the reason young voters are falling for socialist myths. The first two sentences say it all:
“Far-left politicians want to annihilate property rights. A large share of young voters are buying into it – a red flag that our school systems have become socialist indoctrination factories.”
And Mamdani in NYC is going all out for just that – confiscating properties.
Chronological age has nothing to do with the mental capacity, these young people are clueless, on the level of a third grader mentally, as designed by our Ed. system, serving purpose, useless, clueless, hopeless, voting not having an idea how they are manipulated and used.
That’s because the young voters have been indoctrinated and brainwashed since pre-school, most likely come from leftwing homes, and few want to actually WORK to EARN their way through life. Tragically, most want all the FREE $hit that the socialist commies promise to give them. They want the government to coddle and take care of them with continued FREE INDOCTRINATION in all the Socialist/Commie run institutions of HIGHER AMERICA-HATING BRAINWASHING CENTERS, FREE TRANSPORTATION, FREE FOOD, FREE CELL PHONES, FREE THIS AND FREE THAT.
Though there are exceptions, but these last few generations have so many lazy, clueless people, it is beyond pathetic. And what is DANGEROUS to our country, they vote and the unselfish ones that don’t abort their babies, reproduce to spread and keep the insanity going.
Young voters have been indoctrinated in school & college that socialism is good.
ALSO…remember when Nutsy Pelosi wanted to make it legal for SIXTEEN YEAR OLD kids to VOTE?! SIXTEEN!
The USA is headed down the tubes with both feet, and THE LEFT is pushing as hard as they can!!!
VOTE! Get off yer hindquarters and VOTE VOTE VOTE!
Young people are falling for socialism because satan has a grip on them! Bernie is a communist and he is also a corrupt satanic SOB! That scumbag has never worked a day in his life, he has always stolen his money from the working people!
This too is an old story. Education today in the U.S. is not meant to provide the tools to better oneself and advance in life – it’s meant to turn out little activists for the benefit of the power of the likes of Comrade Sanders. It’s long overdue for people to wake up to that fact. And the government unions are up to their ears in this effort as well.
That’s why 18-year olds shouldn’t be allowed to vote. They lack the needed experience to evaluate what they hear.
Of course they are. The radical liberals have been brainwashing our kids for decades and it is showing up more every year. Too bad we waited so long to initiate “school choice”. All public schools are far left and about 80% of the professors on college campuses are far left liberals. Payback sucks!
Reality is; the left has been implementing their plans for more than 60 years now. When the left, via Carter, federalized the education system, it was only a matter of two – three generations to start seeing the general opinions vs. socialism & communism erode and start to swing toward being more mainstream in each subsequent generation.
It’s time to de-centralize the BoE back into the state’s hands as a starting point. Also, changing the mandatory curriculum to be inclusive of traditional U.S. history and civics courses along with a citizen test junior year in HS that is, at a minimum, the same for citizenship for immigrants. This would ensure our next generations of eligible voters are more knowledgeable why their right to vote should not be taken for granted.
God help us & Bless this U.S.A. that we may not fade from the face of the earth for many generations to come!
All the more reason to teach our children while they are young to think critically, and to think for themselves. I have talked to people older than I am (I am not young!) who have not learned this necessary skill. I taught my teenage daughter this valuable lesson when she was trying to decide whether she should vote for Obama or not in a presidential election. I told her she would have to look and listen past his charismatic speeches, think them through to their logical conclusion, and listen for telling details (or course, there weren’t very many). She made me proud —- she went to school and talked to other students who were being swayed by his charisma and opaque speeches!
Even if we reverse education priorities to include civics, it may be too late to stop the socialists. Decades of rule by radicals should convince them, but at what cost? We’ll no longer have a constitutional republic. This is a pessimistic outlook, but certainly possible.
They see the Bernies and AOC’s and how they live, they hear the promises and are naive enough to believe Socialism is wonderful. And, it is if you are at the top of the hierarchy
Speaking of ‘ownership’ the American taxpayer has bought every dime of government infrastructure. Including Bernies houses and his corvette! Might be time to throw the tea in the harbor again! What a jerk!
I KNOW WE HAVE LIBERALS EVERYWHERE, BUT HOW DID NEW ENGLAND GET THIS WAY? THE BIRTHPLACE OF AMERICA.
For this second generation after the one before them, socialism and outright communism are being preached as superior to personal freedom and capitalism in many of our K through 12 schools and colleges. Bernie Sanders and the few other anti-individualism and anti capitalism are simply the generational leaders of yesteryear who, after the now through 25 year olds were taught pro-communist economic and political theories throughout their K-12 and college education. This threat will continue to grow until enough of the national pockets living by these “theories” pay a high enough penalty personally to accept that communism and socialism aren’t that great if you are a real working individual.
if you cannot read and write, understand the CONSTITUTION, speak and understand the language {ENGLISH} why would you want to vote?
ANSWER ME DAMMIT!
I don’t think they are “falling” for socialism so much as they are angry at the perversion of capitalism we have fallen into.
Another thing – the price of a house in a middle class neighborhood in urban Nebraska has doubled in 10 years. It’s ridiculous. Corporations with deep pockets are competing with home buyers to drive up prices of starter homes.
Sometimes I don’t even recognize America any longer.
Schools quit teaching any manner of logical thinking and analysis years ago. However we seem to be in a place where our economic system isn’t following our expectations, and the only solutions being offered is turning away from capitalism. With the poor future projections they see, the young will latch on to any train offering a better future, even if it’s wrong.
Rush called them heads full of mush. The socialists know this and are filling them with garbage and parents are sitting there writing checks to those doing the dirty dead.
Remember how Bernie Sanders used to rag on millionaires and billionaires? Now it’s just billionaires cuz he’s a millionaire not bad for a socialist. If the zoomers buy in to socialism, they will have to live with it. And it will really suck for them. I’m going to be long gone by the time that happens. Once you get socialism you cannot get rid of it. The only next step is communism. You’re really going to love that one
The first paragraph of this article explains the problem… the public school system. These are not myths to young people, it is reality to them because it is what they are taught. And after school and college, the media takes over. This is the worst of the swamp that is not being drained…. it is treason. Indoctrination is NOT education.
This is what Bernie Sanders and all the other Socialist Communists in political offfice and throughout our Education systems in the USA has done to our Country.
well,gen x and or genz i learned a long ago,82 yrs., there ain,t no FREE lunch. when u taste a little free benefit,it vanishs and left with self centered ability to suvive
They fall for the gag by
Indoc
Social Media
Peers
Home Life
Education
Mind Control
Too many people aren’t capable of thinking on their own anymore, they depend on others to do it, and everything else, for them. Their brains are slowly dying.
I just love Florida. Teaching their students the TRUTH, about communism/socialism. And hopefully teach our constitution. Parents who know the truth should make it a priority to teach their children.
A simple reflection on Cuba, our nearest neighbor should ne enough. Our children, in spite of the dollars spent on their education, are still mostly ignorant of basic economics and certainly, history.
Those voters are graduating from High school with the knowledge of maybe 8th grader if lucky, why are they allowed to vote, they are on the level of middle school kids No responsibilities, no demands on them ,I realize they are the product in probably majority of cases of lack of parenting or family life.discipline, obligation, duty are unknown, they grow up like wild weed. No clue.
“Sanders said he’ll introduce a bill in Congress to slap these companies with a 50% ownership tax – literally grabbing company stock without paying anything for it – in shocking defiance of the U.S. Constitution.”
Now that Sanders is a Socialist Millionaire with 3 mansions, he wants to take down billionaire companies.
Let’s offer these young people (and their teachers) a one way ticket to NORTH KOREA and if they can escape they may come back. I’ll bet it won’t be long before they try to escape!
Gen Z think govt has to pay for everything. Really now. Where is the money for that coming from? Govt doesn’t have money on its own. Not till those who are working pay taxes. That they don’t learn in school or universities. I grew up under socialism. It doesn’t work. Because people get lazy. Why should they work when the govt can provide for them. Pretty soon the poorest among us weren’t working anymore. The country prospered by finding a huge gasfield and all of a sudden everybody was rich. Rich in the sense everyone was living well. There was no one left to do the plumbing, the carpentry work, electricians all were vacationing in Spain. The toilets were not being cleaned in hotels so what happened. They brought in people from Turkey. The country has now a large majority of Turks. And with the population movement started with Autopen Biden also occurred in Europe. Because Europe is rich and everyone came. They are still coming. Socialism has long ago fallen from favor. Now the progressives are running the countries. Only that is falling as well. Because the illegals are taking over. They are heads of cities and counties. Have seats in govt and are destroying the culture and traditions in every European country. The same as here. Only here they want to set up communism not socialism. Take ownership away from everyone not only the millionaires. You will own the rental property. Wonderful right? Who is going to maintain that property. You!!! HOA’s started out in many communities and so many people are staying away from those communities now. In the beginning it’s all good till the time maintenance starts. A new roof, the house needs to be painted, a new garage door etc etc. Many homeowners cannot afford the special assessment that comes with such things. I have lived with an HOA. They are nothing more than communal landlords but there never is enough money when repairs have to be made. If every one would just take responsibility for their own lives their families and leave the govt out of it. Because like Reagan said the scariest thing you will ever hear is “I am from the govt here to solve your problem”. Govt always becomes bloated. Money is spent on unnecessary things. Fraud and grift is rampant because it’s the govt they can afford to pay this. USAid fraud showed that. Soc Sec and Medicaid fraud showed that. Only the democrats don’t see it. They just want more money thrown at it. We have a spending problem in this country and no amount of communism or socialism is going to fix that. Taking money from inventions destroys progress, stagnates inventions. Just like paying unemployment without demanding you look for a job. But these lawyers and Bernie never tell that part of socialism. Like all the policies of the progressives. On paper it looks good in reality it’s a disaster. Once this gets passed into a law we can never put the genie back in the bottle. And destruction of America is complete.
These Socialist/Communists get wackier by the minute. Someone needs to help Sanders to the nearest Home for the Aged/Memory Care Facility. He is as crazy as old Joe Biden.
I know this will never happen, because it would violate their “human rights.” I propose the fed (because the left loves big gov’t.) take 10,000 square acres of high desert. Blistering heat in the summer, brutal wind and cold in the winter, razor wire and guards with real rifle butts and bayonets. Set up an authentic “gulag” style labor camp. Inadequate heat, no a/c, slit trench plumbing, “communal liviing,” and even a gov’t grocery store and communist type health care. The leftist utopia they all dream about. Just the way Stalin did it. Whenever a leftist politician, professor, actor, student, ANTIFA scum, BLM’r, MSM talking head, …. whoever, encourages, finances, promotes, teaches, riots, vandalizes, with their America hating, Constitution violating rhetoric, etc. If the American taxpayer is going to waste money supporting this treason, why not instead give each of them a one year “vacation” as a reward to for their dreams. It will never happen because this is what the leftist power mongers want for each of us. Their useful idiots are merely their foot soldiers.
The only reason for American citizens to want Socialism/Communism is because they are either the type of person who takes so little initiative to control their lives that they want to be “taken care of” by others, or, they are those who are making out well being part of the elitist fascists who want to have control over others. Ironically, Socialism fails because the elitist fascists turn on one another as the elitists require more than those producing can provide.
The U.S. Constitution guarantees every American citizen has equal rights to “pursue” happiness as we individually determine what happiness is to US. Nothing guarantees equality for those who are not as equally determined to better themselves through our own initiatives, hard work and financial responsibility.
2nd note,,, ask yourself why Sanders is in politics as an independant for himself and money and why don,t the dems.and gop don,t want him. sanders is his own capitolist
Any money that goes towards anything Sanders approves of will not benefit Humanity! I thought there was a law against stealing? Heck, last I heard there was even a Commandment against it!