Washington, D.C. -- Today, Rep. Dean Phillips (D, MN-03) joined bipartisan colleagues in voting to pass H.Con.Res.9, Denouncing the Horrors of Socialism. Following the vote, Phillips, a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, underscored the dangerous reality that authoritarianism can happen anywhere, including here in the United States, regardless of the economic system. 

“Is socialism the wrong economic system for America? Absolutely. Can a free market protect us from the brutal effects of political tyranny? Absolutely not,” said Phillips. “We have to stop perpetuating the false narrative that authoritarianism can only occur in a socialist system and denounce dictatorship for what it is – a threat to our freedom, our safety, and our people, regardless of the economic system that houses it.” 

Phillips stressed that the Republican-led resolution presents an incomplete version of history. While rightfully condemning communist dictators who committed heinous human rights abuses, it ignores abuses that happen outside communist and socialist economic systems. It condemns Pol Pot, but not Hitler and the Nazi regime. It criticizes Joseph Stalin, but not right-wing dictators who murdered tens of thousands of innocent civilians across Latin America. It also ignores the ways in which many of America’s European allies have integrated moderate forms of socialism into functioning democracies, albeit at a cost to economic efficiency and innovation. 

The full text of H.Con.Res.9 can be accessed here. 

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