The Corner

Do Republicans Want to Rehabilitate Socialism?

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Vice President JD Vance speaks during a press conference at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, D.C., October 8, 2026.

Nathan Howard/Reuters

Of course, if he wanted to, JD Vance could define socialism. He just doesn’t.

Contrary to the vice president, “socialism,” a theory of socioeconomic organization in which the state, to varying degrees, owns property and enterprise and redistributes private wealth and goods based on central planners’ determinations, is not a “hard term to define these days.”

Noah Rothman

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.

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