Lawrence O’Donnell: Bachmann-Supported Farm Subsidies Are ‘The Worst Kind Of Socialism’

Lawrence O’Donnell dedicated his “Rewrite” segment tonight to socialism– no, not to extolling its virtues per se, but to teaching Republican candidates what his definition of socialism is and how, no matter how hard they try, Tim Pawlenty and Rep. Michele Bachmann are socialists if they are eager to rake in farm subsidies to keep Minnesota agriculture afloat. But in calling said subsidies “the worst kind of socialism,” O’Donnell reveals he has no idea what socialism is, either.

O’Donnell began the segment by crowning Pawlenty the most libertarian of all candidates for suggesting that any function or service one could find a link to on Google should not be conducted by the government. “This is the most libertarian, anti-government statement of anyone running, including actual libertarians,” such as Rep. Ron Paul and Rep. Bachmann. The problem with Pawlenty’s statement– and Rep. Bachmann’s anti-government claims– is that, Minnesota “thrives on handouts from the federal government,” specifically the Department of Agriculture, and that “there is no sector of the economy more ripe with socialism” than agriculture.

O’Donnell highlighted the many times Rep. Bachmann spoke of socialism in public appearances, and especially her argument that Obamacare “is the crown jewel of socialism.” “Like every one who rants about socialism in this country, she doesn’t know what socialism is,” O’Donnell argued. His point may have been stronger if he had not immediately followed it by stating there was “good socialism and bad socialism,” and that the farm subsidies Rep. Bachmann supports are “the worst kind of socialism,” a kind of socialism that even Sean Hannity would not support, placing, O’Donnell noted somewhat bashfully, Hannity on the same side of the argument as himself.

O’Donnell’s point that direct intervention in the free market is socialism, while some may call extreme, is well-taken. At the very least, no true libertarian would support such subsidies (and the ethanol subsidy he notes Rep. Bachmann supports at the beginning of the segment is precisely the one Pawlenty told Iowans he opposes). While many who know or have grown up around people from countries with allegedly “socialist” governments would strongly argue against the existence of anything that could be labeled “good socialism,” given that O’Donnell self-identifies as a socialist and often cites the existence of any government programs as socialist in nature, parsing this comment may not lead anywhere. “Good socialism” to O’Donnell is likely not the Great Leap Forward, but Social Security or Medicare. But to undermine the horrors of socialist policies around the world by arguing that frivolous agricultural spending is “the worst” socialism has to offer is an affront to the victims of true socialism around the world.

Take, for one, the most prominent form of socialism in the 20th century– that practiced by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, that led to the deaths– through hunger or slaughter– of millions. Fans of Godwin’s law may argue that that “national socialism” stuff from the 1940s may be “the worst kind of socialism,” given the millions that died while that was a popular theory, as well. Even at its mildest, socialism in Venezuela, Bolivia, and Peru since the 1980s has created inflation and poverty statistics that would make any American’s head spin (President Alan Garcia‘s first term– the left-wing one, he recently finished a stint as a right-wing president– concluded with a 7000% national inflation rate). To state that the “worst socialism” is an American construct that has caused all of zero deaths is like saying the “worst capitalism” is the Ryan Medicare Plan– and not, say, the deeply segregated Pinochet-era Chilean economy. It betrays an ignorance that stems from living in the world’s greatest ivory tower, the United States, where our Constitution dilutes even the most extreme philosophies into moderate and palatable ideologies. Sure, it does nothing to exonerate Rep. Bachmann of her alleged hypocrisy, but it certainly brings into the question O’Donnell’s credibility on the matter.

The segment via MSNBC below:

This is an opinion piece. The views expressed in this article are those of just the author.

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