No te comas el cuento: What DSA isn’t telling you

Socialism is getting a makeover in America, and unfortunately, it’s proving effective.

A recent Gallup poll shows that almost 4 in every 10 Americans have a favorable view of socialism. For young Americans, that number is even higher.

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) promises free health care, rent control, publicly-owned housing, and some are even adding subsidized groceries to a laundry list of promises that can sound appealing to so many families who are struggling to make ends meet.

No te comas ese cuento.

DSA might be offering shiny new packaging, but these ideas have been tried — and failed —  before.

Here are the facts behind several of DSA’s proposals:

Cuento #1: Freeze the rent and housing will become affordable

This is one of DSA’s most attractive promises, and it’s easy to understand why.

If rent is crushing your budget, telling your landlord, “You can’t raise it anymore!” sounds like a pretty good deal.

But it comes with tradeoffs.

When government limits what landlords can charge, there are fewer incentives to build or maintain rental housing. Building fewer new apartments creates more competition among renters and higher rents.

New York City offers a warning.

For decades, the city already has more than 1 million rent-regulated apartments, yet housing remains painfully expensive. In June 2026, the median rent in Manhattan was around $5,300 a month.

Now look at Austin.

Instead of freezing prices, the city made it easier to build. It added 120,000 homes between 2015 and 2024, increasing its housing supply by about 30%. As supply grew, inflation-adjusted rents fell 19% between 2021 and 2025.

The lesson is simple: Housing isn’t exempt from the law of supply and demand.

Cuento #2: Government-run grocery stores will make food cheaper

Going to the supermarket is getting more expensive every day and DSA has a “bold” answer to make your groceries cheaper: more government.

In New York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani has proposed city-owned grocery stores that would sell certain goods 30% below market prices.

That sounds good, but the government can’t just magically decree lower prices. Someone still has to cover the costs. New York City has already committed $70 million to the program.

What’s more, neighborhood bodegas, supermarkets, and family-owned markets will have to compete against government-owned stores selling goods below market rate.

That raises real questions about the future of these local businesses — and how much taxpayers could ultimately be asked to support the stores.

If you don’t believe us, consider what happened in Venezuela when the government introduced their state-owned chain of grocery stores: mass shortages, bread lines, and corruption.

Cuento #3: Free health care for all

DSA’s answer to rising health care costs is Medicare for All: one federal insurance program covering everyone, with no premiums, deductibles, or copays at the point of service.

That sounds simple, and maybe even appealing.

But government-owned health care isn’t free. It paid for with our tax money or through debt.

And if one public system is responsible for covering everyone, access to care can become a major challenge.

Canada offers a cautionary example.

It provides publicly funded health coverage, but patients can face long waits for treatment.

A 2025 Fraser Institute survey of physicians found that the median patient waited 28.6 weeks from a family doctor’s referral to treatment — more than half a year.

Families deserve something better than choosing between high costs and long waits.

Latinos need more freedom, not socialism

Let’s be clear: A lot of hardworking Latinos are struggling to make ends meet, and DSA politicians are tapping into these very real frustrations.

Whether it’s controlling rents, opening government-run grocery stores, or putting Washington in charge of health insurance, the DSA’s answer is always the same: Give government more control and trust that it will make life more affordable.

There is a better path.

Remove the barriers that keep us from building more homes. Let businesses compete and entrepreneurs create better options. Give patients more control over their health care. Most importantly, trust people to make decisions for themselves and their families.

That is how generations of Americans have built better lives — working, creating, taking risks, and opening doors for the next generation.

No te comas los cuentos de DSA.

The answer to today’s challenges isn’t putting more power in the hands of government. It’s putting more opportunity in yours.