Democratic Socialists of America national co-chair Megan Romer was asked to defend the cost of the group’s proposals after DSA-backed candidates made gains in the midterm elections. The White House Council of Economic Advisers has estimated that policies such as Medicare for All and student debt cancellation could cost $49 trillion.
Romer rejected that figure, calling it “outrageous” and saying it was made up. She argued that the White House had produced calculations intended to make the DSA look bad, and said the group did not accept them.
The council’s report put the cost at roughly $355,000 per household over the next decade. But when pressed by anchor Martha MacCallum to provide her own estimate, Romer declined, saying the total would depend on which proposals were adopted and when.
“There isn’t one solid number,” Romer said, explaining that the costs would change as new programs were introduced and existing ones phased out. She said her focus was on letting the public decide democratically how government money should be spent.
Romer also criticized U.S. military spending, saying money devoted to overseas operations could instead support the DSA’s priorities, including amnesty for undocumented immigrants and abolishing the Senate. She said the United States should not maintain hundreds of military bases around the world and argued that much of the defense budget benefits contractors and wealthy individuals.
MacCallum challenged that comparison, noting that the U.S. defense budget is about $961 billion, while the estimated cost of DSA policies is around $47 trillion.
In a previous interview, Romer defended proposals to abolish the Senate, replace the presidency and Supreme Court, and eliminate Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She also backed abolishing national borders and granting amnesty to people in the country illegally.
Romer said providing health care to everyone would cost money, but argued that it would cost less than current military spending and what she described as “illegal wars.”
