Capitalism—the People’s Choice Gallup finds that most Americans prefer capitalism.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/capitalismthe-peoples-choice-11639000741?mod=opinion_lead_pos4
Politicians and think tanks these days welcome the death of free markets as they support more power for the state. But a new poll from Gallup confirms that the American people still have more faith in capitalism than they do in socialism. Gallup further reports that this support for capitalism over socialism has held steady for more than a decade.
Asked in an October survey—“just off the top of your head”—whether they have a positive or negative image of six different economic and governmental terms, 60% reported “positive” for capitalism against 38% for socialism.
Gallup notes that the negative view of socialism has remained constant “even as Sen. Bernie Sanders and progressive Democratic politicians have pursued an expanded government role in addressing healthcare, poverty and early childhood education.” They might have noted that some of the push these days for more government control of economic life is coming from the political right as well.
The other positives and negatives are also revealing. “Small business” clocked in at 97% positive, and “free enterprise” at 84%. Only 46% of the public had a positive view for “big business,” which dropped from 52% in 2019.
We wonder if that’s because so many big businesses these days no longer support capitalism while stressing left-wing cultural causes. The two terms that scored lowest in public esteem were “socialism” and “the federal government,” which each had only 38% positive.
At the heart of capitalism is the idea that ordinary people profit most from their talents and effort when they are free to make their own contracts and economic arrangements. At the heart of socialism is the idea that government and its bureaucracies know better. Gallup is telling us that the American people are no fools.
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