He's been drawing huge, enthusiastic crowds in states such as Iowa, New Hampshire and Wisconsin. He speaks with passion about the plight of the middle class and the growing wealth and income inequality in America. He says the system is rigged in favor of the very rich. He advocates for the same redistributionist policies today as he has for his entire life.

With Bernie Sanders, the second-term Independent senator from Vermont and self-declared socialist turned presidential candidate, “what you see is what you get,” according to a recent Politico profile.

No one is likely to challenge that assessment. In fact, it's the basis of his appeal. Sanders is clearly tapping into a progressive populist wave sweeping the U.S. That same populist sentiment may be behind Donald Trump's shoot-from-the-hip approach, but unlike Trump, Sanders means what he says.

Bernie Sanders 'outraged' by Trump's Mexico comments

To be sure, there are some left-wingers who are attracted to Sanders because of his ideas. Throw in Americans who are faced with long-term unemployment, stagnant wages and other hardships, and it's not hard to understand the appeal of a dynamic leader who can identify a scapegoat (in this case, the wealthiest 1%) and pledge to make things better.

It's not as if socialist societies have left an enviable legacy. Perhaps the longest such experiment, the Soviet Union, came crashing down in 1989 under its own weight. Sanders seems to have adopted his from-each-according-to-his-ability brand of Marxism right from the source.

"Our economic goals have to be redistributing a significant amount of [wealth] back from the top 1%," Sanders said in an interview with the Washington Post. If that slows the economy, so be it. Growth for growth's sake is "absurd," he said. If everyone has a right to health care and an opportunity for a good education, there’s no need to focus on growth.

But, wait. If you want to redistribute wealth, less is not more. Isn't it better to have a bigger pie to slice up?

“ An ambitious agenda for the former mayor of Burlington, Vermont. ”

Sanders' naivete has a certain charm to it. He ignores the basics of redistributionist economics. Growth creates income which creates tax revenue. Even if a President Sanders were to have a compliant Congress — even more unlikely than a Sanders presidency — to enact usurious taxes on the wealthy, the rich don't arbitrarily fork over their money when the government raises the tax rate. They shelter their income, leave the country, or reduce charitable giving, which puts a greater burden on the government and, ultimately, middle-class taxpayers.

A single graph and a single table should demonstrate the futility of manipulating income tax rates to raise revenue. Tax revenue has been relatively stable at 17% of GDP since the end of World War II. That's been true whether the top marginal rate was 92% or 28%. The cost of tweaking top tax rates — for businesses, individuals and even the government — clearly exceeds the benefit.

Sanders isn't ashamed to call his agenda for America “12 Steps Forward” — invoking a favorite term of European Marxists. According to the plan, Sanders would invest $1 trillion to rebuild crumbling infrastructure, increase the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, revoke existing trade agreements, break up the big banks, close tax loopholes that allow corporations to shelter profits overseas, make college affordable, shift to public funding of elections, establish a single-payer health care system, and expand Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

It’s an ambitious agenda for the former mayor of Burlington, Vermont. Some of his proposals are no different than those espoused by fellow Democrats (raising the minimum wage and breaking up the big banks). Others are shared by members of the GOP (closing tax loopholes). Overall, however, Sanders stands alone in his vision of a revolution in America.

Now we’re talking real money.



