House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) and ABC News anchor Jonathan Karl sparred on-air Sunday over whether Democratic Socialists running in the midterms should be described as communists.
During an interview on ABC’s “This Week,” after Emmer raised the topic of gas prices, Karl pushed back on the broader framing of the midterm field. “I think most Democrats would say they’re not communists,” Karl said, adding, “So, there aren’t a lot of communists on the ballot in these midterms.”
Emmer disagreed immediately. “Well you’re wrong, they are communists,” he said.
Karl then acknowledged “some Democratic socialists” were on the ballot and tried to move to another question, but Emmer continued pressing the point.
“Jon, you just called them what they want you to call them. There’s nothing Democratic about socialism. For 100 years, they wanted us to call them progressives, when, in fact, they were socialists. And it wasn’t cool to admit you’re a socialist. They are now communists and Marxists. Take a look at the [Democratic Socialists of America] platform,” Emmer said.
Karl again tried to steer the conversation elsewhere, but Emmer kept going, listing policy positions he attributed to the group.
“They want to defund the police. They want to defund prisons. They want government-only health care. And they want the Green New Deal, which will cost every American family another $355,000. That’s what we should be talking about,” Emmer said.
The exchange comes amid a national debate over the political identity of several high-profile Democratic candidates. New York City currently has a Democratic Socialist mayor, and a Democratic Socialist is the leading candidate in the Los Angeles mayoral race. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY-14) has also publicly discussed the possibility of a presidential run.
Emmer, the House Majority Whip representing Minnesota’s 6th District, has made similar arguments in other recent public appearances. At the GOP Midterm Convention in Dallas in September, he criticized Rep. Ilhan Omar and activist Abdul El-Sayed by name while arguing that the Democratic Party had moved further left.
ABC News and Jonathan Karl did not immediately offer additional comment beyond what was broadcast during the interview.
