Overview of The New Yorker interview with Megan Romer
In this interview, David Remnick speaks with Megan Romer, co-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), about what “democratic socialism” actually means in practice, how radical the organization really is, and why DSA has gained visibility through figures like Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Zohran Mamdani. Romer presents the DSA as a deeply democratic, anti-capitalist movement focused on worker power, public goods, and long-term structural change rather than a mere left-liberal reform project.
What DSA Says It Stands For
Romer defines democratic socialism as giving people democratic control over the things they need to survive and live with dignity, including:
- Workplaces: collective bargaining, unions, and worker control
- Housing: democratic control and public provision
- Politics: expanding real democratic participation beyond formal elections
She repeatedly emphasizes that the DSA is not simply trying to make capitalism kinder. Instead, it wants to shift power away from billionaires and toward the working class.
Core economic ideas
- Public ownership of essential industries and services
- Strong support for unions and worker organizing
- Taxing the wealthy heavily, especially billionaires
- Rebuilding social systems through democratic decision-making
- A long-term goal of workers controlling the “means of production”
How the DSA Organizes and Makes Decisions
Romer stresses that the DSA is highly democratic internally:
- Its highest decision-making body is the national convention, held every two years
- Delegates are elected by local chapters
- The organization reportedly has about 129,000 members
- Major policy positions are voted on by members, not set unilaterally by leadership
She presents herself as a spokesperson implementing member-approved positions rather than the person personally making policy.
The Interview’s Main Flashpoints
A large part of the conversation centers on how far the DSA is willing to go on controversial issues. Remnick presses Romer on whether the group’s rhetoric is more extreme than its actual electoral politics.
Positions Romer defended or affirmed
- Abolish the Senate
- Replace the presidency and Supreme Court as currently structured
- Abolish ICE
- Open borders / radically rework immigration
- Abolish prisons in the long term
- Defund the police by reallocating money to social services
- No economic support for Israel
- Support for a one-state “Free Palestine” vision
- Skepticism toward U.S. military aid to Ukraine
Romer often framed these as principled, first-principles positions, not immediate policy proposals.
How She Justifies the More Radical Positions
Romer’s recurring argument is that DSA is trying to rethink systems from the ground up.
On policing and prisons
She says the goal is community safety, not chaos:
- Safe communities come from good schools, jobs, parks, and youth programs
- Police budgets, she argues, keep rising while social needs go underfunded
- “Defunding” means redirecting resources, not eliminating police overnight
On immigration
She rejects the idea that DSA wants to “throw the gates open” overnight. Instead, she says the group wants to:
- Re-examine the logic of the immigration system
- Reform the current system while imagining a new one
- Address root causes like poverty and global instability
On wealth and class
Romer defines class in Marxist terms as being tied to one’s relationship to capital:
- Working class = people who sell their labor for a paycheck
- Ownership class = people who profit from owning capital or other people’s labor
She says billionaires are the main concern, not millionaires as such.
Electoral Strategy and Relationship to the Democratic Party
The interview spends a lot of time on DSA’s strategy inside the two-party system.
Key points
- DSA refused to endorse Hillary Clinton in 2016
- It also did not endorse Kamala Harris
- Romer says the point is to preserve DSA’s credibility as a real socialist alternative
- She argues the organization’s job is not to rubber-stamp Democrats, but to organize and mobilize people who are normally disengaged from politics
She also supports the idea of using the Democratic ballot line as a vehicle for left organizing rather than forming an immediate third party.
Foreign Policy and Israel/Palestine
This is the most contentious part of the conversation.
Israel/Palestine
Romer says DSA’s convention adopted a hard line:
- No defense or economic support for Israel
- Support for a free Palestine
- She suggests this implies a one-state solution
Remnick presses her on the October 7 attacks and the DSA’s stance toward pro-Palestinian activism. Romer says the violence was “inevitable” under the conditions in Gaza, which the host challenges as sounding like justification for Hamas. She pivots back to the suffering of civilians and noncombatants.
Ukraine
Romer says DSA opposes pouring U.S. weapons into foreign wars and believes diplomacy has been insufficient. She argues for negotiation with Russia rather than expanded military aid.
The Bigger Picture: What This Interview Reveals
The interview shows a movement that is:
- More ideologically ambitious than mainstream Democratic politics
- Proudly socialist and anti-capitalist
- Internally democratic, but also often vague on details
- Comfortable with bold slogans even when they sound impractical
- Growing in influence through candidates and activist energy
Remnick’s central question is whether the DSA is a serious governing force or a vehicle for symbolic radicalism. Romer’s answer is essentially that the organization is both a political education project and a long-term movement for structural change.
Notable Takeaways
- DSA sees itself as a working-class political project, not just a progressive faction
- Romer repeatedly defends principle over pragmatism
- The organization’s most controversial positions are not accidents; they are part of its identity
- DSA’s rise reflects broader frustration with capitalism, political stagnation, and the limits of mainstream Democrats
- The interview makes clear that DSA’s appeal is strongest where people want a politics that feels bold, insurgent, and uncompromising