Ruhle Blames ‘Authoritarian Regime’ Moves for Rise of DSA Communism

Nicholas Spinnato
July 28th, 2026 6:24 PM

Text to Speech

00:00 00:00
Font Size
MS NOW/SnapStream

Amid the notoriety and rise of Democratic Socialist candidates in primaries ahead of the midterm elections and growing Democrat establishment panic, Tuesday’s Money, Power, Politics with MS NOW host Stephanie Ruhle tried to join the discussion with a minimization of Republican communism. The segment was accompanied by a chyron that read “GOP Ramps Up ‘Communism’ Attacks Ahead of Midterms.”

Ruhle started and highlighted a post from Republican Speaker Mike Johnson that proclaimed, “a battle between common sense and communism.”

She then decided to give a history lesson, with an accusation of authoritarianism: “And I would point out that we've made a lot of moves that you could liken to an authoritarian regime, and that is how you end up with communism. But alas, history and the truth don't matter.”

 

 

Ruhle asked, “What do you make of this argument Republicans are making?” as she stated the communism claims were “one thing that their diehard supporters are hanging on to.”

Former Obama campaign manager Jim Messina responded to Ruhle’s authoritarian claims with praise and agreement, “Well, this is why you're the best in journalism, because, as you pointed out, they're actually doing the authoritarian stuff, but they don't have anything to talk about. “

Messina did have some pushback for some of the radical DSA policies, as showcased by a DSA figure’s recent appearance on FOX News Sunday. He said some DSA policies were “way out of touch”: “And, you know, some of this stuff, let's be very clear, Stephanie, is way out of touch. We shouldn't abolish the United States Senate. We shouldn't rewrite the Constitution. “

But Messina also said voters “don’t care about that stuff” and instead wanted to know who's going to make their prices go lower. 

He warned, “Democrats can't get pulled into a fight on communism and have to stay where they are right now, which is cost of living.”

 

 

Ruhle asked, “How specifically do Democrats combat it?” as she seemed to complain that “Republicans are going to hang on to this idea of abolishing the police and open borders, and so on and so forth.”

Somewhat surprisingly, she defended DSA economic policies and said Democrats “certainly don't want to say ‘We're denouncing DSA,’” and continued: “DSA and a lot of those candidates and a lot of these ideas, which are about affordability and busting down a system that does not work for millions of Americans, does appeal to people.”

Messina’s response turned to cost of living and said the issue “unites both sides of the Democratic Party. And that is where we win.”

Ruhle now seemed to realize, despite her minimization, the new notoriety of the DSA, a group which she previously called just a “small group of people” when she mocked frequent MS NOW guest Donny Deutsch earlier this month for his fears over the group’s possible antisemitism.

The transcript is below. Click "expand":

MS NOW’s Money, Power, Politics

July 28, 2026

09:44:55 AM Eastern

(...)

STEPHANIE RUHLE: Republicans have been attacking the Democratic Socialist movement. It's their number one target. Speaker Mike Johnson called it a battle between common sense and communism. 

And I would point out that we've made a lot of moves that you could liken to an authoritarian regime, and that is how you end up with communism. But alas, history and the truth don't matter. 

What do you make of this argument Republicans are making? Because it's one thing that their diehard supporters are hanging on to.

JIM MESSINA: Well, this is why you're the best in journalism, because, as you pointed out, they're actually doing the authoritarian stuff, but they don't have anything to talk about. 

They can't talk about gas prices. They can't talk about utility prices. They have complete control of Washington, D.C. All three levers of power. And so, of course, they're going to move to communism. 

And, you know, some of this DSA stuff, let's be very clear, Stephanie, is way out of touch. We shouldn't abolish the United States Senate. We shouldn't rewrite the Constitution. However, voters don't care about that stuff. They want to know who's going to make their prices go lower. 

They want to know who understands that 66 percent of voters are living paycheck to paycheck. That's who they're going to vote for. And Democrats can't get pulled into a fight on communism and got to stay where they are right now, which is cost of living. 

This weekend, the future Speaker of the House, Hakeem Jeffries, laid out his plan of what he wants to do in the first 100 days if he takes over, and it was all costs and accountability. That's where they have to fight.

RUHLE: So, how specifically do Democrats combat it, as Republicans are going to hang on to this idea of abolishing the police and open borders, and so on and so forth? How do they stay in the zone? Because they certainly don't want to say “We're denouncing DSA.” DSA and a lot of those candidates and a lot of these ideas, which are about affordability and busting down a system that does not work for millions of Americans, does appeal to people.

MESSINA: I think it's very clear you stay focused on cost of living. And, you know, Mayor Mamdani ran on that. Moderates like Mikie Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger won governorships on that. That's what unites the party right now. The party is united on making things cheaper, getting the gas prices down, figuring out how to get things down in the grocery stores, and freezing utility rates. That unites both sides of the Democratic Party. And that is where we win.

(...)

Donor Privacy Policy