The US Congress passed this week (September 1st 2026) Resolution 1490 the purpose of which is to provide for ‘…the condemnation and denouncement of
socialism in all its forms, and for other purposes…’.  This ‘Crank’ resolution – named not because of its content but rather because of the name of the proposing Member of Congress – was passed by 220 votes to 192 as one of the last acts of Congress prior to the planned precipitous closure of Congress by the House Speaker Mike Johnson.

The questions I have beyond the simple avoidance of the resolution to actually define Socialism are legion: but as a headline question, I wonder whether or not this resolution is a first step on the path towards the United States of America formally declaring ‘Socialism’ is a form of ‘Terrorism’.

For the purposes of reader interest, the last time the Congress tried to do this (Nov 2025) the bill was not passed due to an amendment being added to include in the condemnation fascism.

The Resolution itself amounts to simple rhetoric: a large number of ill-defined/ unsubstantiated points, and support for Trumpism and the current administration.  The Resolution even seeks to target the political organisation ‘Democratic Socialists of America’ (DSA) with fully a third of the Resolution’s points related directly to the DSA.

In terms of assumptions or a lack of substantiation, the Resolution cites that Socialism has been responsible for over 100 million deaths; yet it cites no sources or data points for this figure.  It is perhaps worthy of mention in contrast, that according to Noam Chomsky, the same or greater number could be blamed on Capitalism too – but no mention of that in the Resolution.  (If you’re interested, Wikipedia suggests that the deaths for which Communism is responsible is between 10 and 148 million.  It is possible that the figure of 100 million was derived from the 1997 published work ‘The Black Book of Communism‘.)

As far as support for Trumpism goes, the Resolution cites that the Trump Administration has charged 4 non-citizens for illegal voting! (That is 4 out of approximately 200 million registered voters.)  The Resolution  includes 3 other points which refer to the SAVE Act (also to do with voting).  Quite what any of these points have to do with Socialism is beyond me – but then like I said, Socialism isn’t defined in this Resolution so perhaps they are implying that illegal voting is a Socialist policy of…

Regardless of the inanity (my personal view) of this Resolution, I would raise the immediate question of the dangers of having such a condemnation?  If an entire political creed – Socialism – is condemned, there is the distinct possibility that society will increasingly shun Socialism, and that therefore society’s understanding of the philosophy itself would only reduce: less acceptance, less teaching, less knowledge = more fear.  AN increase in fear would possibly link to a reduction in tolerance, and therefore would likely increase the divisions in society.  Does the current administration want a divided society?

My perspective here is that societies should encourage the discussion and teaching of all political philosophies, with the ambition of having a population as aware as possible about the consequences of their decisions.  As such, it seems to me that the only reason for proscribing (in this way) a political philosophy would be that you are afraid of it: afraid that people will choose and support it.  Surely it follows, that if you see something as a threat because you think that people may vote for it, then you must know that the path you are following is not what the people want.

There is a further statement in the Resolution to which I would like to draw your attention:

Whereas, on February 19, 2026, the DSA stated ‘‘[t]he United States of America has never been a democracy’’;

This statement seems to me to be included in the Resolution as a condemnation of the DSA, yet it seems to me that the DSA have hit the nail on the head…  clearly the people in the current administration are not seeking democracy.  All they want is to remain in charge.

To return to the opening question; Is this the first step in the facilitation of the United States of America denouncing socialism as ‘terrorism’?  Well, before I answer, and to avoid the ‘omissions’ of the Resolution I would like to underline what (in the United States of America) passes for terrorism.  Both ‘International‘ and ‘Domestic‘ terrorism differ slightly, but both include the following elements:

• involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State…
• appear to be intended
  • to intimidate or coerce a civilian population
  • to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion;

Under this definition, I would honestly be more inclined to describe the Resolution itself as an act of terrorism than I would Socialism.  At present, espousing Socialism is not a violation of current criminal laws in the US: however as was seen in the UK with Palestine Action, that is not a permanent obstacle.

To answer the question then, honestly I do not know but I, do believe that should the current administration wish to follow that path, then this will be a part of the foundations yes.  I wonder whether or not this ‘condemnation’ will, in the near-term, facilitate the United States of America officially declaring itself as being anti-socialist?  Furthermore, I suspect that even if not, this will develop and deepen bias against socialism leading to those identifying as socialist being pilloried.  I would also expect that political debate becomes restricted (in practice if not in law) with ‘socialists’ being prevented from running for office.  This Resolution would appear to my eyes to be fomenting fear, a reprise if you will, of MacCarthyism.  It strikes me either way, that this is yet another shift in the Overton Window for politics: making it publicly acceptable to decry socialism.