These charts are from a recent Monmouth University Poll -- done between April 11th and 15th of a national sample of 801 adults, and has a margin of error of 3.5 points.
It shows that most Americans still do not understand what socialism is, and are rather afraid of it. Note that only 10% of the people have a positive view of socialism, and 57% say it is not compatible with American values. About 60% say it will take away individual rights from Americans.
Now this is not true. America has many socialist programs (Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, free public education, unemployment insurance, food stamps, federal home loans, etc.). These programs and others are perfectly compatible with American values (and actually enhance them), and they don't restrict any individual rights. But too many Americans think socialism is dictatorship (a form of government instead of an economic system) -- and it's a fairly effective word to scare people when it comes to politics.
Some of my fellow leftists say we can just educate the public during the campaign, but that's wishful thinking. We've been trying to fight the anti-socialism propaganda for decades now, and the public is not going to be educated in the next few months.
This is the main reason I am opposed to Bernie Sanders winning the Democratic Party's presidential nomination in 2020. He is an avowed and unashamed socialist. That's not a bad thing -- unless you're running for president.
The Republicans are going to be trying to label all Democrats as socialists in the 2020 general election campaign. I doubt it will stick to most Democrats, but it certainly will stick with Bernie. The GOP can come up with a ton of instances where he brags about being a socialist, and they'll use them repeatedly to scare voters. They'll have Bernie looking like the re-incarnation of Joe Stalin.
I'm not the only one who thinks the Republicans would love to run against Bernie. The following is part of an article in Politico by Burgess Everett:
Republicans like their chances of keeping the Senate in 2020. But there’s one thing they think would all but seal the deal: Bernie Sanders as the Democratic presidential nominee.
Some GOP incumbents are practically cheering him on, confident there’s no way a self-described democratic socialist could win a general election against President Donald Trump and that he’d drag other Democrats on the ballot with him. . . .
Trump and the Senate GOP have explicitly designed their 2020 strategy around Sanders, beating the anti-socialism drum incessantly and attempting to tether every Democrat on the ballot to what they call a creep away from capitalism and toward collectivism.
And though he’s consistently trailing former Vice President Joe Biden at this early stage, some top Republicans said they sincerely believe Sanders has a legitimate shot at winning.
“A lot of people think that in that crowded field, he could break out,” said Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.).
He added: “If we can run a race against a person that’s an out-of-the-closet socialist and promoting socialist ideas, it’s a great contrast for us.”
The strategy shows Republicans are much more comfortable talking about Sanders and tying other Democrats to his brand of socialism than they are in defending this year's meager legislative agenda. . . .
Though Republicans will try to attach the socialist label to anyone who endorses sweeping expansions of government health care programs and climate change legislation, GOP lawmakers and Trump allies concede it would work much better against Sanders than it would against some of his rivals. . . .
“It’s probably [more] effective against somebody who is actually a socialist,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a close Trump ally who said the president is eager to run against socialism. Trying to tag Biden as a socialist would be a taller order, Graham acknowledged, though he predicted Biden would be pulled to the left.