Medicare for All is listed as the top priority of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. He describes it as a single-payer system that is “free at the point of service” as there will be no premiums, deductibles, copays, or surprise bills. It will cover more services (dental, hearing, vision, long-term care, substance abuse treatment, etc.) than what the present Medicare system covers. It will also stop the “pharmaceutical industry from ripping off the American people” by capping prescription drug prices.

Is reelecting Donald Trump the only way to stem the tide of socialism in America? With self-described “democratic socialist” Bernie Sanders still a strong contender for the Democratic nomination, many on the right, including the president himself, argue that only by voting for Trump can socialism be abated.

“The government is corrupt, because the wrong people are in charge. Once López Obrador wins the presidency, everything will be different. The state will give us great education and healthcare services, for free! The rich will pay their taxes and poor people will get the welfare programs they need to escape poverty.”

The Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Global Cases Monitor shows that the mortality rate of the epidemic is very low.

It is not uncommon to encounter political theorists and pundits who insist that political centralization is a boon to economic growth.  In both cases, it is claimed the presence of a unifying central regime—whether in Brussels or in Washington, DC, for example—is essential in ensuring the efficient and free flow of goods throughout a large jurisdiction. This, we are told, will greatly accelerate economic growth.

The Federal Reserve this morning slashed the target federal funds rate by 0.5 percent today. According to CNBC:

The Federal Reserve moved to an enact an emergency interest rate cut after officials saw the coronavirus having a material impact on the economic outlook, Chairman Jerome Powell said Tuesday.

Recently disgruntled residents of rural counties in southwest Oregon have been organizing a petition to move Idaho’s border westward to form a “Greater Idaho” that could also potentially include parts of Northern California.

I have a suggestion for the people in America who dream of the US becoming a socialist paradise—try it in California first and see what happens. Of course, I don’t really want this to happen. I live in California. But I think that this idea of California becoming an independent republic based on “democratic socialism” would be a helpful thought experiment.