The Daily Show asks Bernie Sanders what millennials see in socialism

"It's safe to say that socialism is having a moment in American politics right now," Trevor Noah said on Tuesday's Daily Show. "And that's freaking a lot of people out." To figure out why, The Daily Show sent senior youth correspondent Jaboukie Young-White out into Manhattan and Washington, D.C., to first ask millennials about their thoughts on socialism and then chat with some people who have stronger opinions on the topic.

"Seriously, you can't talk socialism in America without going to the OG, Sen. Bernie Sanders," Young-White said, after cracking a joke about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. He asked Sanders to define socialism and explain its appeal to the youths. "Could he be the oldest millennial in America?" he asked. Sanders said young people see the appeal in egalitarianism, thanks to the economic headwinds they are facing as a generation, and he held up Denmark and Sweden as examples to emulate.

Young-White then interviewed socialism critic Karol Markowitz, a columnist for the New York Post. She cited Soviet gulags. He went back to Sanders, who responded that the Soviet Union "was an authoritarian society with no democratic rights," and "democratic socialists stood up and fought against that." He isn't trying to imitate the Soviets or Venezuela, he added, but he did make a gulag joke.

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"Fact check: The examples of failed socialism that critics use are not socialist democracies but authoritarian states led by corrupt, ruthless, and paranoid dictators," Young-White said. "But I do have one real problem with socialism: I like money." So he asked Sanders, "Is socialism still for me if I'm a millennial millionaire?" You can watch the response below. Peter Weber