DSA candidate Melat Kiros, who ousted 15-term Colorado rep, reveals her radical policy wish list

Colorado Democratic congressional nominee Melat Kiros brushed aside concerns about communists inside the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) faction of the Democratic Party on Friday, arguing Republicans were using the issue to blunt the socialist movement’s growing influence ahead of the midterm elections.Host Margaret Hoover of PBS’s “Firing Line,” asked Kiros how she addressed criticism that some DSA members, including roughly half of its national leadership, identify as communists.“Yeah.Well, some members of the Democratic Party are proudly proclaiming themselves as capitalists, and it’s a big tent, right?” Kiros said.

“But again, at the end of the day, it’s up to the voters, right?”“Until a self-proclaimed communist actually wins an election, then it’s just noise from the Republican Party.There’s no one who’s actually winning with that.”Hoover asked Kiros directly whether she was a communist after citing President Donald Trump’s characterization of the movement as “hardcore, godless communists.”“No, I’m not a communist,” Kiros said.Kiros attributed the Republican attacks to concern that the DSA’s economic message was gaining support among voters.“Because I think the Republican Party, and frankly, the oligarchy that largely stands behind the Republican Party can see that our message of, in its most basic form, economic populism, is actually resonating with voters,” Kiros said.Kiros, 29, defeated 15-term Rep.

Diana DeGette in the Democratic primary for Colorado’s heavily Democratic 1st Congressional District.Kiros has become the 28th candidate endorsed by a far-left group to win a Democratic primary election this cycle.

Those nominees could join 18 incumbent progressives to form a 43-member House bloc in January.The DSA’s 25-member National Political Committee serves as the organization’s primary political leadership.The group’s newly launched “Workers Deserve More” program calls for abol...