SEN TOM COTTON: Democrats say socialism will help. History says it will hurt

Americans are worried about the cost of living — and rightly so.The price of groceries, housing, and many everyday necessities rose by roughly 30 percent under President Biden.

While price increases have slowed under Republican leadership, the devastating effects of that inflation remain.Democrats' self-described "socialist" solution — a dramatic expansion of government welfare, regulation, and taxation — would make life even more expensive for American families.History has already run this big government socialist experiment again and again.

From Venezuela to Cuba to the Soviet Union, countries that embraced socialism have produced the same results: shortages, inflation, declining investment, fewer opportunities, and higher prices for their citizens.First, look at Venezuela, which has some of the world's largest oil reserves.Venezuela should have been among the wealthiest nations in the Western Hemisphere, but decades of socialist policies — such as nationalizing industry, reckless government spending, and sweeping price controls — have devastated its economy, destroyed the currency, and skyrocketed inflation.I WATCHED CHICAGO PROMISE FOOD EQUITY.

NOW MY NEIGHBORHOOD HAS EMPTY SHELVESFor years, Venezuelans have paid the price for these failed socialist policies as grocery shelves emptied, basic medicines disappeared, and hours-long lines formed for staples like flour and rice.Toilet paper became so scarce that it became an international symbol of Venezuela's collapse.

And because of inflation, a loaf of bread that once cost only a few bolívars eventually cost millions.Also consider Cuba, where state ownership and central planning have similarly failed to generate prosperity and provide food for its people, despite having fertile agricultural lands.More than six decades after the communist revolution, Cuba imports as much as 80 percent of its food, yet Cubans still endure chronic shortages.

Ration books remain part of daily life.Buildings crumble.

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