July 2019 | Rolling Stone | 37
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OR THE 2020 election, Dem-
ocrats are proposing pol-
icies of sweep and ambi-
tion not seen since the New Deal
or the Great Society. Ideas that
would have seemed radical even
five years ago — publicly funded
college, a Green New Deal, Medi-
care for All — are now at the top of
many candidates’ platforms.
Most intriguing: As once-fringe
ideas enter the mainstream de-
bate, they are proving popular.
“Medicare for All is supported by
at least 55 percent of the public,”
says Sean McElwee, a co-found-
er of the progressive think tank
Data for Progress. “So why is that
treated as an extreme position?”
By offering visionary reforms for
a defective democracy, a founder-
ing middle class, the climate cri-
sis and a system rigged for the
wealthiest, progressives hope to
inspire an electorate whose anger
helped propel a strongman like
Donald Trump to power.
These are moonshot ideas, to
be sure, impossible to pass un-
less Democrats reclaim both the
White House and the Senate. (Ma-
jority Leader Mitch McConnell has
vowed to be the “Grim Reaper”
for these plans if the GOP holds
the chamber.) And with price tags
often soaring into the trillions —
with a “t” — these proposals face
resistance from America’s wealth-
iest, whose taxes would be hiked
to pay for them, as well as centrist
Democrats who fear tacking too
far left might fumble one of the
most consequential elections in
the nation’s history.
Below, we examine a half-dozen
of the Democrats’ edgiest ideas,
underscoring what they could
achieve, how much they might
cost, and the obstacles they face.A Green New Deal
The Problem It Solves:The world
has about a decade to arrest green-
house-gas emissions to avoid cat-
astrophic climate change, includ-
ing the collapse of ice sheets that
would raise sea levels, displacing
as many as 200 million people by
the end of the century.Prominent Backers: Alexan-
dria Ocasio-Cortezrolled out the
Green New Deal in February, call-
ing for massive investments to
quit carbon and create econom-ic opportunities for America’s
most disadvantaged communi-
ties. While 2020 candidates from
BernieSanderstoAmyKlobuchar
are backing the GND, to varying
degrees,Jay Inslee has offered the
most detailed plan. He would in-
vest $3 trillion in federal funds to
drive $9 trillion in economy-wide
investment, creating 8 million
jobs, and he promises 100 percent
clean electricity and zero emis-
sions from new cars and buildings
within a decade.Biggest Obstacle: A Green New
Deal would be cheaper than
adapting to submerged cities orwaves of climate refugees. But
spending trillions to decarbonize
America is anathema to a Repub-
lican Party subsidized by the fos-
sil-fuel industry, which has waged
a four-decade disinformation
campaign — including $1 billion
spent globally on deceptive lobby-
ing and PR since the Paris Agree-
ment. Some top Democrats have
also questioned the GND, with
Nancy Pelosi dismissing it as “the
green dream or whatever,” and
others promoting a more moder-
ate solution, like a carbon tax.College
AffordabilityThe Problem It Solves:The price
of a four-year undergraduate pub-
lic education spiked by more than
a third in the past decade, and
Americans have taken on nearly
$1.6 trillion in student debt (the
average grad now begins adult
life with $30,000 in loans). Rath-
er than being a ladder to success,
college can turn into a trap for
borrowers, with debts that are
very difficult to dismiss through
bankruptcy, andoftenserviced
by unscrupulous lenders.Prominent Backers: Sanders
shifted the debate in 2016 by call-
ing for free public universities;
2020 competitorElizabeth War-
ren has added debt forgiveness
to her higher-ed package, seeking
to cancel up to $50,000 in loans
for households earning less than
$100,000 — liberating 42 million
Americans from student debt.Biggest Obstacle: Warren’s
proposal would cost $1.25 tril-
lion over 10 years, financed by a
wealth tax. But student-debt can-
cellation would also act as a stimu-
lus, growing GDP by nearly $1 tril-
lion as Americans invest in homes
and start families rather than pay
down loans and interest. While 56
percent of Americans back War-
ren’s plan, other 2020 contend-
ers have thrown cold water on her
ideas.Klobuchar suggested she’d
have to be a “magic genie” to
make college free for all, andPetePlay it safe or go
bold? In the race to
beat Trump, party
leaders are rolling
out revolutionary
policies for the first
time in a generationBy T I M DIC K I NS ONBIG IDEASThe Democrats’ Radical Agenda
GO BIG OR
GO HOME
The Green New
Deal is one of
the most
expensive new
policy
proposals. The
most detailed
plan, by Jay
Inslee, calls for
trillions in
investment.