O’Reilly on rise of socialism: ‘We’re living in a world of entitlement’

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Political commentator Bill O’Reilly said Monday that the rise of socialism in the U.S. stems from a growing culture of entitlement, blaming social media for shaping younger generations’ perceptions of the country.

“We’re living in a world of entitlement, and we’ll give you stuff,” he said in an interview with NewsNation’s “On Balance with Leland Vittert.” “And that’s the way to power in this country. That’s how you get power.”

Democratic socialists, whose ideals focus on the economy and affordability, have gained ground in races around the country, showing voters are willing to elect them.

It became even more apparent when a slate of democratic socialist candidates, backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D), won several Democratic House primaries in the Empire State, even against establishment Democrats and incumbents.

Host Leland Vittert asked O’Reilly how socialist ideas gained traction in the U.S. nearly 250 years after its founding, comparing the movement to other periods of upheaval in American history.

O’Reilly pointed to dramatic changes in the country since the post-World War II era, arguing Americans expected to work hard rather than rely on government assistance.

“The world my parents inhabited was post-World War II, and they got through the Depression, and nobody was handing anybody anything,” O’Reilly said. “They were gonna work, and they worked hard.”

“Now, you’ve got social media telling you all kinds of nonsense. You’ve got derelict schools run by teachers’ unions that are communist,” he continued. “You’ve got powerful forces telling urchins in the classroom, ‘hey, you live in a crummy country. Hey, you don’t have a chance.’ That’s what’s happening.”

Democratic socialism is often incorrectly conflated with communism, and President Trump has repeatedly suggested the two are the same.

O’Reilly also acknowledged that Trump bears some responsibility for the country’s political divisions.

“I think his responsibility is that because of his manner. He’s alienated a lot of Americans who simply don’t like his presentation,” O’Reilly said. “So, they can’t get beyond Donald Trump’s presentation. In that way, he loses persuadability.”

O’Reilly also pointed to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a democratic socialist, as a driving force behind the ideological shift.

“Sanders is the godfather of this,” he said.

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Bernie Sanders

Bill O'Reilly

Donald Trump

Leland Vittert

Zohran Mamdani

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