Unpacking the DSA, Part 1: The Hard Math and Harsh Realities of ‘Land Back’
That brings me to a new series I’m writing called “Unpacking the DSA,” where we’re going to take a close look at the newly published political platform of the Twin Cities chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). My goal isn’t to trade ideological insults. It’s to look past the slogans and subject these proposals to some old-fashioned, practical scrutiny.
Let’s start with one of the most sweeping demands in their platform. The DSA calls for the “Return of land: Return land to First Nations, starting with expropriating State, Federal, and large private holdings, with the return of the rest of the land as soon as possible.”
On paper, it sounds like a bold statement aimed at correcting historic injustices. But when you sit down with a cup of coffee and actually do the math, the proposal quickly falls apart. It moves from a passionate political rally cry to a logistical and financial impossibility.
Let’s Talk About the Numbers
To understand what the DSA is asking for, we have to look at what Minnesota is actually worth. If you’re going to hand over the land—whether you buy it or try to seize it—you have to look at the market value. We can break this down into two piles: taxable property and non-taxable property.
First, let’s look at the taxable land. When the DSA talks about returning “the rest of the land as soon as possible,” they are talking about the neighborhoods, family farms, and local businesses that everyday Minnesotans live and work on.
According to the Minnesota House Research Department’s data for the 2024 assessment year, the total Estimated Market Value of all taxable property in our state is a jaw-dropping $1.08 trillion. That includes about $536 billion in residential homes, $205 billion in agricultural land, and nearly $120 billion in commercial and industrial properties.
To put $1.08 trillion in perspective, Minnesota’s entire two-year state budget is around $72 billion, or $36 billion annually. If the government tried to buy this land legally to return it, it would cost 30 times the state’s entire annual operating budget. And remember, that’s just the taxable stuff.
But let’s look past the astronomical price tag for a moment. Even if we had the money, how would this actually work? The short answer is: it wouldn’t.
First, there’s the U.S. Constitution. The DSA platform uses the word “expropriating,” which is just a bureaucratic term for seizing property. But the Fifth Amendment is very clear: the government cannot take private property for public use without paying “just compensation.” Any attempt to simply confiscate land from large private owners would trigger an immediate legal war, and the courts would strike it down in a heartbeat.
Second, think about what happens to your local community if the tax base vanishes. Property taxes are the lifeblood of local government. They pay for the teachers in our schools, the police officers and firefighters on our streets, and the plows that clear our roads in January. If massive chunks of taxable land are transferred to sovereign First Nations—which operate outside the state and local tax systems—that revenue disappears. Cities and towns would face immediate financial collapse.
Finally, there’s the plain old headache of daily infrastructure. Property isn’t just dirt; it’s an interconnected web of modern systems. Who maintains the water and sewer lines running underneath land that has been transferred? Who manages the power grid, the water rights, or the highways cutting across these boundaries? Splitting up jurisdictions this way would create an administrative nightmare for utilities and emergency services.
