In 2019 America, "Socialism" explicitly does not mean the state or workers own the means of production. 2019 American "Socialism" is capitalism with guard rails, raising up the bottom class a bit at the cost of the top. Regardless how you feel about that, Sanders is no Marx, and the breathless ranting over on Fox is just that.
The government has no interest in the means of production lol, and frankly, neither do the workers. Union participation is at an all-time low.
Capitalism with guard rails is just capitalism. It's never socialism or communism. No country has a completely unfettered free market, it's always on a spectrum with many socialist policies and regulations for the greater good.
The question is which policies are used and how they're enforced, and America has always tended toward more individual choice over state mandated actions.
