Vice President Vance issued a warning to Republicans on Thursday about the momentum of progressive candidates on the left, saying GOP members can only blame themselves if they don't persuade young voters. 

"Our response to that [socialism] can't just be to ignore the economic concerns that I think are feeding this rising interest in socialism," Vance said in an interview with Fox News's "The Will Cain Show." 

"You as an American citizen deserve to have a good life in this country, and you deserve to have a government that is making it easier for you to start a family, for you to afford to get a good education, for you to have a good job, for you to afford a home," he continued.

Vance touted the Trump administration's economic policies, noting that "these things sometimes take a little bit of time." 

The vice president referred to investments into the U.S. leading to middle-class jobs, the stabilization of housing prices and the administration's push to lower interest rates. 

"We want people to be able to afford the good things about this wonderful country we all live in," he continued. 

"My warning to my fellow Republicans would be if we don't get this right, don't blame young people for being sympathetic to socialism. We've got to blame ourselves," he said. "You don't stop socialism by throwing slogans at people about the free market. As much as I love the free market, you stop socialism by making people's lives better, and that's what we're trying to do every single day."

Vance's comments come amid a rise in progressive candidates in Democratic primaries across the country. President Trump and his allies have adopted the strategy of labeling the candidates and other Democrats by extension as socialists and communists. 

However, a slew of recent polls show growing voter dissatisfaction with the administration's handling of the economy. A Reuters/Ipsos poll released earlier this month showed Trump's approval rating falling from 35 percent to 37 percent. It also showed 37 percent said they preferred the Democratic Party's approach to the economy, while 36 percent said they preferred the GOP approach.

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