Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin praised President Donald Trump’s economic leadership and vowed that the nation go "back to socialism."

Trump on Tuesday night in his State of the Union speech declared America "will never be a socialist country."

“The U.S. economy is doing terrific,” Mnuchin told CNBC. “And as the president talked about last night, his economic plan is working. We’re not going back to socialism. We’re going on an economic plan for America that works,” he said.

“We don’t believe in a centralized planned economy where the government puts restraints on it,” he told CNBC.

In his State of the Union address, Trump did not mention any names, but Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., a democratic socialist, scowled.

"We stand with the Venezuelan people in their noble quest for freedom — and we condemn the brutality of the Maduro regime, whose socialist policies have turned that nation from being the wealthiest in South America into a state of abject poverty and despair," Trump said.

"Here, in the United States, we are alarmed by new calls to adopt socialism in our country," he continued, in what Bloomberg News called an apparent reference to newly elected Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, a Democratic socialist who has become a fascination on the right.

"America was founded on liberty and independence – not government coercion, domination, and control. We are born free, and we will stay free."

"Tonight, we renew our resolve that America will never be a socialist country," he said.

The vow set off one of a number of "USA" chants in the House chamber.

• George Mentz: Socialism Hazardous to Nation's Health and Wealth 
• American Potential Is Unlimited, Once We Leave 'Socialism Town’