Nasser, Qasim, Hussein, Gadaffi, Mossadegh, Árbenz. None of them communists, but all had something in common: nationalization of local industry as policy. All were also demonized, hated, and most even directly murdered by U.S. intelligence.
Empire fears the communist movement because nationalization has proven inherent to its implementation. Nationalization is the greatest fear of empire, though, as it rips production (and profit) from the stranglehold of foreign exploiters and brings it that much closer to the native toilers.