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So what did Democrat presidential candidate Bernie Sanders do after days of criticism for his kind words about Cuban communist tyrant Fidel Castro, whose mass murders by firing squad were so frequent that vultures gathered at the sound of the gunfire?
He raised the bet and said the same thing in Tuesday’s debate on CBS. And the day before, he added Red China to the list of countries to be admired for their strides in combating human misery.
Understandably, Democrats are in full panic mode over the thought of Sanders in a contest against President Trump because Americans will reject the Democrat candidate’s pie-in-the-sky socialist programs that will bankrupt the country.
Now, they must contend with his defense of communist mass murderers.
The Latest
Americans heard Sanders’ latest defense of Castro’s dictatorship last night.
“Of course you have a dictatorship in Cuba,” Sanders confessed. But “what I said is what Barack Obama said…. That Cuba made progress on education.”
The crowd booed.
“Really?! Really?!” Sanders harrumphed.
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“What Barack Obama said is they made great progress on education and health care,” the elderly Bolshevik continued. “Occasionally, it might be a good idea to be honest about American foreign policy” because the U.S. government has overthrown governments “all over the world.”
But “when dictatorships, whether it is the Chinese or the Cubans, do something good,” he added, “you acknowledge that, but you don’t have to trade love letters to them.”
The Cuba controversy began when CBS’ 60 Minutes aired Sanders’ comments about Castro. Said Sanders:
We’re very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba, but, you know, it’s unfair to simply say everything is bad, you know? When Fidel Castro came into office, you know what he did? He had a massive literacy program. Is that a bad thing? Even though Fidel Castro did it?
The comment didn’t go over well.
Tweeted Michael Bloomberg, “Fidel Castro left a dark legacy of forced labor camps, religious repression, widespread poverty, firing squads, and the murder of thousands of his own people. But sure, Bernie, let’s talk about his literacy program.”
The next night at CNN’s Town Hall, Sanders repeated his praise of the Cuban mass murderer.
When Fidel Castro first came to power … you know what he did? He initiated a major literacy program. There was a lot of folks in Cuba at that point who were illiterate. And he formed a literacy brigade. He went out and they helped people learn to read and write. You know what, I think teaching people to read and write is a good thing.
After bragging that he opposed dictatorships everywhere, he added kudos for the Chinese Reds:
I happen to believe in democracy, not authoritarianism. But you know, you can take China as another example. China is an authoritarian country becoming more and more authoritarian. But can anyone deny, I mean the facts are clear, that they have taken more people out of extreme poverty than any country in history. Do I get criticized because I say that? That’s the truth. So that is a fact. End of discussion.
Some Chinese might say 65 million dead thanks to Mao’s communist tyranny is the “end of the discussion,” but anyway, Sanders went on.
“Truth is truth,” he insisted when moderator Chris Cuomo observed that Sanders’ fellow party members believe Castro should never be praised.
One of them was Pete Buttigieg: “Why are we spotlighting the literacy programs of a brutal dictator, instead of being unambiguous in our condemnation about the way he has treated his own people?” he asked.
Kiss Florida Goodbye?
No wonder Democrats are scared. They think praising Castro might help reelect Donald Trump.
María Teresa Kumar, chief of Voto Latino, said the party will lose Florida if Sanders wins the nomination.
“You can kiss Florida goodbye,” she said on MSNBC. “Floridians — Latinos that have fled socialism, they have fled and they are in Florida, and they have sensibilities that are different from the rest of the Latino community.”
Representative Donna Shalala, who represents Florida’s 27th district, said likewise.
“I’m hoping that in the future, Senator Sanders will take time to speak to some of my constituents before he decides to sing the praises of a murderous tyrant like Fidel Castro,” she tweeted.
As The New American reported last week, party veterans who remember what happened when the party chose a hard-left candidate in 1972 believe another disaster is forthcoming if Sanders becomes the nominee.
Photo: AP Images
R. Cort Kirkwood is a long-time contributor to The New American and a former newspaper editor.
