Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont has some conflicting opinions when it comes to despotism.
For a guy who has an awful lot of nice things to say about Fidel Castro, Daniel Ortega, and the Soviet Union, the “independent” lawmaker sure takes a dim view of President Trump’s alleged authoritarianism.
Totalitarianism is condemnable except for when it is not, apparently.
“We are facing the worst public health crisis in 100 years,” Sanders said Monday during the first night of the Democratic National Convention. “And, in the midst of all of this, we have a president who is not only incapable of addressing these crises but is leading us down the path of authoritarianism.”
The senator added, “Under this administration, authoritarianism has taken root in our country. I, and my family, and many of yours, know the insidious way authoritarianism destroys democracy, decency, and humanity. As long as I am here, I will work with progressives, with moderates, and, yes, with conservatives to preserve this nation from a threat that so many of our heroes fought and died to defeat.”
Such a curious message coming from the guy who refused to back down during the 2020 Democratic primary after critics rightly excoriated him for praising Fidel Castro.
Remember that?
The senator came under fire during the primary after footage surfaced showing him praising the Castro regime in different clips over the course of decades. Pressed later by CNN’s Anderson Cooper to defend his remarks, Sanders responded by arguing that the late dictator was not all that bad because he implemented a “massive” literacy program.
“We’re very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba,” Sanders told Cooper, “but you know, it’s unfair to simply say everything is bad. You know?”
The senator added, “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?”
There are a lot of “dissidents imprisoned in Cuba,” Cooper noted.
Sanders deflected, “That’s right. And we condemn that. Unlike Donald Trump, let’s be clear, you want to — I do not think that Kim Jong Un is a good friend. I don’t trade love letters with a murdering dictator. Vladimir Putin, not a great friend of mine.”
Amazing.
“Came into office” is such a remarkable euphemism for what happened in Cuba, where Castro slaughtered his way into power. Castro was an indisputably evil man, whose long, oppressive reign was bloody and terrible from the very start. But that is apparently the good kind of authoritarianism, the kind where you cannot say it was “all bad,” according to Sanders.
If you can believe it, that is not all. As mentioned in the above, Sanders has also defended Ortega and the Soviet Union, which is responsible for the deaths of literally millions of people, including an obscene number of tortured and murdered political prisoners.
But don’t worry. Sanders is here to protect you from Trump, the real authoritarian threat. Thank goodness for that.
