Castro Trends After Bernie Sanders Praises Cuban Leader’s Literacy Program – By Brendan Cole (Newsweek) / Feb 24 2020
Democratic presidential contender Bernie Sanders has sparked criticism on Twitter for praising the literacy program enacted by the late Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
After the interview with 60 Minutes, the measured praise by the Vermont senator that the island’s leader had improved educational standards among his people led to “Castro” trending across Sunday night and Monday morning.
Fresh from an impressive win in the Nevada caucuses, Sanders was asked to explain how he felt about the “democratic socialism” he was touting on the campaign trail being characterized by President Donald Trump as “communism.”
Sanders said: “What democratic socialism is about is saying, ‘Let’s use the federal government to protect the interests of working families.'”
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks during a campaign rally at Vic Mathias Shores Park on February 23, 2020 in Austin, Texas. He told a 60 Minutes interview that he believed Cuban leader Fidel Castro had done some positive things.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
The program then played an undated clip of Sanders telling an interviewer the reason why the Cuban people did not rise up against Castro was that he managed to educate his country’s children, give them health care and “totally transformed the society.”
In Sunday’s program Sanders said: “We’re very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba but you know, it’s unfair to simply say everything is bad.
“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?”
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