If it walks like a communist and talks like a communist, then it IS a communist. Say hello to Bernie Sanders, Democratic front-runner who has nice things to say about Fidel Castro.

And I’m not talking about in the past. I’m talking about in an interview, to Anderson Cooper (who surely must be questioning his life choices if he drew the short stick and had to interview Bernie), on 60 Minutes that just aired on Sunday evening.

Now, Bernie seems to be realizing just now that he could actually sweep the primaries, so can we just tone down the “R” word? And by “R” word, he means “revolution.”

Anderson Cooper: You’re also making, though, a lot of Democratic voters nervous.”

Bernie Sanders: I don’t think so. I– look, you know, you have a lot of candidates out there. And each candidate has his or her supporters.”

Anderson Cooper: But a lot of voters are voting for candidates who aren’t calling for Medicare for All, who aren’t calling for a revolution. Is everybody really wanting a revolution like that?”

Bernie Sanders: Yeah, let’s go easy on the word rev– “political revolution”, you know? We’re– we’re trying to follow–”

Anderson Cooper: Y– you’re the one who’s using the word.”

Bernie Sanders: Well, I mean, you know, but I don’t want people, you know, to overstate that. But here is the point. It’s not good enough to complain, “Oh, I cannot afford my health care. I can’t afford childcare. I can’t afford to send my kid to college. I’m paying half of my income in rent.” You know? If you’re not happy about that, you got to be involved in the political process. Only millions of people standing up for justice can bring about the kind of change that this country requires. And I believe that has got to happen.”

I’m just imagining all the Bernie Bros who are dreaming of the day that they can start building the gulags hearing this. “Wait what? We signed up for a revolution!!!”

It’s obvious that Sanders is trying to soft-sell himself now that he’s running in the lead. This is the kinder, gentler, Scandinavian version of socialist, not the hard left Cuban-style communism. Not that there was anything wrong with that, Bernie says! After all, Fidel Castro made sure the Cuban people were literate!

Bernie Sanders defends his 1980s comments about Fidel Castro in an interview on 60 Minutes. https://t.co/ySqvQKoiBU pic.twitter.com/lTwuXWp9sA

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) February 24, 2020

Bernie 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?”

Anderson Cooper: A lot of p– dissidents imprisoned in– in Cuba.”

Bernie Sanders: 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.”

And then Bernie goes on to say that he would meet in person with Kim Jong Un himself, but he wouldn’t like it, so that makes him different than Trump!

Oh, and Medicare For All? It’s not really “socialized medicine,” everyone! You just get a government health plan and then go see the doctor of your choice! Have fun!

Anderson Cooper: Isn’t that a dangerous message for Democrats to say, “You know what? We’re gonna take away your private insurance. We’re– we’re gonna give you something better–”

Bernie Sanders: Let’s talk about–”

Anderson Cooper: “–run by the government.” A lot of people don’t trust that.”

Bernie Sanders: It’s not run by the government. Medicare allows you to go to any doctor you want for better or worse, this is not socialized medicine. This is keeping the same system intact, but getting rid of the private insurance companies, giving people another card, which allows them complete freedom.”

Yeah, right until your doctor says, “Sorry, I’m quitting medicine because the government reimbursement rates are lower that what private insurance used to be, and I can’t pay my staff. You’ll have to go find another doctor,” and then you have to get in a long line with everyone else to go and see that doctor. Think about how the VA operates. Welcome to healthcare in a government-run medical facility!

And don’t ask Bernie how he’s paying for it. He was told there would be no math.

“How much will that cost?” @andersoncooper asks Bernie Sanders how he’ll pay for the ambitious new government programs he’s proposed. https://t.co/JavrRt2h9k pic.twitter.com/tLLgYCMZsQ

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) February 24, 2020

This is the Democrat front-runner, everyone. The elderly communist who just said that Fidel Castro wasn’t ALLLLLL bad because reading books is such a GREAT THING, and are YOU against reading??? It is classic Bernie bait-and-switch. He can’t give a straight answer to Anderson Cooper because he can’t tell people straight out what he really thinks.

Anderson Cooper: What is democratic socialism?”

Bernie Sanders: When Donald Trump was a private businessman in New York, he got $800 million in tax breaks and subsidies to build luxury housing. That’s called corporate socialism. What democratic socialism is about is saying, ‘Let’s use the federal government to protect the interests of working families.'”

That wasn’t an answer, Bernie. It was a deflection, because he can’t tell the public what he really wants. But listen to him ramble on long enough, and something very telling will slip through, like his praise of Castro.

It’s no wonder that Democrats like Jim Clyburn and David Axelrod are worried.

Hiking in AZ, I came across this twisted cactus which, for some reason, reminded me of the Democratic Party this morning. pic.twitter.com/sWEUifNfd8

— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) February 23, 2020

Moderate Democrats should be worried. The American public should be worried. This is no longer the Democrat party of JFK that was proud to be American and celebrated American achievements in space. Bernie Sanders once said that JFK’s stance on Castro made him want to vomit, and he’s never repudiated that. And it’s because in his little commie heart, Bernie still carries a torch for Fidel’s revolution. But we need to “go easy” on all that “revolution” talk, everyone. After all, Bernie can’t be scaring off voters until the nomination is secured, can he?

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Featured image: original Victory Girls art by Darleen Click