The Florida Democratic Party went on record to emphasize its condemnation of dictatorships following comments made by Sen. Bernie Sanders.
An official statement was released Monday in an apparent attempt to clarify that the state’s Democrat Party did not agree with or endorse the Vermont senator and 2020 presidential candidate’s praise of the late Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.
Sanders sparked outrage after praising the legacy of the Cuban leader during an interview Sunday on “60 Minutes” in which he suggested the people of Cuba did not rise up against Castro’s dictatorship because “he educated their kids, gave them health care, totally transformed the society.”
“We’re very opposed to the authoritarian nature of Cuba but you know, it’s unfair to simply say everything is bad,” Sanders told anchor Anderson Cooper. “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 goes Florida’: Bernie Sanders praises murderous dictator Fidel Castro on ’60 Minutes’ https://t.co/FkD1g1m2Pr
— Conservative News (@BIZPACReview) February 24, 2020
The effects of Sanders’ remarks were acutely felt in the critical swing state of Florida where a large Cuban population resides. The senator doubled down on his praise of Castro’s socialist rule in Cuba during a CNN town hall on Monday.
Bernie Sanders doubles down on defending Fidel Castro: “the truth is the truth”https://t.co/bzmv1DmtJH pic.twitter.com/oFrfNKXEOu
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) February 25, 2020
While it should already be seen as embarrassing for a political party to have to go on the record to state its position on opposing dictatorships, the Democrats in Florida did not even call Sanders out directly.
“Florida Democrats condemn dictators who toppled democracies across the globe and stand in solidarity with the thousands of people who have fled violent dictatorships in Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua,” Florida Democratic Party chairwoman Terrie Rizzo said in a statement released Monday.
@FlaDems condemn dictators destroying democracies in the world, and stand in solidarity with people fleeing dictatorships in Cuba, Venezuela & Nicaragua. Candidates need to understand our immigrant communities’ stories as well as provide solutions to issues Floridians are facing.
— Terrie Rizzo (@TerrieRizzo) February 24, 2020
“Candidates need to understand our immigrant communities’ shared stories, as well as provide solutions to issues that matter to all Floridians including access to affordable health care and rejecting a Trump economy that works only for the very rich,” Rizzo added, without ever directly addressing Sanders.
The Miami-Dade Democrats also issued a statement that simultaneously condemned Castro while finding a way to bash President Donald Trump. The party’s apparent presidential front-runner, and his praise of Castro, were never even mentioned.
“Like Donald Trump, the Castro regime ignores the rule of law. Like Donald Trump, the Castro regime abuses their power for personal and political gain. And like Donald Trump, the Castro regime uses its office to enrich itself and its family,” Steve Simeonidis, chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, said in a statement.
Today, @MiamiDemsChair issued the following statement: “The Miami-Dade Democratic Party denounces the Castro regime in the strongest possible terms.”https://t.co/5t4ZyakdLT
— Miami-Dade Democrats (@MiamiDadeDems) February 24, 2020
“We must come together and vote to rid our country of Donald Trump and his authoritarian and Castro-like policies. Trump’s dictatorial actions disrespect the hundreds of thousands of Cuban-Americans who fled the Castro regime and have made their home in Miami-Dade County.”
— Miami-Dade Democrats (@MiamiDadeDems) February 24, 2020
Other Democrats spoke out against Sanders’ remarks, including Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy who said the comments were “insulting” to people in her state.
Whether the subject is Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Israel or other foreign policy challenges, @SenSanders has consistently taken positions that are wrong on the merits and will alienate many Florida voters now and in the general election if he is nominated. #FlaPol
— Stephanie Murphy (@SMurphyCongress) February 24, 2020
Sanders’ comments “are ill-informed & insulting to thousands of Floridians,” Murphy, who endorsed Mike Bloomberg in the Democratic presidential race, tweeted on Monday.
“Castro was a murderous dictator who oppressed his own people. His ‘literacy program’ wasn’t altruistic; it was a cynical effort to spread his dangerous philosophy & consolidate power,” she added.
On the other side of the political aisle, Florida Republican candidate for Congress Maria Elvira Salazar offered her condemnation of Sanders’ comments and took the Dem presidential candidate head-on.
“Your words are very dangerous,” Salazar charged against Sanders. In a powerful video posted to Twitter, she lambasted the Dem socialist for praising the totalitarian dictator that she said drove her parents, and thousands of others, to flee Cuba.
Last night, Bernie Sanders praised the murderous Fidel Castro for his “free literacy programs” for Cubans.
As someone who’s parents fled Castro’s totalitarian regime for a better life in America, I find it utterly APPALLING that he praised him!
He should be ashamed! pic.twitter.com/P5xZpozVrz
— María Elvira Salazar 🇺🇸 (@MaElviraSalazar) February 25, 2020
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
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