Bernie Sanders and his wife, February 22, 2020 in San Antonio. - Eric Gay / AP / SIPA

Bernie Sanders, current favorite in the Democratic presidential nomination contest, was attacked on Monday for defending part of the death toll of the late Cuban dictator Fidel Castro in an interview broadcast the day before.

In the 1980s, the senator from Vermont, who claimed to be "socialist" with a program on the far left, had defended the literacy program of the father of the Cuban revolution. Asked in the big Sunday program 60 Minutes Sunday, he defended his words. "We are very much against the authoritarian nature of the Cuban regime, but it is unfair to simply say that everything is bad," he said, ensuring "condemn" the imprisonment of dissidents on the Caribbean island.

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

Joe Biden on the attack

His words, however, provoked an avalanche of criticism, especially from his opponents in the nomination contest, while Bernie Sanders is more than ever the favorite after his crushing victory in Nevada, in a country where socialism still evokes to some hints of the Cold War. "Make no mistake: comments (from Mr. Sanders) are part of a larger lifelong tendency to espouse (theses of) autocratic leaders and governments around the world," the team warned. campaign campaign by Joe Biden in a press release.

This "is not only dangerous but also deeply offensive" for Cubans who have fled to the United States after "fleeing political persecution," added the team of Barack Obama's vice president when he announced in December 2014 diplomatic thaw with Cuba after 55 years of conflict.

Billionaire Michael Bloomberg, who with Biden represents the moderate wing of the party, joked on Twitter: "Fidel Castro has left a dark legacy of forced labor camps, religious repression, large-scale poverty, execution platoons and the murder of thousands (of Cubans). But of course, Bernie, let's talk about his literacy program. ”

Other voices were raised within the party, including members of the American-Cuban community. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, elected from Florida, condemned the remarks "absolutely unacceptable". "The Castro regime has murdered and imprisoned dissidents, causing untold harm to many families in South Florida," she added on Twitter.

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  • Bernie Sanders
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