Sen. Bernie Sanders once said during his 1972 run for governor of Vermont that U.S. military action in Vietnam was “almost as bad as what Hitler did” — a newspaper article reveals.
The Washington Free Beacon reported on the quote from Sanders on Friday, citing a 1972 article in the Rutland Herald, a Vermont newspaper. Sanders declared himself a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War. He’s also quoted in the article saying the Northern Vietnamese “are not my enemy.”
The comments reportedly came during a discussion with about 30 local junior high school students. At the time, Sanders was running for governor as the candidate of the democratic socialist Liberty Union Party. He received 1.1% of the vote in the election, according to Vermont election records. (RELATED: The True Cost Of Medicare For All And Why Bernie Is Never Asked About It)
Sanders has opposed U.S. military involvement abroad throughout his political career. He detailed in 1986 how he “almost left to puke” while watching John F. Kennedy during the 1960 presidential debate talk of how the U.S. should put greater pressure on Fidel Castro’s Cuba.
Fox News reported on the extensive history of Sanders’ questionable comments regarding communism during the Cold War era, which includes calling breadlines a “good thing,” speaking in Nicaragua in celebration of the anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution, and praising the Soviet Union transportation system and Castro’s Cuban healthcare system.
Video 2. After his 1988 trip to the Soviet Union, @BernieSanders praises their (communist) youth programs and his wife Jane praises their (communist) system of not separating personal life and work. pic.twitter.com/Le8c87gG7f
— Reagan Battalion (@ReaganBattalion) February 20, 2019
A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll has Sanders leading the Democratic primary race with 27% of the vote.