California Congresswoman Karen Bass has long been a fan of brutal dictator Fidel Castro. But now, she’s one of the final potential candidates to be Joe Biden’s running mate. So who is going to press her about fawning over the commie? Not The Washington Post. The paper on Saturday offered a 41 paragraph tribute to the “pragmatic” Bass.
But writer Jose A. Del Real waited until paragraph 38 to even bring up this sickening quote that the Democrat released upon Castro’s death in 2016: “The passing of the Comandante en Jefe is a great loss to the people of Cuba.”
The journalist briefly stated, “Already, some Florida Democrats have publicly bristled over a 2016 statement her office released after the death of Fidel Castro.” He also noted that “critics in the presidential battleground state said glorified Castro’s brutal government.” That was it. Nothing more on touting a brutal killer in the almost 2000 word article.
On Sunday’s Meet the Press, host Chuck Todd interviewed Bass about her vice presidential aspirations. He started off weakly, proclaiming: “You spent time there [in Cuba] in the '70s as a young activist... building houses in Cuba. You have rejected the idea that you have celebrated the Castro regime.”
Oh, well then. If she rejects the idea, no problem, right? But to his credit, Todd persisted, calling out Bass on pretending that the Castro love happened only when she was young:
CHUCK TODD: You sound a lot tougher on Castro now than when you described him as commandante and jefe when he died and you said something I found interesting. You didn't quite realize how sensitive folks were in south Florida about this still.
CONGRESSWOMAN KAREN BASS: No. Go ahead.
TODD: So I'm just curious, that you thought, well Californians wouldn't mind that description, but it might offend Floridians. Forget that a minute. It still seemed as if you had a soft view of Castro, if you will.
Finally, he flat-out lectured Bass on how tone deaf her comments were:
You said you were expressing condolences to the Cuban people. There's many people who believe that the Castro regime in general was keeping them confined, was stifling their freedom, that actually getting rid of Castro might have been a celebration to some.
On Fox News Sunday, Chris Wallace demanded of the Democrat: “What was it about Castro and Cuba that you found so appealing at that time? And do you now regret your involvement and considerable time spent in a communist dictatorship?”
He echoed Todd by following up:
You put out that message about Cuba — about Castro's death six years — or four years ago in 2016. Shouldn't you have known by then that Castro's death was not a great loss to the Cuban people?
In this case, both NBC and Fox News did better than the pathetic Post’s coverage. Here is the headline for the digital version:
Rep. Karen Bass fought for Blacks and Latinos in South Los Angeles. Now, she’s on Biden’s VP shortlist.
Here’s the headline for the print version:
VP contender Bass brings activist roots, pragmatic record.
Bass’s American Conservative Union score is 3.4. That’s not moderate or pragmatic. Apparently facts die in darkness — at The Washington Post. Here’s the Post’s Twitter profile, @WashingtonPost, if you want to contact the paper about its shoddy reporting.
Partial transcripts are below.
Fox News Sunday
8/2/2020
9:15 AM ETCHRIS WALLACE: As your star has risen as a vice presidential possibility, so has scrutiny over your record and your past, understandably.
REPRESENTATIVE KAREN BASS: Yes.
WALLACE: You've taken heat for this statement that you made back in 2016 upon the death of Fidel Castro. Let's put it up on the screen.
BASS: Sure.
WALLACE: “The passing of the comandante en jefe” — or commander-in-chief — “is a great loss to the people of Cuba.”But, Congresswoman, what many people may not know is that in fact he visited Cuba eight times during the 1970s. What was it about Castro and Cuba that you found so appealing at that time? And do you now regret your involvement and considerable time spent in a communist dictatorship?
BASS: So, let me tell you that, first of all, when I went to Cuba over 40 years ago when I was in my teens and early 20s, I went to help the Cuban people. We were building houses. The other reason why I went was to meet and work with Americans from around the country that were involved in a lot of different social issues. I think that over the past 20 years, my involvement in Cuba has centered on health care and promoting democracy. Do I know an awful lot more now? Do I understand that the Castro regime did not have the same freedoms as we do in the United States, was a brutal regime?
They don't have freedom of press, freedom of protest — which was kind of ironic because when I went in my youth, the majority of us that were there were anti-war activists. We were protesting against police abuse and understood then and now that the Cuban people did not have the same freedoms. But what I also believe is that the best way to deal with change is to have relations. And so, I support what President Obama and Vice President Biden did in opening up relations with the island of Cuba, that's 90 miles away. In fact, one time when I went to visit Cuba, I visited the U.S. political prisoner actually with one of your panelists that's going to be on a little later, Donna Brazile. We went and visited Alan Gross.
For the last eight years, I've served on the board of National Endowment for Democracy, which funds democratic activists on the island of Cuba. So my perspective has definitely developed over time. I am interested in two products that the Cubans have -- one to address diabetes, the other to address lung cancer. And I'm hoping that both of those products will be tested and marketed in the United States if they are safe.
WALLACE: But — but I have just a minute left, Congresswoman, and you make it sound as if this was just — when you were young and irresponsible, you were young and irresponsible.
WALLACE: You put out that message about Cuba — about Castro's death six years — or four years ago in 2016. Shouldn't you have known by then that Castro's death was not a great loss to the Cuban people?BASS: I absolutely would have not put that statement out and I will tell you that after talking to my colleagues who represent the state of Florida, raised those concerns with me, lesson learned, would not do that again for sure.
WALLACE: Congresswoman Bass, thank you. Always good to talk with you. It's going to be an interesting couple of weeks for you and all the other women on the list.
Meet the Press
8/3/2020
10:57 AM ETCHUCK TODD: Let me turn to this issue of Cuba. A lot of people have turned to this issue with you as they've dug in. You spent time there in the '70s as a young activist working with a group called Seremos Brigade building houses in Cuba. You have rejected the idea that you have celebrated the Castro regime.
BASS: Right.
TODD: But looking back on that — do you look back on that and think you were a bit naive?
...
TODD: You sound a lot tougher on Castro now than when you described him as commandante and jefe when he died and you said something I found interesting. You didn't quite realize how sensitive folks were in south Florida about this still.
BASS: No. Go ahead.
TODD: So I'm just curious, that you thought, well Californians wouldn't mind that description, but it might offend Floridians. Forget that a minute. It still seemed as if you had a soft view of Castro, if you will.
...
TODD: You said you were expressing condolences to the Cuban people. There's many people who believe that the Castro regime in general was keeping them confined, was stifling their freedom, that actually getting rid of Castro might have been a celebration to some.
