While others have supported economic sanctions, Sanders has recognized that sanctions harm poor citizens much more than they harm governments.

While others have called for the Venezuelan military to rise up against Maduro, Sanders has drawn attention to the nefarious role played by the U.S. throughout Latin America, including support for coups that have resulted in military regimes like the one formerly ruled by Gen. Augusto Pinochet in Chile.

While others have called for isolating Venezuela, Sanders would prefer engagement on mutually respectful grounds.

Given the recent popularity of socialism, Americans seem far less susceptible to Cold War-style smear campaigns that simplistically attempt to demonize socialism. It’s true that countries like Venezuela and North Korea are failing, but many countries guided by capitalist ideas like Argentina are failing too.

People are traveling more than ever to socialist countries, have access to more information than ever demonstrating the benefits of socialist policies, and within the U.S. experience an array of inequalities in their own life surroundings that diminish the effectiveness of fear-mongering about socialism.