True to its leftist roots, The New Republic (TNR) magazine is sponsoring a trip to Cuba. The visit to the island will mix tourism with education, although "propaganda" would be a better word for what's planned. Once in Cuba, the group will be guided Professor Charles Bittner.

Bittner is a sociology professor at St. John's University in Queens, N.Y. For almost 20 years, he served as The Nation magazine's academic liaison, which alone speaks volumes of the man's political leanings. And Bittner is no rookie at this sort of thing. He has hosted at least five such trips to Castro's island paradise in the past.

Of their tour, TNR says it will mix the gaiety of "visiting museums, strolling the artist's markets of Old Havana, and savoring traditional Cuban food and spirits" with "seminars and concerts featuring prominent Cuban professors, government officials, urban planners, journalists, musicians, artists, dancers, and community activists." The tour will not be meeting with any dissidents of the Castro regime or political prisoners.

For those interested, the cost is $4,285–$4,575 per person (double/single occupancy) from March 14 to 21, 2020. It includes a five-night stay at a four-star hotel plus two evenings at a private guest house in Trinidad. Obviously, the group has no intention of mingling with the Cuban masses unsupervised. Without a sense of irony, TNR says this trip is to "Support the Cuban People."

Health and evacuation insurance are included in the price of the trip. If one of the aging lefties on the tour has a medical emergency, he will no doubt be glad to show solidarity with the cause and avail himself of Cuba's "world class" medical facilities.

When the intrepid travelers get back home, no doubt, they'll feel they got the real low-down on Castro's Cuba and spread the word far and wide. Professor Bittner is an expert, after all. But the fact is, all they will have seen is a Potemkin village with a Latin twist.

Communism is truly a religion. No amount of facts can dissuade its true believers. Still, it is pathetic to know that in America of 2019, there is still no shortage of useful idiots. And judging from the Democrat presidential field, their number is growing.