Trump is like Castro, Tennessee Democrat says

Tennessee Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen on Tuesday compared President-elect Donald Trump to former Cuban president Fidel Castro, saying the two leaders had similar personality traits and ties to Russia.

“The last two people I remember in this Western Hemisphere  who were soclose to Russia were (businessman) Armand Hammer, who loved oil and money, and Fidel Castro, who loved to talk for long periods of time, hated disloyalty and dissent and eliminated it, and was very much an egocentric individual,” Cohen said on CNN.

Asked whether he was comparing Trump to Castro, Cohen replied, “personality traits, indeed.”

"Castro needed to be the center of attention at all times,” said Cohen, a Memphis Democrat. “He executed certain of his comrades for trumped-up charges because he wanted total control and he wanted to put that fear into people. He was very close to his family, and he had a multitudinous family. Didn’t trust others. And it was all about him and public speaking.

“With the exception of the fact that he was dedicated to a philosophy and to his country, making an allegiance with Russia, there are a lot of personality traits that are similar.”

Cohen said he thinks Trump doesn’t understand the U.S. “tripartite” governmental system and that Congress is considered an independent branch of government.

“I don’t think he understands that it’s Congress and really the Judiciary Committee that can bring impeachment charges,” Cohen said. “He needs to work with Congress and not threaten people like Paul Ryan and threaten other people, as he did during his campaign.

“You don’t bully people to have a system work. You need to work together. …  I think he thinks he can do a lot by executive action and by independent action that he can’t do.”

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