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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Castro says far right is taking over in U.S.

Cuba’s former leader Fidel Castro, right, speaks with Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez in Havana  on Tuesday.  (Associated Press)
Associated Press

HAVANA – Fidel Castro predicted Saturday that Democrats’ recent losses in the U.S. midterm elections will result in ultraconservatives taking over the government. He also criticized a recent $600 billion Federal Reserve stimulus measure.

In an essay published by the state-run newspaper Granma, Castro remarked that President Barack Obama suffered what he called “the biggest defeat in memory in the last three-quarters of a century” in the Nov. 2 vote.

He wrote that he considers Democrats’ loss of control of the House of Representatives to be the result of racism and frustration among Americans.

“The most reactionary sectors in the United States are sharpening their teeth,” Castro said, predicting that “all power (will fall) to the extreme right in the United States.”

The 84-year-old leader frequently publishes his thoughts in newspaper columns since stepping aside in favor of his younger brother Raul in 2006. In his latest missive, he also criticized the Fed’s announcement that it would buy $600 billion in Treasury bonds over the next eight months to try to energize the world’s largest economy.

The plan raised alarm in capitals from Berlin to Beijing, with critics saying it will drive down the dollar’s value and give U.S. goods an unfair competitive edge in world markets.

“Apparently the U.S. government, with its traditional anti-crisis measures, resorted to another desperate decision,” Castro said.