Young de Blasio Supported Sandinistas

The portrait of the freshly Obama-endorsed mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio as a young activist is something out of a Drudge Report nightmare. The New York Times describes de Blasio’s trip to bring aid to Nicaragua, then in the midst of a war between the leftist Sandinistas and the Reagan-backed Contras, as a turning point in his vision of politics. When he returned to the U.S., it was as an advocate of “democratic socialism” and governments closely attuned to community needs. He remained involved in the Sandinistas’ cause even after joining Mayor Dinkins’s campaign, but gradually became more focused on his work in city government.