To the editor:

In his Dec. 22 letter, Stu Nowlin accused me of sharing misinformation, setting up “straw-men arguments,” and making up things about Bernie Sanders and socialism in my December 17 letter. He is wrong on all counts.

In my letter, I noted that Sanders’ supporters often share two claims. First, there is the claim that a democratic socialist isn’t really a socialist. Second, there is the claim that democratic socialism has nothing to do with Karl Marx.

The first claim is so widespread that PolitiFact found it necessary to address it in an article entitled, “Bernie Sanders — socialist or democratic socialist?” PolitiFact found that Sanders himself uses the terms interchangeably.

Regarding the second claim, I noted that Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is the principal U.S. affiliate of the Socialist International, which, according to Michael Harrington, the late DSA chair, “claims direct descent from Marx’s International Workingmen’s Association.”

Nowlin now suggests a third claim: Sanders has nothing to do with DSA. True, Sanders is not a DSA member. However, in 1991 Sanders was a founding member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), which DSA helped organize. DSA also initially hosted CPC’s webpage while Sanders chaired the caucus. In 1998, Solveig Wilder, DSA membership services, identified Sanders as a “friend of DSA.” Finally, according to DSA’s website, those who “wish to promote the goals of democratic socialism should consider taking concrete and specific actions at the grassroots level that would support Sanders’ (presidential) candidacy.”