Is Bernie Sanders a "socialist?" Depends on what you mean by that. Judge him by his own words.

What is routinely described in the United States as "socialism" (i.e. the types of policies Bernie Sanders favors), is much more equivalent to Denmark than the USSR, Venezuela, etc.

But don't take it from me. Take it from Bernie Sanders himself, as quoted in the Washington Examiner: a conservative source!

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/bernie-sanders-says-soviet-socialism-is-not-my-thing-but-denmark-and-sweden-do-very-well