However, the man was no "saint." He was a dictator, even if not a totalitarian one (there was more freedom in Franco Spain than in any Communist country). And like American liberals he was a centralizer: all localism was suppressed in favor of a centralized national Spanish unity. This makes him a strange idol for "traditional Southerners" and neo-Confederates.
But the blackest mark against him was that, being a politician and anti-Semitism being the "in" political cause du'jour, Franco's rhetoric was highly anti-Jewish even as the saved Jewish lives. He referred to the Communist International Brigades as a "Jewish international" and even praised Hitler on the latter's death. Moreover he sent troops to fight against Israel in the 1948 war (the Lebanese Falangists, who invaded Israel along with all the moslems, were modeled on the Spanish Falange). His government was also very anti-Israel and pro-Arab.
Portugal's Antonio de Oliveira Salazar is in my opinion a much superior character and much more worthy of praise and emulation (though his regime also supported the Arabs against Israel). Under Salazar anti-Semitism never gained the slightest foothold in Portugal. Furthermore, although he naturally supported Franco against the Communist Loyalists, he was anti-Fascist and suppressed outright Fascist groups in Portugal (he regarded Fascism as pagan, and he was right).
Most people are neither shining saints nor blackened devils, and Franco was one of those complex figures of history.
Never said Franco was a saint, but he did save Spain from a much worse fate, and I’ll certainly take him as a leader over most of the dreck leaders Spain has had since.
Oh I think Franco threw an occasional bone to Hitler to keep him off his back. Note that he wanted no part in trying to retake Gibraltar from the Brits, which Hitler sure would have loved.