The Democratic Socialists of America are raising money to send members to Cuba so they can learn how to &#8220;dismantle [the] U.S. empire.&#8221;
The group set up the “Venceremos Fund,” named after a slogan popularized by Fidel Castro that translates to “We will overcome,” to raise money for the trips. The DSA has sent two <a href="https://www.dsausa.org/news/oct2025_npc_newsletter/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">delegations</a> to learn about what the organization calls “the achievements and challenges of Cuban socialism.” 
&nbsp;
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1142263" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM.png" alt="" width="2096" height="1442" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM.png 2096w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM-300x206.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM-837x576.png 837w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM-768x528.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM-1536x1057.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-21-at-2.09.45-PM-2048x1409.png 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 2096px) 100vw, 2096px" /></div>
According to the DSA, two delegations have already traveled to Cuba, including one this past October that included about 40 chapter leaders and rank-and-file members.
During the five-day visit, delegates met with <a href="https://reformandrevolution.org/2024/02/17/cuba-between-imperialism-and-socialism/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">leaders</a> of Cuba&#8217;s Communist Party, learning how the country&#8217;s one-party government drafts legislation, selects representatives, and conducts its parliamentary proceedings.
The DSA says the trips are designed to counter what it describes as American misinformation about Cuba.
&#8220;One of the most powerful ways to counter U.S. propaganda about Cuba is to see the country firsthand,&#8221; the organization said. &#8220;These delegations are crucial in dispelling misinformation, strengthening our movement, and equipping participants with the knowledge to advocate for change back home.&#8221;
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-1142285" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-23-at-3.16.32-PM.png" alt="" width="1130" height="652" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-23-at-3.16.32-PM.png 1130w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-23-at-3.16.32-PM-300x173.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-23-at-3.16.32-PM-998x576.png 998w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-23-at-3.16.32-PM-768x443.png 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1130px) 100vw, 1130px" /></div>
After returning to the United States, participants hosted a webinar to share what they learned after meeting with Cuban workers, students, and officials about &#8220;the challenges and achievements of Cuban socialism under the U.S. blockade.&#8221; 
The DSA also <a href="https://international.dsausa.org/cuba-solidarity/our-work/">advocates</a> removing Cuba from the U.S. State Sponsors of Terrorism list, ending travel and trade restrictions, building relationships between American and Cuban labor unions, and sending humanitarian aid to the island.
The organization&#8217;s outreach to Cuba is not new. A DSA delegation also traveled there in 2023, where members reportedly held a <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20251016213647/https://through.blog/2023/11/09/cuba-diaries/">two-hour private meeting</a> with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel.
One delegate, Maria Franzblau, acknowledged Cuba&#8217;s food, medicine, and fuel shortages but argued those problems should be viewed in the context of being located &#8220;90 miles away from the most powerful capitalist empire in the world.&#8221;
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has argued that Cuba&#8217;s outreach to American leftists, including Hasan Piker, reflects a strategy dating back to Castro, whom Rubio said sought to wage a &#8220;much wider and bigger war&#8221; against the United States following the Cuban Revolution.
&#8220;Cuba matters to us because it&#8217;s 90 miles from our shores, and it has a direct impact on our national security — be it the things they&#8217;ve been involved in in the past, the countries they&#8217;ve aligned with in the past and currently,&#8221; he <a href="https://ebs.publicnow.com/view/46CC64098F83F68730FDCA078DD654308FF8741B?utm_source=chatgpt.com">said</a>.
The State Department has similarly <a href="https://www.aol.ca/articles/front-groups-fellow-travelers-state-225046000.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com">argued</a> that many far-Left activists are not directly controlled by Cuba, but support for the communist regime has become &#8220;de facto policy orthodoxy&#8221; among parts of the American Left.

Screenshot 2026-07-23 at 3.42.23 PM

DSA Sends Activists To Cuba To ‘Dismantle The U.S. Empire’

Communism

Cuba

Democratic Socialism

Democratic Socialists Of America

Fidel Castro

Hasan Piker

Marco Rubio

Socialism

Socialists

State Department

Secretary of State Marco Rubio&#8217;s State Department released a sweeping <a href="https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Cuba-Report.pdf">99-page report</a> on Monday portraying communist Cuba as the Western Hemisphere&#8217;s foremost engine of Marxist subversion, arguing that the island nation has spent decades cultivating revolutionary movements inside the United States and across the globe.
The report, released alongside a statement from the State Department, casts the Castro regime not simply as a geopolitical adversary, but as the ideological nucleus of what it describes as the modern radical Left. 
&#8220;For more than six decades, the Cuban regime has been the leading sponsor of radical leftism and Third Worldism in the United States,&#8221; Rubio wrote on <a href="https://x.com/SecRubio/status/2079190191160348777">X</a>. &#8220;The State Department is exposing the full history of Cuban espionage and subversion in our country. The American people deserve to know.&#8221;
The document, which reflects a longstanding priority of Rubio&#8217;s foreign policy agenda, argues that Cuba&#8217;s greatest success has not been military or economic, but ideological. &#8220;For nearly seven decades, the Cuban regime has waged a sustained campaign of subversion against the United States,&#8221; the report states. &#8220;It is a campaign that has infiltrated the highest reaches of the U.S. government, recruited and cultivated generations of American activists, backed an unprecedented wave of Left-wing terrorism on American soil, and carried out one of the most durable and damaging foreign intelligence penetrations in American history.&#8221;
According to the report, Havana developed an unconventional strategy centered on espionage, infiltration, proxy networks, and ideological influence rather than conventional warfare. &#8220;In contrast to every other aspect of Cuba&#8217;s failed state, this model has yielded remarkable success,&#8221; the report says.
The report alleges that Cuba trained and armed Left-wing guerrilla groups around the world, provided sanctuary to American fugitives convicted of terrorism, and successfully infiltrated senior levels of the U.S. government, including the State Department, Pentagon, and National Security Council.
Much of the document focuses on what it calls Cuba&#8217;s enduring influence over modern Left-wing activism in the United States.
The report claims Havana helped shape and support organizations ranging from the Black Panthers and the Weather Underground during the Cold War to more recent movements including Antifa. It further alleges that Cuban influence continues today through &#8220;leftist nonprofits, anti-ICE collectives, socialist groups, and Marxist militant organizations.&#8221;
&#8220;From its earliest years in power, the Cuban regime has believed that its own survival and strategic interests were inextricably linked to the advance of the revolutionary Left inside the United States,&#8221; the report argues. &#8220;The Cubans have always seen revolution in America as an end unto itself.&#8221;
Rather than characterizing Cuba as merely a Soviet satellite, the report argues the Castro regime developed its own distinct form of Marxism centered less on class struggle than anti-Western and anti-American revolutionary ideology.
&#8220;While the collapse of the Soviet Union &#8230; largely rendered the Soviet model of communism extinct, the Cuban Marxist project not only survived, but thrived,&#8221; the report states. &#8220;By the turn of the twenty-first century, Havana had solidified its place as the ideological capital of the modern radical left.&#8221;
The report also links Cuba to several of America&#8217;s most recent episodes of civil unrest. It argues that &#8220;many of the most significant upheavals in recent American political history — from the George Floyd riots to the rise of Antifa to the explosion of pro-terrorist activism on American college campuses — can be linked, in some way, shape, or form, to Cuban influence.&#8221;
The report further warns that Cuba remains an active intelligence threat, alleging the regime maintains networks inside American institutions while simultaneously serving as a staging ground for Russian, Chinese, and Iranian intelligence operations.
The report concludes by arguing that Cuba&#8217;s strategy has always been to undermine America from within rather than confront it directly. &#8220;The regime&#8217;s method was never primarily premised on kinetic warfare,&#8221; the report states. &#8220;It was subtler, and far more dangerous: to attack the United States not from without but from within — to turn Americans into instruments of their own nation&#8217;s undoing.&#8221;
The publication comes as the Trump administration has significantly increased pressure on Havana through sanctions, diplomatic measures, and renewed scrutiny of the communist government&#8217;s ties to hostile foreign powers. Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, has long been one of Washington&#8217;s most outspoken critics of the Castro regime and has repeatedly argued that the United States has underestimated Cuba&#8217;s role in exporting revolutionary ideology throughout the Americas.

Cuba – Cienfuegos: Old cyclist and revolutionary propaganda with picture of Fidel Castro on house wall.

Rubio Reveals How Cuba Is Trying To Undermine America

Leftism

Marxism

A Cuban operative accused of assisting far-left activists, including Hasan Piker, posed as a tourist to come to the United States before overstaying his visa by nearly a year, The Daily Wire has learned.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers nabbed Carlos Antonio Lloga Dominguez in Buffalo, New York, on June 26.
Lloga Dominguez came to the United States in March 2025 on a tourist visa that expired on September 26, 2025, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson told The Daily Wire. The Cuban national had previously left the country after entering the United States in October 2003 on a work visa reserved for foreign government officials and diplomats.
Upon his latest visit, Lloga Dominguez &#8220;refused to leave &#8230; and remained in the United States in violation of our nation’s immigration laws,&#8221; the spokesperson said. He will remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of his deportation proceedings.
Federal authorities also arrested Lloga Dominguez’s wife and son.
While in the United States, Lloga Dominguez “spent more than a decade employed by the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the People (ICAP),” a communist organization sanctioned by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in June over its ties to the Cuban regime, State Department spokesperson Thomas Pigott said in a recent statement.
“He has continued to maintain ties to the transnational communist subversion network throughout his time residing in our nation,” Pigott said.
ICAP is “the central node in a sprawling Cuban intelligence and influence operation, claiming to span more than 2,000 organizations across more than 150 countries,” and “has a long and intimate relationship” with Cuban intelligence officials, according to the State Department.
Fernando González Llort, ICAP’s current president, served 15 years in an American prison for acting as a Cuban spy, according to the State Department.
The Marxist group, founded by Fidel Castro in 1960, has been complicit in “trafficking in vile anti-American propaganda, cultivating pro-Havana regime activists and politicians, and lobbying federal, state and local politicians on behalf of the Cuban dictatorship,” Pigott said.
The group has sought to use America’s left-wing activists to export Cuba’s communism, Pigott said.
ICAP organized alongside left-wing nonprofits in the United States, including the People’s Forum, Progressive International, and Code Pink, to orchestrate a convoy that Piker joined in March to deliver supplies to Cuba, Fox News previously <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/rubio-sanctions-cuban-groups-ties-us-nonprofit-network-funded-communist-donor-neville-roy-singham" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
“Under the Trump Administration, America will never become home for Cuban Communist regime thugs who peddle propaganda, run foreign influence operations, or seek to wage revolution against American civilization,” Pigott said.
Federal authorities are investigating advocacy groups in the United States that have been working alongside officials with the Cuban regime, according to Fox News.
The probe has focused on Piker, Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin, and Code Pink D.C. coordinator Olivia DiNucci.
Piker and Benjamin were the subjects of administrative subpoenas issued by the Treasury Department for records related to their travel to Cuba, communications, and financial activity connected to the convoy, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/doj-treasury-investigate-nonprofits-leaders-allegedly-coordinating-cuba-influence-campaign" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> in May.
Piker denied knowing Lloga Dominguez or ICAP in an earlier Twitch stream.
“I don’t understand why they’re covering this as like the organization that sent Hasan Piker to Cuba,” he said.
“Bro, Trump is gonna put me in f*ckin’ prison, I swear to God, what the hell is going on?” Piker said. “We’re about to hit f*ckin’ 1930s Germany if we haven’t already hit it and … these dumb f*cks on the Democratic Party side are still complaining about the people that the Trump admin is actively targeting, and they’re also taking advantage of that active targeting because they also don’t like us, great.”
In a resurfaced clip, Piker claimed a contact was communicating with the Cuban regime on his behalf to plan a trip.
“The Cuban government actually hit my contact from the embassy and told them that ‘if the only thing stopping Hasan from coming to Cuba was the consistent internet access, we can make it happen,’” Piker said.
ICAP has denied acting on behalf of the Cuban regime, according to Fox News.
Blake Schaper contributed to this report.

Web Summit Vancouver 2026 – Day Two

EXCLUSIVE: Cuban Operative Accused Of Aiding Hasan Piker Posed As Tourist Before Overstaying Visa

deportation

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Four House Democrats — Reps. Mark Pocan (D-WI), Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM), Maxine Dexter (D-OR), and Delia Ramírez (D-IL) — spent four days in Cuba meeting with communist President Miguel Díaz-Canel, government ministers, medical officials, business leaders, and other groups before concluding that President Donald Trump&#8217;s energy sanctions had transformed the island into what they described as a &#8220;silent Gaza.&#8221;
The congressional delegation made the trip after the Trump administration imposed a de facto fuel embargo on Cuba earlier this year following the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, tightening pressure on Havana by threatening penalties against countries that continue supplying fuel to the island.
<a href="https://apnews.com/article/cuba-embargo-congress-pocan-legerfernandez-dexter-ramirez-e369a23097dcf104d424af88cdc2134a">Speaking to reporters</a> after the trip, Pocan said someone he met in Cuba described the island as a &#8220;silent Gaza” — a comparison he said was &#8220;apt.&#8221; 
&#8220;There may not be bombings, but there are certainly conditions that prevent people from going about their daily lives,&#8221; Pocan said. &#8220;They can&#8217;t go to work, they can&#8217;t preserve their food, they can&#8217;t access medical supplies, or live as they did before.&#8221; The comparison comes as left-wing lawmakers have repeatedly invoked Gaza in debates over seemingly unrelated domestic and foreign policy issues.
The delegation also directed criticism at Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose family fled communist Cuba. &#8220;I think Marco Rubio is making this personal and not professional,&#8221; Pocan said. 
Ramírez went considerably further, accusing the United States of pursuing &#8220;60-year-long imperialistic policies&#8221; against Cuba and blaming Trump and Rubio for worsening what she called a humanitarian crisis.
&#8220;Plain and simple, our 60-year-long imperialistic policies, including an immoral, inexcusable, cruel blockade, have contributed to the dire conditions facing Cubans who yearn to be free,&#8221; Ramírez said in a <a href="https://ramirez.house.gov/media/press-releases/ramirez-statement-oversight-visit-cuba-and-humanitarian-crisis-island">statement</a> released after returning from Havana.
She also claimed Trump was advancing a &#8220;white nationalist agenda&#8221; through his immigration policies and argued the United States must end the blockade, end the sanctions, and dismantle policies she said violate international law.
In a joint <a href="https://pocan.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/reps-pocan-dexter-leger-fernandez-and-ramirez-return-cuba-fact-finding">statement</a>, the four lawmakers claimed the Trump administration&#8217;s policies were &#8220;strangling&#8221; Cuba and warned that sanctions were &#8220;killing everyday Cuban citizens.&#8221;
Dexter, a physician, praised Cuba&#8217;s government-run healthcare system, saying, &#8220;Cuba created a free, universal healthcare system that millions of Cubans and others around the world have come to expect and depend on.&#8221;
Léger Fernández likewise condemned U.S. policy, saying, &#8220;What the United States is doing to this island is a siege.&#8221; 
Cuba&#8217;s communist government quickly embraced the Democrats&#8217; comments.
Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla celebrated the delegation on <a href="https://x.com/BrunoRguezP/status/2077046192857350539">X</a>, writing that the lawmakers had confirmed through &#8220;firsthand exchanges&#8221; the &#8220;collective punishment&#8221; imposed by the United States and the &#8220;inhuman impact&#8221; of what he called a &#8220;genocidal policy designed in South Florida.&#8221; Rodríguez also promoted the slogan &#8220;Cuba is not a threat,” a phrase frequently used by the Cuban government in international campaigns against U.S. sanctions.
The Trump administration has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-targets-cubas-power-structure-in-sweeping-blow-to-communist-elites">defended</a> its Cuba policy as an effort to weaken the communist regime rather than to punish the Cuban people. The White House has argued that Havana&#8217;s decades of economic mismanagement, combined with authoritarian rule, bear primary responsibility for the island&#8217;s ongoing shortages and rolling blackouts.
Rubio, whose parents emigrated from Cuba before Fidel Castro consolidated power, has long supported maintaining pressure on the communist government and has argued that sanctions should remain in place until meaningful democratic reforms occur.

CUBA-US-SANCTIONS-ENERGY

After Cuba Trip, Dems Blame U.S. For Turning Communist Island Into ‘Silent Gaza’

Foreign Policy

Global Politics

United States

A Clinton-appointed federal judge ordered the release of a Cuban national who hijacked a passenger plane in 2003, freeing him from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention after he served more than two decades in prison for his crimes.
Maikel Guerra Morales was released last week despite his role in the hijacking of a Cuban Airlines flight and forcing it to divert from Cuba to Florida. U.S. District Judge John E. Steele said he granted Morales&#8217; petition for release because he&#8217;d been held in ICE custody for too long.
During the hijacking, Morales assaulted the flight crew and forced the pilot to divert the aircraft to Key West, where it was intercepted by fighter jets, according to the New York Post, which cited his release order.
The U.S. Marshals Service arrested Morales, who was later convicted of aircraft piracy and conspiracy to interfere with a flight crew.
The Department of Homeland Security blasted Judge Steele&#8217;s decision.
“This activist judge forced ICE to release a criminal illegal alien who was convicted and sentenced to 22 years for hijacking a plane back into American communities,” Homeland Security Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.
“This is yet another example of an activist judge trying to thwart President Trump’s mandate from the American people to remove criminal illegal aliens from our country. Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, DHS will continue to fight for the detention and removal of criminal illegal aliens who have no right to be in our country,” she added.
DHS said Morales received a deportation order on March 1, 2023, and that ICE took him into custody in December 2025 after he completed his prison sentence.
<div id="attachment_1134561" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1134561" class="wp-image-1134561 size-full" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-1250851358.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="683" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-1250851358.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-1250851358-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-1250851358-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-1250851358-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Cuba&#8217;s communist dictator Fidel Castro greets 22 March 2003 in Havana passengers and crew who were aboard a Cuban plane hijacked earlier in the week to Florida. (Photo by PABLO PILDAIN/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
ICE detainees, like Morales, have been increasingly filing what are known as habeas petitions to get released from detention centers across the country, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrants-found-a-new-way-to-get-released-from-ice-detention">as previously reported</a>.
In March, Timothy Courchaine, United States Attorney for the District of Arizona, told The Daily Wire that his office had gone from receiving 10 habeas petitions in immigration cases to “nearly a thousand” since Trump&#8217;s second term began.
“It is definitely a new trend … Now, those aren’t all just the bond hearings, but that’s the vast, vast, vast majority,” Courchaine told The Daily Wire.
“In most of them, they are [granting bond] … so we’ve been losing almost all of these and the folks will be released,” he added.
Immigration lawyers resort to filing habeas petitions after it becomes clear that their clients either have no chance of obtaining bond from immigration judges or have already been denied bond.
Scott Mechkowski, former ICE deputy field office director in New York, likened it to taking “two bites of the apple &#8230; because you essentially have the immigration judges already rendered that that person’s on bond eligible or not going to give them a bond.”

Untitled design – 2026-07-14T095835.746

A Plane Hijacker From Cuba Is Walking Free Thanks To A Democrat-Appointed Judge

Immigration

Earlier this week, federal authorities arrested a Cuban operative who allegedly assisted far-Left activists, including Hasan Piker. The Trump administration now plans to deport the Cuban national.
The State Department revoked Carlos Antonio Lloga Dominguez&#8217;s immigration status after he &#8220;spent more than a decade working as a foreign subversive for the Communist Cuban regime’s premier influence and intelligence front group in the United States,&#8221; agency spokesperson Thomas Pigott said Wednesday. Federal authorities also nabbed Lloga Dominguez&#8217;s wife and son.
The Cuban national &#8220;spent more than a decade in the United States working for the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the People (ICAP),&#8221; a communist organization that Secretary of State Marco Rubio sanctioned in June over its ties to the Cuban regime, Pigott said.
&#8220;He has continued to maintain ties to the transnational communist subversion network throughout his time residing in our nation,&#8221; Pigott said.
The State Department describes ICAP as &#8220;the central node in a sprawling Cuban intelligence and influence operation, claiming to span more than 2,000 organizations across more than 150 countries,&#8221; adding that the group &#8220;has a long and intimate relationship&#8221; with Cuban intelligence officials.
ICAP&#8217;s current president Fernando González Llort served 15 years in an American prison for acting as a Cuban spy, according to the State Department.
Pigott added that the Marxist group has been complicit in “trafficking in vile anti-American propaganda, cultivating pro-Havana regime activists and politicians, and lobbying federal, state and local politicians on behalf of the Cuban dictatorship.” He said the group sought to use America’s Left-wing advocates to export Cuba&#8217;s communism.
“Under the Trump Administration, America will never become home for Cuban Communist regime thugs who peddle propaganda, run foreign influence operations, or seek to wage revolution against American civilization,” Pigott said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
For decades, the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the People – or “ICAP” – has been a vehicle for radical left-wing extremism and subversive foreign influence in the United States and across our hemisphere. ICAP is the Cuban regime’s premier influence and intelligence front…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) <a href="https://x.com/SecRubio/status/2072311059302551604?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
ICAP worked with Left-wing nonprofits in the United States, including the People&#8217;s Forum, Progressive International, and Code Pink, to organize a convoy to bring supplies to Cuba that Piker joined in March, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/rubio-sanctions-cuban-groups-ties-us-nonprofit-network-funded-communist-donor-neville-roy-singham" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News</a> previously reported.
Federal investigators began probing advocacy groups in the United States that have been lobbying, messaging, fundraising, and organizing with Cuban government officials, according to Fox News. As part of the investigation, authorities have reportedly been looking into Piker, Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin, and Code Pink D.C. coordinator Olivia DiNucci.
The Treasury Department issued administrative subpoenas to Piker and Benjamin requesting records related to their travel to Cuba, communications, and financial activity connected to the convoy, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/doj-treasury-investigate-nonprofits-leaders-allegedly-coordinating-cuba-influence-campaign" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> in May.
During a Twitch stream, Piker <a href="https://x.com/Awk20000/status/2072463036129087592">denied</a> knowing Lloga Dominguez or ICAP.
“I don&#8217;t understand why they&#8217;re covering this as like the organization that sent Hasan Piker to Cuba,” he said.
“Bro, Trump is gonna put me in f*ckin&#8217; prison, I swear to God, what the hell is going on?” Piker said. &#8220;We&#8217;re about to hit f*ckin’ 1930s Germany if we haven&#8217;t already hit it and &#8230; these dumb f*cks on the Democratic Party side are still complaining about the people that the Trump admin is actively targeting, and they’re also taking advantage of that active targeting because they also don&#8217;t like us, great.”
In a <a href="https://x.com/bear_ing/status/2059257115223728408" target="_blank" rel="noopener">resurfaced</a> clip, Piker said a contact was communicating with the Cuban regime on his behalf to possibly organize a trip.
“The Cuban government actually hit my contact from the embassy and told them that ‘if the only thing stopping Hasan from coming to Cuba was the consistent internet access, we can make it happen.’” Piker said.
ICAP, which was founded by Fidel Castro in 1960, has denied acting on behalf of the Communist Cuban regime, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/alleged-cuban-influence-operative-family-federal-custody-after-rubio-revokes-legal-status" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.

Trump’s Mass Deportation Effort Comes For Operative Tied To Hasan Piker’s Pro-Cuba Propaganda

Code Pink

Espionage

Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, one of the last surviving commanders of the Cuban Revolution and a longtime ally of Fidel Castro, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/cuban-revolution-death-menendez-ef5629cc82a1bdce9d4c21ad1b01ee49">died Sunday at 94 years old</a>, Cuban authorities announced.
Valdés was one of the few remaining figures who connected Cuba’s current communist leadership to the original revolutionary movement that brought Castro to power in 1959. He joined Castro’s 1953 attack on the Moncada barracks, the failed assault that marked the beginning of the Cuban Revolution, and later fought under Ernesto “Che” Guevara. He became one of the few rebels to receive the title “Commander of the Revolution” and was also named a “Hero of the Republic of Cuba,” according to the Associated Press.
The Cuban Communist Party did not disclose a cause of death. President Miguel Díaz-Canel mourned Valdés publicly, saying his death felt like losing a father and praising his loyalty to Fidel and Raúl Castro.
Valdés held some of the most powerful positions in the Cuban state. He served as interior minister, telecommunications minister, vice president, and eventually became the Communist Party’s third-ranking official. Though he rarely appeared in public and did not speak to the press, he remained a symbol of the revolutionary generation that shaped Cuba’s political system for decades.
His career also reflected the internal politics of the Castro era. According to the Associated Press, Valdés fell out with Fidel Castro while serving as interior minister in 1986 and spent years outside the center of power before returning to the Council of State in 2003. In 2006, Raúl Castro chose him to lead the telecommunications ministry after taking over presidential powers from his ailing brother. Valdés was promoted to vice president three years later.
Valdés’ death comes as the Trump administration has escalated pressure on Havana. The United States <a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-sanctions-cuba-gaesa-rubio-831adf749af121c0d2627b0501980ee8">announced new sanctions this week</a> against Cuban state-run companies, including entities tied to GAESA, the military-run conglomerate that plays a major role in Cuba’s economy. Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Cuba’s ruling elites of using the country’s resources for repression and espionage instead of serving the Cuban people.
The administration has described the sanctions as part of a broader effort to target the communist regime’s military-connected economic network.
The greater pressure campaign has also included <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2026/05/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-imposes-sanctions-on-cuban-regime-officials-responsible-for-repression-and-threats-to-u-s-national-security-and-foreign-policy/">sanctions on Cuban officials the White House says</a> are responsible for repression and threats to U.S. national security.
The timing places Valdés’ death against a familiar struggle over Cuba’s future. For Havana, he was remembered as a loyal revolutionary who remained faithful to Fidel and Raúl Castro. For critics of the regime, he represented the generation that built and defended a one-party communist state that has ruled the island for more than six decades.
Valdés was born April 28, 1932, in Artemisa, west of Havana. His career spanned more than seven decades, from the early days of the Cuban Revolution to senior leadership roles in the communist government, making him one of the last prominent figures directly tied to Fidel Castro&#8217;s rise to power.

TOPSHOT-CUBA-MAY DAY-DEMO

Infamous Castro Ally Dies As U.S. Ramps Up Pressure On Cuba

U.S.

The War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Cuba would be “inviting” a confrontation if it acquires weapons capable of threatening Guantánamo Bay or the U.S. homeland.
Hegseth issued a stark warning to Cuba on Wednesday during a visit to Guantánamo Bay, cautioning Havana against acquiring weapons capable of threatening the U.S. homeland or the American naval base on the island.
Speaking to American troops after joining them for morning physical training at the base, Hegseth emphasized the strategic importance of Guantánamo Bay and America&#8217;s long-standing presence there.
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According to a recent <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/05/17/us-military-drones-cuba">Axios report</a> citing U.S. officials, Cuba has acquired more than 300 military drones from Russia and Iran since 2023 and has discussed potential plans to use them against Guantánamo Bay or even targets in Florida, including Key West. U.S. officials told the outlet that Havana has continued seeking additional drones and military equipment from Russia, while intelligence intercepts reportedly suggest Cuban officials are also studying how Iran has resisted U.S. pressure.
“It would be unwise for the government of Cuba to try to procure or get access to the types of weapons that can reach this bay or the American homeland,” he said. “They would be inviting the kind of confrontation that they not only don’t want, but they could not stand.”
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://x.com/SecWar?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SECWAR</a> “Then you look at Cuba…
That government has decisions to make about what kind of reforms it wants to pursue—it’s not my job to make that decision for them.
It’s our job at the WAR DEPARTMENT to be prepared for whatever our Commander in Chief asks us to do on behalf of… <a href="https://t.co/sYZKYPGQZD">pic.twitter.com/sYZKYPGQZD</a>
— DOW Rapid Response (@DOWResponse) <a href="https://x.com/DOWResponse/status/2064763483208520176?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 10, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The Cuban government has strongly <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgpyg9peq9o">denied</a> the allegations. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez accused the United States of constructing a “fraudulent case” to justify military action and insisted that Havana “neither threatens nor desires war.”
The visit comes amid escalating tensions between the Trump administration and Cuba. In recent months, President Donald Trump’s administration has intensified economic pressure on Havana through sanctions and an oil blockade while signaling a more aggressive posture toward the communist regime.
“We hope soon that we can be a friend to the leadership of Cuba,” Hegseth added. “For now, let’s see what happens, but the Department of War will give the Commander in Chief every single option he needs.”
Before participating in the workout, Hegseth delivered a similar message, saying, “What happens with the future of Cuba is in the hands of the President of the United States and the leadership of Cuba.”
“No matter what, the Department of War is going to be prepared and postured for any possible contingency,” he added.
Hegseth noted that he served at Guantánamo Bay roughly two decades ago as part of the detention mission following the September 11 terrorist attacks.
“This was then and is here today a very important and strategic piece of American terrain,” he said. “We’re here from the Department of War to get a chance to see it and make sure it’s as strong as it can possibly be.”
Hegseth also used the visit to highlight the administration’s broader security focus in the Western Hemisphere, including ongoing counternarcotics operations.
“I would not get into a drug boat in the Caribbean or the Eastern Pacific right now,” he told troops. “We are hunting you like we hunted Al Qaeda and ISIS.”
He added that “we are defending the homeland and we are taking back our hemisphere.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
.<a href="https://x.com/SecWar?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SECWAR</a> “WE ARE DEFENDING THE HOMELAND AND WE ARE TAKING BACK OUR HEMISPHERE…
This president came in and said NOT ONLY is the Monroe Doctrine alive—not only does the Roosevelt Corollary live—BUT NOW WE HAVE THE DONROE DOCTRINE.” <a href="https://t.co/LPpBuAFQ0A">pic.twitter.com/LPpBuAFQ0A</a>
— DOW Rapid Response (@DOWResponse) <a href="https://x.com/DOWResponse/status/2064755993657901405?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 10, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Guantánamo Bay, located on Cuba’s southeastern coast roughly 430 miles from Miami, has housed a U.S. naval base for more than a century and became globally known for the detention facility established after the September 11 attacks.
The administration&#8217;s increased focus was highlighted last month by Secretary of State Marco Rubio who delivered a direct message to the Cuban people, accusing the communist government of enriching itself while citizens face food shortages, fuel shortages, blackouts, and political repression.
“The real reason you don’t have electricity, fuel, or food is because those who control your country have plundered billions of dollars, but nothing has been used to help the people,” Rubio said.
Rubio said the Trump administration is prepared to provide $100 million in food and medicine to the Cuban people through religious and charitable organizations rather than the Cuban government. He also argued that Cuba&#8217;s leadership remains the primary obstacle to improved relations with the United States.
“In the U.S., we are ready to open a new chapter in the relationship between our people and our countries,” Rubio said. “Currently, the only thing standing in the way of a better future are those who control your country.”
The administration&#8217;s focus on Cuba has also included a series of high-level engagements by senior U.S. officials. In recent months, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Gen. Francis Donovan, commander of U.S. Southern Command, have both traveled to the island. 
Hegseth departed Guantánamo Bay later Wednesday and traveled to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, where he met with U.S. Central Command Commander Adm. Brad Cooper.

DOW Secretary Hegseth Addresses Graduates At West Point Commencement

Hegseth Delivers Stark Ultimatum To Havana After Reports Of Cuban Drone Buildup

Hegseth Delivers Warning To Havana Amid Reports Of Cuban Drone Buildup

Guantanamo Bay

Pete Hegseth

The Trump administration delivered a sweeping blow to the Cuban regime on Thursday, sanctioning its president, members of the Castro family dynasty, Cuba&#8217;s military ministry, and a gold mining operation that funnels wealth to regime elites.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has framed the Trump administration’s efforts as an existential campaign against a government he considers a direct threat to American security.
Secretary Rubio <a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/06/sanctions-on-cuban-actors-responsible-for-subversive-anti-american-activities-fact-sheet/">announced the designations</a> under a May 1 <a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/06/sanctions-on-cuban-military-instrumentalities-other-actors-responsible-for-subversive-anti-american-activities/">executive order,</a> targeting five Cuban entities and five individuals. At the top of the list: Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and his wife, Lis Cuesta Peraza, along with their stepson — as well as Alejandro Castro Espín, the son of Raúl Castro and former head of Cuban intelligence, and Castro Espín&#8217;s son. The Castro name is now, once again, directly in Washington&#8217;s crosshairs.
&#8220;The Cuban people are the hostages of a brutal and repressive government,&#8221; Rubio declared. &#8220;Which disregards their safety and prosperity to advance the Castro regime&#8217;s true purpose: serving as an outpost for our adversaries and exporting radical left-wing violence and terror across our hemisphere.&#8221;
The sanctions also hit Cuba&#8217;s Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR), which controls vast swaths of the Cuban economy through military-owned enterprises. Any entity owned 50% or more by MINFAR — or by the previously designated military holding company GAESA — is considered blocked as well, strangling the military cartel&#8217;s economic empire. Rubio has <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5868122-rubio-us-sanctions-cuba-leadership/">previously called</a> GAESA &#8220;the heart of Cuba&#8217;s kleptocratic communist system.&#8221;
The State Department also sanctioned the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), a Fidel Castro-founded organization that U.S. officials say supports Cuban intelligence operations; the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, Cuba&#8217;s neighborhood surveillance network; and Minera la Victoria, a Cuban-Australian gold mining joint venture whose profits flow directly to the regime.
Foreign banks and companies that continue doing business with any of the designated parties now face their own sanctions exposure — a warning shot aimed squarely at international firms still profiting from the regime.
&#8220;We will continue to take action,&#8221; Rubio had warned on X in early May, &#8220;until the regime takes all necessary political and economic reforms.&#8221;
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Today’s sanctions demonstrate that the Trump Administration will not stand by while Cuba’s communist regime threatens our national security in our hemisphere. We will continue to take action until the regime takes all necessary political and economic reforms.
&mdash; Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) <a href="https://x.com/SecRubio/status/2052456966753026262?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2026</a></blockquote>
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US-POLITICS-TRUMP

Trump Targets Cuba’s Power Structure In Sweeping Blow To Communist Elites

Donald Trump

A recently resurfaced video clip shows Marxist streamer and political commentator Hasan Piker admitting to scheming with the Cuban government.
A <a href="https://x.com/bear_ing/status/2059257115223728408">viral X post</a>, which has garnered over three million views since Tuesday, shows a clip of Piker&#8217;s appearance on the &#8220;Fear&amp;&#8221; <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLX6xtQbDRQ">podcast</a> and affirming correspondence with the Cuban government.
“The Cuban government actually hit my contact from the embassy and told them that ‘if the only thing stopping Piker from coming to Cuba was the consistent internet access, we can make it happen.’” Piker stated.
When asked whether the Cuban government reached out to Piker, he clarified, “Not reached out to me. There’s a middleman there.”
Prominent political commentator and Piker&#8217;s rival Asmongold reacted to the resurfaced viral clip <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mg5pRSUJK-E">saying</a>, “It is the most insane self-report that you could possibly f*cking make.” 
Later in the video posted on YouTube, Asmongold pointed out that the United States re-designated the Cuban government as a &#8220;State Sponsor of Terrorism&#8221; in late January of 2025, and that Piker confirmed he was corresponding with the Cuban government, a public enemy of the U.S. government, in March of 2025.
During his time in Cuba, Hasan filmed a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvqeXFnqXCo">documentary</a> that he posted on his YouTube channel exalting the Cuban government and villainizing the Trump administration.
Recently, Piker was subpoenaed by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for his involvement with the Nuestra America Convoy, an international activist flotilla organized by a coalition of Marxist-aligned groups, including Code Pink and the Democratic Socialists of America.
The <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/31/515.206">Cuban Assets Control Regulations</a> state that the trade of completed informational media is allowed, but “transactions related to information or informational materials not fully created and in existence at the date of the transaction, or to the substantive or artistic alteration or enhancement of information or informational materials,” are prohibited.
Piker&#8217;s confession brings evidence to the claim that he engaged in a transaction with the Cuban government to film the mini-doc and advocate for the regime in exchange for the government providing Wifi and other services. If this claim is proven during Piker&#8217;s subpoena, Hasan could be found guilty of violating the American sanctions.
In response to the resurfaced clip, Piker has attempted to defend himself, <a href="https://x.com/ImperiumFirst/status/2059375474732671037">saying</a>, “As an American citizen, you can literally be in correspondence with individuals in another country. The American restrictions on this stuff are f*cking idiotic. I have a journalism visa. What the f*ck are you talking about? What’s really funny about it is that every single media outlet who goes to Cuba does this as well! CNN, Al-Jazeera, ABC, f*cking Fox News!”
The United States does not directly prohibit contact between individuals and the Cuban government, but it highly regulates services and transactions done with the Cuban government.
Piker has become known for his radical, violent rhetoric, such as saying that &#8220;America <a href="https://x.com/EYakoby/status/2048814928874655931">deserved</a> 9/11,&#8221; and <a href="https://x.com/EndWokeness/status/2048217117221065201">calling on</a> his followers to “let the streets soak in their f*cking red capitalist blood.”
He has also faced backlash over his expensive lifestyle that conflicts with his anti-capitalist teachings. For instance, Piker received pushback from his fans and critics for wearing a $1,000 <a href="http://dexerto.com/entertainment/hasan-responds-to-backlash-over-his-1000-coachella-outfit-1807194/">Gucci shirt</a> at the 2022 Coachella music festival. 
Piker was recently embroiled in a scandal after he allegedly used a <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Destiny/comments/1o1mcvg/hasan_shock_collar_model/">powerful shock collar</a> on his dog, berated the pet on camera during one of his streams, and denied the allegations that he ever used a shock collar. This event has become known in internet circles as &#8220;CollarGate.&#8221;

FLASHBACK: Hasan Piker Admitted To Colluding With Cuban Regime A Year Before Feds Investigated

Trump Administration

The blackouts keep coming in Havana. For years, the Soviet-era power grid has slowly collapsed under the weight of what Secretary of State Marco Rubio <a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/05/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-remarks-to-press-9%23:~:text=incompetent%2520communists%2520run%2520that%2520country">calls</a> an “incompetent communist” regime. The Trump administration has upped the ante with escalating economic, diplomatic, and legal moves that target the regime while offering <a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/05/the-united-states-is-ready-to-provide-100-million-in-direct-assistance-to-the-cuban-people-if-the-cuban-regime-will-permit-it/">significant support</a> for the Cuban people. If President Donald Trump and Secretary Rubio keep the pressure on, the Castro family’s luck might finally run out.
The ongoing collapse of Cuba began long before the Trump administration turned its attention to the island. When President Barack Obama traveled to Havana and linked arms with Raúl Castro in 2016, he <a href="https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/03/22/remarks-president-obama-people-cuba/%23:~:text=There%25E2%2580%2599s%2520already%2520an,the%2520right%2520decisions.">expressed hope</a> that his decision to normalize relations with the communist regime would bring “generational change.” Castro, who is now a fugitive from U.S. justice, humored Obama, and then used the opening to line the pockets of party elites, not create better lives for Cubans.
Between 2015 and 2020, state investments tied to tourism, including new hotels and resorts, <a href="https://cubastudygroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/CSG-Report_Without-Power-There-is-No-Country_2026_EN.pdf">increased</a> to nearly 50% of total investment on the island, more than five times the spending on the power grid and water supply. Most of those investments went through Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A. (GAESA), a Cuban military business conglomerate that controls most of the economy. As foreign tourism increased, GAESA amassed tens of billions of dollars in profits for the regime while economic conditions continued to deteriorate for the average Cuban.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the island, the regime used the virus as an excuse to <a href="https://www.state.gov/reports/2021-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/cuba/%23:~:text=The%2520government%2520broadened,dissidents%2520to%2520communicate.">confine</a> Cubans to their homes and undertake a campaign of arbitrary arrests. By July 2021, these repressive measures and the regime’s economic failures resulted in the largest <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/americas/cuban-protests-demand-freedom-food-covid-19-vaccines-11626045095">protests</a> in two decades. Tens of thousands of Cubans took to the streets demanding freedom and basic necessities. The regime detained thousands of people, subjecting many to torture and abuse. Since the July 11 protests, <a href="https://en.unav.edu/web/global-affairs/cuba-se-vacia-exodo-de-un-millon-de-personas-que-deja-una-poblacion-envejecida">nearly two million</a> Cubans have fled the island, almost a fifth of the pre-pandemic population.
Even in a hobbled state, the anti-American regime in Havana remains a significant <a href="https://www.wsj.com/opinion/cuba-is-more-than-an-anti-american-symbol-5a7ed79d">national security threat</a> to the United States. Cuban intelligence facilities that once hosted Soviet spies now provide <a href="https://www.csis.org/analysis/chinas-intelligence-footprint-cuba-new-evidence-and-implications-us-security">China</a> and Russia with an unrivaled vantage point to monitor the headquarters of U.S. Southern Command, U.S. Central Command, and U.S. Special Operations Command (all within 400 miles of Havana). Cuba also remains a <a href="https://cu.usembassy.gov/u-s-announces-designation-of-cuba-as-a-state-sponsor-of-terrorism/">state sponsor of terrorism</a> and has reportedly <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/05/17/us-military-drones-cuba">acquired</a> attack drones that could reach Florida.
President Trump’s decision to order the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro on January 3 deprived Havana of its most important patron overnight. Since 2000, the socialist regime in Venezuela has <a href="https://mirandacenter.org/cuba/">provided</a> Cuba with $64 billion of oil aid in exchange for Cuban intelligence fully embedding itself into Venezuela’s security apparatus. With Maduro in a New York City jail cell and 32 Cuban officers <a href="https://apnews.com/article/cuba-32-bodies-repatriated-us-venezuela-killed-ae6597fff284a2e87a422d968eb765e5">returned</a> to the island in boxes, the Trump administration created a once-in-a-generation opportunity to seek political and economic change in Cuba.
The corrupt ruling clique led by the Castro family now faces its greatest crisis since the fall of the Soviet Union. Shortages of basic necessities and almost continuous blackouts have brought the Cuban people <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/cuba-has-run-out-diesel-fuel-oil-amid-us-oil-blockade-minister-says-2026-05-14/">back to the streets</a> and dried up tourism. At 94 years old, Raúl Castro finally faces a U.S. <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-unseals-superseding-indictment-charging-raul-castro-and-five-castro-regime-co">indictment</a> for ordering the murder of four Americans in the 1996 Brothers to the Rescue shootdown. And <a href="https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesperson/2026/05/u-s-sanctions-target-cubas-military-regime-elites/">new U.S. sanctions</a> on GAESA and senior officials threaten to cut off the flow of hard currency into regime coffers.
Here’s how the Trump administration can make this pressure campaign successful.
First, keep the threat of military operations on the table. President Trump’s willingness to use force in Venezuela and Iran instills fear in the Cuban regime that it could be next. Indicting Castro certainly raises the prospect of a similar fate to Maduro and Manuel Noriega. That fear should be leveraged to obtain concessions on key U.S. priorities, including political change and the presence of adversary intelligence facilities on the island.
Next, permanently cut off the regime’s access to cash. Like its friends in Tehran, Havana has a history of using negotiations and outside aid to buy time and avoid making tough choices. The goal of U.S. economic pressure should be to deny the regime access to foreign revenue and to convince it that this pressure will not be lifted until political and economic change comes to the island.
To achieve this goal, the Trump administration should leverage the president’s May 1 <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/05/07/2026-09173/imposing-sanctions-on-those-responsible-for-repression-in-cuba-and-for-threats-to-united-states">executive order</a> to threaten and, if necessary, impose secondary sanctions on foreign financial institutions and firms that continue to do business with GAESA and other organs of the regime.
Under communist rule, the Cuban people have suffered for 67 years under a party elite that prioritizes staying in power and aligning with leftist regimes over providing a better future for the island. With President Trump and Secretary Rubio committed to Cuba Libre, the bill for those decisions is finally coming due.
***
<a href="https://www.fddaction.org/team/connor-pfeiffer/">Connor Pfeiffer</a> is senior director of government relations at FDD Action and a former policy advisor in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives who focused on Western Hemisphere and international economic issues.

CUBA-POLITICS-SOCIAL-LABOUR-MAY DAY-DEMO

It’s Time For Castro To Clock Out

DW Opinion

Raul Castro

The Justice Department unsealed a federal indictment Wednesday against former Cuban President Raúl Castro, accusing the 94-year-old communist leader of playing a central role in a 1996 attack that left three Americans and one United States resident dead.
Castro, the younger brother of the late Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, faces charges including conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, destruction of aircraft, and murder, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced in Miami to a cheering crowd. The Trump administration hopes to try Castro on United States soil.
The charges stem from a 1996 incident wherein Cuba shot down two planes operated by the Miami-based exile group Brothers to the Rescue. The organization attempted to search for Cubans fleeing the communist country by boat. Four people were killed in the attack.
&#8220;For nearly 30 years, the families of four murdered Americans have waited for justice,&#8221; Blanche said.
&#8220;Raul Castro and five codefendants participated in a conspiracy that ended with Cuban military aircraft, firing missiles at those civilian planes and killing four Americans,&#8221; he added. &#8220;My message is clear: The United States and President Trump does not and will not forget its citizens.&#8221;
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— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) <a href="https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/2057095396896207077?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The Trump administration&#8217;s latest action is part of a broader pressure campaign against Cuba. Just hours before the announcement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted a video message in Spanish to the Cuban people.
&#8220;The reason you are forced to survive 22 hours a day without electricity is not due to an oil &#8216;blockade&#8217; by the United States. As you know better than anyone, you have been suffering from blackouts for years,&#8221; Rubio said.
&#8220;The real reason you don&#8217;t have electricity, fuel, or food is because those who control your country have plundered billions of dollars, but nothing has been used to help the people,&#8221; he added.
<div id="attachment_1098653" style="width: 234px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1098653" class="wp-image-1098653 size-medium" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/GettyImages-675441982-224x300.jpg" alt="" width="224" height="300" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/GettyImages-675441982-224x300.jpg 224w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/GettyImages-675441982-430x576.jpg 430w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/05/GettyImages-675441982.jpg 764w" sizes=" (max-width: 224px) 100vw, 224px" />(Photo by ADALBERTO ROQUE / AFP via Getty Images)</div>
Rubio also mentioned Castro and the military-run business he founded, GAESA, and Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, whom the United States captured in January.
Cuba&#8217;s energy crisis only worsened after American Special Forces captured Maduro in a midnight raid and brought him to the United States to face multiple charges, including narco-terrorism. Venezuela was once Cuba&#8217;s main oil exporter.
&#8220;Today, while you suffer, these businessmen have $18 billion in assets and control 70% of Cuba&#8217;s economy,&#8221; Rubio said. &#8220;They profit from hotels, construction, banks, stores and even from the money your relatives send you from the United States.&#8221;
&#8220;Instead of using the money to buy oil, like all other countries in the world, they depended on free oil from Hugo Chávez and Maduro to keep the money. But now that the free oil has stopped coming, they buy fuel for their generators and their vehicles while the people are asked to sacrifice,&#8221; he added.
During Wednesday&#8217;s press conference, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier slammed American politicians who &#8220;looked the other way&#8221; and took aim at former President Barack Obama for attending a 2016 baseball game in Havana alongside Castro.
&#8220;And yet for too long leaders in Washington looked the other way. They sat by idly, they even attended baseball games with the very man that directed the murders,&#8221; he said.
In March, President Donald Trump floated a potential “friendly takeover” of Cuba.
<div>
“It may be a friendly takeover,” Trump said. “They’re really in, they’re down to, uh, as they say, fumes. They have no energy. They have no money. They’re in deep trouble on a humanitarian basis.”
Trump weighed in after Wednesday&#8217;s announcement, saying, &#8220;We have Cuba on our mind. This was a very big moment for, not only Cuban Americans, but people who came from Cuba, they want to go back to Cuba, see their family in Cuba.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/MaryMargOlohan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MaryMargOlohan</a>: Should we expect any escalation with Cuba?
TRUMP: “No. There won’t be escalation…The place is falling apart…They’ve really lost control of Cuba.” <a href="https://t.co/urrb5HhLnO">pic.twitter.com/urrb5HhLnO</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/2057176285424631817?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The Commander-in-Chief told Daily Wire&#8217;s Mary Margaret Olohan that &#8220;there won&#8217;t be escalation&#8221; in Cuba.
Castro formally stepped down as Cuba&#8217;s president in 2018 and as head of the Communist Party in 2021, though he is still widely viewed as influential within the communist regime.
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