On Sunday, protests erupted throughout Cuba as activists marched against the dictatorial communist regime. Economic turmoil, together with the effects of covid, have left the residents of the country in a dire situation, only worsened by the oppression of their totalitarian government. Cuba is famous for its repression of dissidents, and these protests, the largest in decades, have demonstrated this truism once again, as protestors are bitterly suppressed and quickly arrested by government authorities.
It remains to be seen how exactly the U.S government will respond to these new developments. Republicans are quick to voice their support for the protestors and urge President Biden to take action in some way against the communist regime. For instance, given reports of the Cuban government disrupting internet access in an attempt to shut down communications amongst activists, Governor Ron Desantis of Florida has suggested taking action to increase the amount of internet access provided by outisde sources. Democrats, meanwhile, are arguing that the time has come to end U.S sanctions against Cuba, which they believe has negatively affected the wellbeing of Cuban citizens while doing nothing to topple the communist government. Republicans, on the other hand, joined by several prominent democrats, such as Bob Menendez, Chairman of the Senate Foreign relations committee, argue that such action would be a gift to said government, relieving the pressure and giving the totalitarian regime an opportunity to placate its citizens without seeing any meaningful change.
Of course, as with many foreign policy debates, the impact of political calculations cannot be overstated. Republicans have carried the large battleground state of Florida in the past two presidential elections, and in 2020, former President Trump won the majority of Cuban-American voters in the state, partly due to his strong stance against the Castro regime and against socialism in general. These results are undoubtably a consideration for President Biden and Democrats at large, especially considering the upcoming senate election in which Dems hope to unseat incumbant Cuban-American senator Marco Rubio, who’s already come out strong against Biden’s lack of action in this instance.
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