Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R) has issued a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken questioning U.S. foreign policy.
In the letter, Elivra Salazar takes issue with Blinken’s “broken promise to include the Cuban exile community in any talks with the brutal Castro regime” as per a press release. As well, the Florida Republican is “demanding to be included in the upcoming meeting the Biden administration is set to have with Carlos Fernandez de Cossio.”
During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing that took place on March 10th, 2021, Elvira Salazar questioned Blinken over “if he would implement the existing Helms Burton law towards the brutal Castro regime & if he would consult with my Cuban exile community before changing any policy towards Cuba.”
Today I questioned @SecBlinken.
I asked if he would implement the existing #HelmsBurton law towards the brutal Castro regime & if he would consult with my Cuban exile community before changing any policy towards #Cuba! 🇨🇺
He said yes.
I sure hope he keeps his word!! pic.twitter.com/UE9rEqRODo
— Rep. María Elvira Salazar (@RepMariaSalazar) March 11, 2021
At the time, the Florida lawmaker shared the segment of her question on social media, which Blinken responded to by saying “we’ll always implement the law.”
However, Elvira Salazar argues that the Biden administration has broken its promise.
In commenting about the letter, Elvira Salazar said that “Secretary Blinken gave me his word when testifying before Congress last year and he has broken it,” adding that the Biden administration “failed to uphold its promise by consulting with the Cuban-American exile community.”
“In South Florida we know that you cannot trust the murderous Cuban communist regime,” she noted, adding that “to ensure that the voices of my constituents are heard,” she was making a call for “the State Department to include me in their ill-advised meeting with the communist government.”
Elvira Salazar has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration's measures regarding Cuba, dating back to the protests against the Castro regime that erupted within the country last year. Expressing that the Biden administration has not done enough to extend help to the Cuban people, Secretary Blinken has not responded to Elvira Salazar's letter.
