Representatives Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) traveled to Cuba during the Congressional recess to discuss human rights and its relationship with the United States. Representative Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) denounced the visit in a recent appearance on Fox Business's Varney & Co., calling the Representatives "apologists for communist regimes."
Rep. Gimenez reminded viewers, "thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of Cubans that are fleeing the island [and] have fled the island. Many of them have perished in the Florida Straits. Many of them made the trek over to the southern border to come in. Why are they leaving this paradise? Because it is a hellhole."
Additionally, he condemned Rep. Jayapal and Rep. Omar for thinking otherwise because "they are socialists, and that is really being kind."
Host Stuart Varney asked Rep. Gimenez why the two Congresswomen did not publicly announce their visit to Cuba, which he suspected was "it may cost them politically."
Moreover, Gimenez hinted that "the Cuban government was going to expose them," and added, "They are Representatives of the United States. We need to know where they are and what they are doing there. It should not be done in secrecy."
The Florida Congressman further denounced the reason for Jayapal and Omar's visit, calling to mind the July 2021 protests against the Cuban regime, where he said "a lot of [protesters] disappeared."
"What we need to do as a country is to see how we can help the Cuban people be free. That is all they want. And then, in July 2021, when they were in the streets, they were asking for freedom. We need to be the beacon of freedom, the protector of freedom and democracy here in our hemisphere. And frankly, we do not do enough to help our fellow neighbors attain that freedom," Gimenez concluded.
Last April, Gimenez spoke with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee about his background as the son of Cuban exiles and how they and their descendants "know what we left, we know what we lost, and we're very grateful to this country, so you'll see that most Cuban-Americans are going to tell you that they love this country."
