U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) and Congressman and Florida gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds (R-FL) criticized Democratic U.S. Senate Candidate Angie Nixon for refusing to call Cuba a "dictatorship" in response to a question from CBS News.
"You know that is what people have told me. I have never been to Cuba, and so I will have to take their word for it," Nixon said.
That answer didn't fly with Sen. Moody or Rep. Donalds.
"Socialist Angie can’t answer if Cuba is a dictatorship? I guess now we know why she voted against the Florida law to require schools to teach the dangers of communism," Moody wrote.
Rep. Nixon was one of seven House members to vote against a bill teaching the history of communism in Florida K-12 public schools. The bill, titled "History of Communism," passed 106-7 in the House and 25-7 in the Florida Senate.
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill in April 2024.
"This is the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. Of COURSE the Castro regime is a dictatorship," Donalds wrote. "It’s sad to see what has become of the Democrat Party. They are fully consumed by socialism."
Rep. Nixon, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, took issue with CBS's characterization of her answer.
"It’s disappointing to have to say this, but @CBSNews, this is a serious failure of editorial reporting," Nixon wrote. "I clearly state in this clip that while I have not personally been to Cuba, I have spoken with Cubans who have described it as a dictatorship, and I believe them. To claim I declined to answer the question is categorically false. That is not journalism. It is misinformation."
In an original post, CBS captioned the video clip writing, "Asked whether Cuba is a dictatorship, Florida Democratic Senate candidate Angie Nixon, who is challenging Sen. Ashley Moody, declined to say.”
After Nixon's comment, CBS News deleted its original social media post and issued an editor's note, writing, "A previous version of this post did not accurately portray Rep. Nixon's answer. It has been deleted."
The interview comes as Nixon and Moody face off in the U.S. Senate special election next Tuesday. According to a recent poll, Moody is ahead in the race by 6.7 points and has an 88% chance of winning.
