U.S. Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (R-Fla.) spoke with Fox News to discuss the Cuban government’s recent pardon and release of over 2,000 prisoners amid increased pressure from the Trump administration.
“The regime in Havana is on the brink. Thanks to President Trump’s & Sec. Rubio’s leadership, the dictatorship is weaker than ever before,” the Congressman captioned in a post on X, sharing the interview.
“They didn’t release political prisoners. They released common criminals. And so, they thought that by doing that, we’d say, ‘Oh wow, you released some prisoners,’” Rep. Gimenez replied when asked about potential negotiations between Cuba and the U.S. “Yeah, they got a couple of thousand political prisoners still in jail. They’re [Cuba] at the weakest point they’ve been in over 67 years.”
Rep. Gimenez reaffirmed his stance on the Trump administration’s actions on the island nation, expressing that weak regimes always seek to negotiate.
“I think the Trump administration needs to continue to put the pressure on. Look, all of these regimes, all they will always do when they find themselves in a weak position, they will try to negotiate,” Rep. Gimenez asserted. “And they’re negotiating simply to buy time for them to get into a stronger position. So that they can stay in power, this regime has been in power for 67 years. Oppressing its people and basically driving Cuba into the ground.”
“The United States, for National Security purposes, needs Cuba to be an ally and needs Cuba to be a stable democracy. It does not need the regime currently in place,” the Congressman concluded.
Recently, U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) expressed her dissent regarding the Cuban government’s recent pardons, writing on X, “The regime releases a few for headlines while hiding the truth and keeping political prisoners behind bars.”
