Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said that President Obama’s freeing of Cuban spies and push to normalize relations with the island “continues the brutal repression and dictatorship of the Castro Brothers” on Wednesday’s “Your World with Neil Cavuto” on the Fox News Channel.
Cruz continued that increased money flowing into the island “enriches and empowers the dictatorship…Cuba is an ally of North Korea. It is an ally of Iran. It is an ally of Venezuela. It is an avowed enemy of this country. It was striking the president’s remarks, he talked about the Bay of Pigs invasion, but somehow completely omitted the Cuban Missile Crisis, somehow completely omitted an incredible threat to U.S. national security…and it was sad to see both the president and John Kerry essentially blame America first. Blame America for the relation[ship] between the United States and Cuba. Look, the Castros are the ones who have decided to be brutal, reppressive dictators. And we should not be taking blame for the fact that we responded to their active acts of war and hostility. They are a leading state sponsor of terrorism, and just like President Obama did with Russia, just like President Obama did with Iran he does not understand the difference between our friends and our enemies.”
He added that the swap for American Alan Gross was “reminiscent” of the Bowe Bergdahl swap, and accused President Obama of favoring “a position of weakness” and trying to push back against the midterm election results by acting unilaterally.