WATCH — Marco Rubio on Cuba: Call It by Its Name, ‘Communist,’ ‘Marxist,’ ‘Socialist Tyranny’

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) called on Congress on Tuesday to characterize the political nature of totalitarianism in Cuba as “communist,” “Marxist,” and “socialist.”

“We should be clear in our language,” Rubio said during a speech on the Senate floor. “We don’t just condemn this tyranny. We condemn this communist, this Marxist, this socialist tyranny. Call it for what it is.”

Rubio noted the Cuban government’s interdiction of goods and services entering the one-party island state while remarking on trade with Cuba. He stated:

You can open up all you want. We can pass a bill here that says, “Open to Cuba. A hundred percent open.” Full free trade, you can do whatever you want. At the end of the day, the Cuban regime will control that opening. It’s not just what we want to do, it’s what they want to do.

You want to do tourism? We tried that in 2015 [with] the Obama changes and you know what they did, they said, ‘Thank you. We love the fact you’re coming here as [tourists].” Guess what? All the tourist sites are owned by a holding company named GAESA controlled by the Cuban military, so everything comes through [their] hands. 

You want to send them food? That’s great. Guess who gets it? Acopio, which is a government military-owned agriculture company. You can’t sell it to a small grocery store in Cuba, or even a food wholesaler. It goes to the Cuban government.

You want to send money? They take it. You know why? Because socialism is about control, and all of these things —  tourism, food, money, medicine — it’s all about control.

You want to do humanitarian aid? Let’s get Red Cross, any of these vetted NGOs in the world should be allowed going to Cuba. They won’t allow it, because it’s embarrassing to them.  

Rubio noted that all transfer of products to Cuba must first go through the Cuban regime, which then parasitizes and politically weaponizes distribution of such products among its subjects.

“They will use any opening as a tool — as a weapon — against their people, because that’s what socialism does,” he held. “That’s what these Marxists do in Cuba. They will use anything as a weapon against the people of Cuba.”

The Biden administration did not qualify Cuba’s government as leftist, opting against such descriptions as “communist,” “Marxist,” or “socialist.”