Folks, I think we’ve officially reached the tipping point when it comes to the fall of communist Cuba. If anyone else was president, I wouldn’t buy it myself, but Donald Trump is, and I do.
Ironically, it happened on May 20, when the country should be celebrating its independence, but it’s a day that the regime refuses to acknowledge.
“Today marks the beginning of the end for the Castro family,” Rep. María Salazar said, following the big news on Wednesday.
In case you missed it, that big news was the Department of Justice (DOJ) announcing that it was charging Raúl Castro with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, destruction of aircraft, and murder for his role in the shooting down of two civilian humanitarian planes that belonged to the group Brothers to the Rescue in 1996. At the time, Castro was Cuba’s minister of defense and ordered the attack. Three U.S. citizens and a permanent resident lost their lives.
Four other presidents could have done this but chose not to. As Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said today, “The United States and Donald Trump will not forget its citizens. If you kill Americans, we will pursue you, no matter who you are or no matter what title you hold, and in this case, no matter how much time has passed.”
The response from the Cuban exile community has been something to watch. This particular interview from Fox News on Wednesday with Cuban-American Oscar Fernandez, following the DOJ announcement, was particularly touching. The man was so choked up, he could barely speak.
“It means some justice for the Cuban people. For 67 years, we have been ignored by everybody — the United Nations, the Organization of American States, the European Union, everybody,” he said. “So, we hope this is the beginning of the downfall of the Castro regime… and we’re ready to go back and help with the reconstruction of our country, with work, with money, with investment, and with love.”
🇺🇸🇨🇺EMOTIONS RUNNING HIGH👇
Cuban-American Oscar Fernandez tells FOX he hopes the Raul Castro indictment is the beginning of the downfall of the Castro regime‼️“We are ready to go back and help in the reconstruction of our country…with work, with money, with investment and… pic.twitter.com/rZO0S9L3i1
— America Reports (@AmericaRpts) May 20, 2026
Mr. Fernandez, I don’t think you’ll have to wait too much longer. A reporter asked President Trump today if he expected any escalation following the indictment, and he seemed to dismiss the idea.
“No, there won’t be escalation. I don’t think there needs to be,” he said. “Look, the place is falling apart. It’s a mess. They’ve really lost control of Cuba.”
“Should we expect any escalation here [with Cuba]?”@POTUS: “No. There won’t be escalation. I don’t think there needs to be. Look, the place is falling apart. It’s a mess, and they’ve sort of lost control.” pic.twitter.com/Zy2tER7bV5
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 20, 2026
“We’re going to help the Cuban people out. We’re freeing up Cuba,” he added.
While the president and the Cuban-American response was positive, the regime’s was not, as you might imagine. Here’s what the Castro mouthpiece, “President” Miguel Díaz-Canel, had to say:
The purported accusation against Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, just announced by the U.S. government, only reveals the arrogance and frustration that the representatives of the empire feel toward the unyielding resolve of the Cuban Revolution and the unity and moral strength of its leadership.
This is a political maneuver, devoid of any legal foundation, aimed solely at padding the fabricated dossier they use to justify the folly of a military aggression against #Cuba.
The U.S. lies and distorts the events surrounding the downing of the planes belonging to the narco-terrorist organization Brothers to the Rescue in 1996.
It knows full well—given the abundance of documentary evidence—that no imprudent action was taken nor was international law violated, as U.S. military forces have indeed been doing with their coldly calculated and openly publicized extrajudicial executions against civilian vessels in the Caribbean and the Pacific.
On February 24, 1996, Cuba acted in legitimate self-defense within its jurisdictional waters, following repeated and dangerous violations of our airspace by notorious terrorists—a fact of which the U.S. administration at the time was alerted on more than a dozen occasions, yet it ignored the warnings and allowed those violations to continue.
The ethical stature and humanistic spirit of his legacy demolish any infamy that might be attempted against Army General Raúl Castro. As a guerrilla commander and as a statesman, he earned the love of his people, along with the respect and admiration of other leaders in the region and the world. Those values are his greatest defense and a moral shield against this ridiculous attempt to diminish his stature as a hero.
Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez reiterated the sentiment:
We condemn the farce of the U.S. government in presenting an illegitimate and illegal accusation against the Leader of the Cuban Revolution, Army General Raúl Castro Ruz.
It is an act that rests on lies and conceals duly documented historical truths about the events that led to the downing, in Cuban airspace and in legitimate defense, of two aircraft belonging to the terrorist organization Brothers to the Rescue.
It seeks to reinforce the fraudulent narrative to justify the intensified aggression against the Cuban people. It is done by the same government that has been complicit in the organization and execution of terrorist and violent actions against #Cuba from its territory and that has recently committed crimes of extrajudicial executions against nearly 200 people in international waters of the Caribbean and the Pacific, for alleged links to drug trafficking operations.
Cuba will not renounce its inalienable right to legitimate defense.
We reaffirm our firm support for the Army General and our unwavering commitment to the defense of the Homeland, the Revolution, and Socialism.
This is all fear talking. The regime knows its days are numbered. They know they can no longer operate with impunity.
One more thing I want to mention is that Secretary of State Marco Rubio recorded an “Independence Day” message for the Cuban people in Spanish on Wednesday and posted it online. He tells them — even though I’m sure most of them already know, but I don’t think this was aimed solely at them — in simple terms exactly why they live the way they do, and he explains that the United States is on their side and ready help them make a real change.
The reason you are forced to survive 22 hours a day without electricity is not due to an oil “blockade” by the U.S. As you know, better than anyone, you have been suffering from blackouts for years.
The real reason you don’t have electricity, fuel, or food is because those who control your country have plundered billions of dollars, but nothing has been used to help the people.
Thirty years ago, Raúl Castro founded a company called GAESA. This company is owned and operated by the Armed Forces, and has revenues three times greater than your current government’s budget. Today, while you suffer, these businessmen have $18 billion dollars in assets and control 70% of Cuba’s economy. They profit from hotels, construction, banks, stores and even from the money your relatives send you from the U.S. everything, everything passes through their hands. From those remittances they retain a percentage, but from GAESA’s profits nothing reaches you.
Instead of using the money to buy oil, like all other countries in the world, they depended on free oil from Hugo Chávez and Maduro to keep the money. But now that the free oil has stopped coming, they buy fuel for their generators and their vehicles while the people are asked to sacrifice.
“President Trump is offering a new relationship between the U.S. and Cuba. But it must be directly with you, the Cuban people, not with GAESA,” he added.
He also mentioned the $100 million in aid the United States has offered, only if it’s distributed through the Catholic Church, but added that “the Cuban people are not interested in permanent charity. You want the opportunity to live in your own country the way your relatives live in the U.S. or in other countries of the world.”
He concluded:
But President Trump is offering a new path between the U.S. and a new Cuba.
A new Cuba where you, the ordinary Cuban, and not just GAESA, can own a gas station or a clothing store, or a restaurant.
A new Cuba where you, and not just GAESA, can open a bank or have a construction company.
A new Cuba where you, and not just the Communist Party of Cuba, can own a television station or a newspaper.
A new Cuba where you can complain about a failing system, without fear of going to jail or being forced to leave your island.
And a new Cuba where you have a real opportunity to choose who governs your country and vote to replace them if they are not doing a good job.
This is not impossible. All of this exists in the Bahamas, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and even just 90 miles away, in Florida. If owning your own business and having the right to vote is possible around Cuba, why is it not possible for you in Cuba?
In the U.S. we are ready to open a new chapter in the relationship between our people and our countries.
And, currently, the only thing standing in the way of a better future are those who control your country.
I highly recommend watching the entire speech. Don’t worry, it has subtitles. It’s very good.
🇺🇸🇨🇺 pic.twitter.com/nwEePVJ1lX
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) May 20, 2026
In case you missed them, here the last few articles in my “Cuba Falling” series, showcasing the pressure the Trump administration has placed on the Cuban regime and the response by the Cuban people:
1. Cuba Falling: These Sanctions Are Getting Mighty Personal
2. Cuba Falling: What’s All This Talk About Drones?
3. Cuba Falling: There’s a Lot Going On Right Now. This Could Be the Breaking Point.
4. Cuba Falling: Rubio Issues a Major Blow to the Regime’s Military Empire with Much More to Come
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.
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