Analyzing the meaning of the day, Reinier Duardo pointed to the re-election of Governor Ron DeSantis, Senator Marco Rubio and Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar, as signs that a deepening of hate speech and tightening of the blockade is coming.

There, Trump’s legacy remains particularly alive, while a woman like Nancy Pelosi – who welcomed Juan Guaidó and enthusiastically applauded him in Congress – is accused of being a leftist and they try to kill her. This confirms what has been said more than once from Cuba: it is up to us to break the blockade, because the newly elected officials and their lobbyists will do everything to make it worse. The neighbor’s policy continues to steer the extreme right, at least in its area closest to Cuba.

Bárbara Betancourt agrees with this criterion, who points to the signs of the show prior to the moment of the vote, feverish by the euphoria of the haters, the threatening speech against those who dissent and the call to support DeSantis, one of the most ineffective politicians in the United States. States, governor of a failed state, as proven during the pandemic and more recently before, during and after Hurricane Ian. Worse yet: DeSantis is a presidential candidate, as Trump was before he became president, and many believed that it would be impossible. It is dramatically true and it is not good for anyone, except for his followers who already know what size of hate they wear.

In the midst of this republican euphoria, AméricaTV broadcasts a piece of news that the presenters describe as unusual: a Cuban steals a fishing boat from his work to go to Cuba, because “he is tired of living in the United States…”. Stranded in North American waters, he asks for help and they have arrested him.

Although emigration in the opposite direction is common, there are not so few who, after having emigrated, cannot bear to live in the United States and try to return as best they can. The detail of interest is that he steals the boat. Why? Suppose he didn’t have the money to pay for a ticket, or perhaps he thought that if the Miami media praises those who steal ships in Cuba, they will get equal treatment for their journey.

What is really known about the last person who stole a small plane to leave Cuba is that he must be repatriated and that the plane will be returned. Cuba has denounced many times over the years what happens when emigration is stimulated with economic suffocation measures and legal roads become more expensive or closed. Just another reason to thoroughly reassess the immigration issue and the policies that have fueled these practices for so long.
In conclusion, it is very important that the agreements are resumed and the United States does its part. Like Cuba.

(By: Arleen Rodríguez Derivet/Cubadebate)

However, it has weakened to a tropical storm as it moves toward east-central Florida in the morning, according to the US National Hurricane Center.

Nicole became the latest hurricane to hit Florida’s Atlantic coast in a calendar year, breaking the November 4 record set by Hurricane Yankee in 1935.

It is also the first hurricane to make landfall in the United States during November in nearly 40 years.

The US National Weather Center forecasts that the system should weaken to a depression on Friday before becoming a tropical cyclone over the southeastern US.

Experts expect Nicole to move through central and northern Florida into southern Georgia, arriving in the Carolinas on Friday.

In Florida, access to several bridges linking the mainland to the state’s barrier islands has been cut off.

Coastal roads such as Indian River Drive had previously been blocked after waves began breaking against the seawall.

(With information from Euronews and CNN in Spanish)

Local authorities have been showered with criticism for not insisting on the evacuation plan. Building rooftops are surrounded by flood waters along the Peace River in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Arcadia, Florida, on October 3, 2022.

Most of these deaths have been due to drowning or cardiac arrest, and the number is expected to increase in the coming hours and days, according to the authorities of this state during a press conference led by the director of the Emergency Management Division. of Florida, Kevin Guthrie.

President Biden has said it “could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida history.”

Since last week, more than 6,000 people have been rescued across the state, especially in the Southwest, ground zero after Ian hit, and downtown, where many homes were flooded.

Joe Biden is expected to visit Florida on Wednesday after being in Puerto Rico on Monday.

His first visit to Puerto Rico as president lasted only three hours and was focused on inspecting the damage caused by the recent Hurricane Fiona and showing his “commitment” to the island, which he feels does not receive the necessary support from Washington or that this he comes late.

Biden promised an aid package valued at 60 million dollars and promised to support the island so that it is “better prepared” for future hurricanes.

In Florida, 95% of subscribers have already recovered electricity service, five days after Hurricane Ian made landfall in Cayo Costa, in the southwest of the state, with winds of 240 km / h that caused catastrophic damage, he assured this Monday Governor Ron DeSantis.

DeSantis said at a press conference in Cape Coral, in Lee County, one of the areas most affected by the hurricane, that only 5% of subscribers in the state remain without electricity.

The recovery of the service, however, is very uneven, since in some areas of the west coast about half of the population still remains without electricity, while other areas, such as the southeast, practically did not suffer the impact of the hurricane.

At least half of the deaths have been reported in Lee County, where Ian made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane.

(With information from Euronews and BBC)

As is known, the popular vote does not decide the winner of the elections, taking into account that it is a process of indirect suffrage. Candidates must win each state to add voters and obtain at least 270 electoral college votes out of a total of 538. According to Real Clear Politics, Biden has secured 226 electoral votes so far, Trump 125 and the remaining 187 are in dispute.

Taking into account the millions of dollars in advertising investment in television by the Democratic and Republican Party, the electoral battle is concentrated in Pennsylvania, with 20 electoral votes and Florida with 29, considered the most competitive and decisive states in these elections. Several studies indicate that if President Donald Trump does not succeed in Florida, he will lose reelection.

The Democratic candidate is also leading in Florida, by an average of 2 points. According to Real Clear Politics, 47.8% of those polled indicated that they would vote for Biden, while 45.8% would vote for Trump. It is precisely in that state where 70% of the Cuban-American community resides, with more than 1,200,000 people. Around 650,000 of them are registered to vote, which represents 6% of the electorate.

Historically, Cuban-American voters have favored the Republican Party, although that trend has been weakening in recent years. That is why both parties strive to secure the largest number of votes from that community, taking into account the closeness of the contest, and that it could decide if the competition is very close.

In this context, a new survey was carried out by Florida International University on the position of Cuban Americans, which has been carried out every two years since the 1990s. The results were published this Friday and are based on a telephone survey – between the July 7 and August 17, 2020- 1002 Cuban-Americans residing in Miami-Dade County. The criteria of the interviewees are very diverse and ambivalent, although there are greater percentages of agreement on some issues such as President Trump’s handling of the economy, medical care, and policy towards the island. [1]

The study shows that 59% of the Cuban-Americans interviewed indicated that they would vote for Trump, and only 25% would vote for Biden. 68% approve the imposition of new sanctions to force a “regime change” in Cuba and 54% support the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the US government against their country of origin.

However, 66% consider that the blockade has not worked or has not worked very well, and 57% support suspending sanctions against Cuba during the COVID-19 pandemic. 58% approve the resumption of the issuance of visas in the US embassy in Havana and 60% the family reunification program.

Research also shows that the community supports some of the policies implemented by then-President Barack Obama towards Cuba. 74% support the sale of medicines, 69% the sale of food, 65% the resumption of air travel to all regions of the country and 58% in maintaining diplomatic relations.

For Guillermo J. Grenier, director of the study and head of the Department of Global and Sociocultural Studies at Florida International University, the biggest surprise in the results is the progress of the Republican Party in the community, mainly among Cubans who recently arrived United States. 76% of respondents who arrived between 2010 and 2015 said they were Republicans.

This is a very complex subject to analyze and one that would require further investigation. The reality is that it is still very difficult to forecast the Cuban-American vote on November 3. It should be taken into account that these elections take place in the middle of a scenario of systemic crisis in the United States, aggravated by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which exceeds 208 thousand deaths and 7 million 300 thousand people infected ; the economic recession that has caused that 30 million people have had to request unemployment benefits and almost 40 million are threatened of being expelled from their homes due to accumulated defaults; and anti-racist mobilizations and police abuse.

In the past seven months, political polarization has increased and the current administration has fostered division, hatred and violence in American society. In this environment, the Cuban-American extreme right encourages the US executive to escalate hostility against the Cuban Revolution, using the alleged “communist threat” as a pretext. The unusual thing is that on this occasion they accuse the democrats of embracing socialist ideas, which has no theoretical or practical support.

It is part of his strategy to promote fear, chaos and uncertainty within the Cuban-American community. Trump uses the far-right of Cuban origin to discredit the Democrats and exacerbate the phobia against socialism. Furthermore, it is clear that there is a mutual convenience in employing Cuban Americans as a spearhead in the Latino community, which overwhelmingly rejects the tenant of the White House.

In recent weeks, desperate actions have been seen in the face of a possible Republican electoral defeat. It was the panorama that was experienced in the first presidential debate, which left much to be desired due to the embarrassing performance of Trump, who in the middle of the show showed serious personality problems and used his main political weapon: the lie.

The Washington Post recently acknowledged that past presidents have lied or misrepresented the truth, but Trump’s distortions are on an epic scale. As of July, according to a database maintained by the Post, Trump had made more than 20,000 false or misleading statements in just three and a half years, including more than 1,000 exclusively about the coronavirus. The most common false claims are that you have been a participant in the best moment of the economy of all time, and that you approved the largest tax cut in history. [two]

Among these repeated lies are those dedicated to attacking Cuba and trying to distance the Cuban-American community from its homeland, sowing hatred and neglect. For these purposes they allocate millionaire sums of money and use all the methods at their disposal, including internet social networks. It was to be expected that these positions would be stoked by Trump in the next presidential debate scheduled for October 15 in Miami, but it will not be possible because, paradoxically, the US president tested positive for COVID-19 and is admitted to be cured of the disease.

More than a century ago, the most universal of Cubans, José Martí, visited several American cities to contribute to the dissemination of the work that was being carried out in the resumption of the fight for the independence of Cuba, submitted as a colony and threatened by the desires of the “ a thriving and ambitious neighbor ”. On November 26, 1891, he gave an emotional speech at the Cuban Lyceum in Tampa and is known by the phrase “With everyone and for the good of all.” Due to its validity, I share only one fragment that invites all worthy Cubans to reflect: “Enough of mere words! From the torn entrails let us raise an inextinguishable love for the Homeland without which no man lives happily, neither the good nor the bad ”. [3]

(By: Abel González Santamaría/ Cubadebate)

And when Trump hunts, no coronavirus or any other humanitarian disaster gets in the way. The only thing on his agenda on this trip was getting re-elected.

Florida, the apple of every candidate’s eye, once again served as an opportunity to trade hatred for votes. Winning here is key for anyone, since the state, plus California and Texas, constitute the famous triad of “pendulum states,” where voting patterns are not clear and, therefore provide both parties possibilities.

Thus, as in 2016, Trump has made regular visits here, aware that, over the last few years, whoever succeeds in Florida, becomes President. He knows this and has a plan to win the Latino vote.

He was not interested in the COVID-19 epidemic in the state, which has already twice broken the record for new cases reported in a single day anywhere in the United States.

He preferred to focus on satisfying the malicious passions and supporting the intrigues of ex-patriot Cubans, Venezuelans and Nicaraguans who love their homelands little and do not understand the meaning of sovereignty.

At Southern Command headquarters, he asserted that very good work has been done in the fight against drugs, and then turned his attention to the most controversial wall in the Americas, designed to cut off emigration from the South, a project without support in Florida, the country, or the world.

Covering all his bases, from the Southern Command he moved on to the Doral Jesus Worship Center for a round table chat during which, once again, the President explained his philosophy for the county’s “backyard,” that is Latin America and the Caribbean. He was accompanied by Mario Diaz-Balart, Republican Congressman from Florida, known for his hostile rhetoric against Cuba.

In the exercise of U.S. electoral politics, every word spoken and place visited reveals an intention. Confirming this U.S. administration’s ruthlessly hostile policy toward Cuba, Trump made his most aggressive statements of the day in this “religious center,” denounced by Cuban Foreign Ministry, given its links with the April 30 terrorist attack on the Cuban Embassy in Washington,.

As occurred four years ago, the President knew that he will find plenty of supporters at the Doral Jesus Worship Center, “parishioners” with a visceral hatred for progressive and leftist movements on the continent.

Thus the script was repeated; he said what they wanted to hear, talking about the lack of freedom in Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua; of alleged escapes from socialism; of sanctions against the governments of Nicolás Maduro and Daniel Ortega; and of his iron fist over Cuba.

He linked the names of Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Barack Obama to distorted, pro-communist positions. Dismissive rejections of reality, accusations, lies… everything goes in U.S. electoral contests.

At his side, a Cuban annexationist thanked the President “for his historic actions to support democracy in Cuba,” expressing agreement with the closure of consular services at the U.S. embassy in Havana, regardless of what that has meant in the development of migratory relations between the two countries; the persecution of shipping companies transporting oil to the island, in an attempt to make the daily lives of millions of Cubans unbearable; and the attack on everything that benefits the tourism sector, key to the national economy, which has been hit hard by the reduction of flights and the suspension of cruise ship travel to the island.

Referring to the process of re-establishing diplomatic relations begun in 2014, Trump stated, “The deal we made with Cuba was ridiculous. That’s why the Cubans gave me the Bay of Pigs award, just before the last election. It was a great honor. I have it in my office.”

In 2016, the Miami Herald called Trump’s catering to Brigade 2506 mercenaries “a desperate, last-minute attempt to reach out to Miami’s influential Cuban-American voters,” and criticized the magnate’s support as a mistake, later describing him as “a boastful, self-centered egomaniac who lacks a record of public service or familiarity with the issues.”

But a newspaper column can do nothing to deter those who invaded Playa Girón in April of 1961, and have accumulated a vicious record of attacks on Cuba since then. For decades, they have supported any politician that followed a hard line against Cuba.

There must be some kind of agreement on the issue among these old mercenaries; they have no qualms about being used, time and time again.

Although the reality has varied, this spiteful group still presumes to exercise leadership over the large community of Cuban residents in Florida, who in their majority reject Trump’s aggressive policy, supporting the reestablishment of diplomatic relations and the normalization of relations between Havana and Washington.

Donald Trump approached the Miami-based Cuban counterrevolution back in 1999. He was dreaming of becoming President and, at that time, announced that he was considering seeking the nomination of the Reform Party, a minority organization.

He changed his mind shortly thereafter, and went back to business.

This 2020, needing his puppets, as usual, Trump returned. Mario Díaz-Balart, congratulated the magnate, saying that he will be remembered as “the President who freed this hemisphere from Communism and Socialism.”

“They won’t last another four years of President Trump,” Díaz-Balart added, but as the bad advisor he is, he has forgotten that a U.S. President said the same thing in 1959, when the Revolution led by Fidel Castro triumphed; in 1961, when the Bay of Pigs attack failed so miserably; in 1962, during the October Crisis; in the 1990s during the special period through 2014, when Obama initiated a new strategy; and in 2019, when “They threw us to our deaths,” as Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said.

And here we are.

They are very quickly and unpredictable sailboats that will allow more than a sports event, a symbol of friendship between U.S. and Cuban citizens.

The arrival this weekend to this capital of the Havana Challenge regatta, in addition of being a challenge to ocean currents, foster friendship, as the organizers from both countries conceive it.

About 100 Americans in some 20 sailboats arrived in the Marina Hemingway yacht club, in western Havana, from Key West, Florida, the first race of this kind in 15 years.

The sailboats departed early Saturday from Key West, and three of Hobbie Cats-16 were the first in arriving in the Hemingway International Nautical Club, founded in 1992, located in the marina of the same name.

Supporting boats and two schooners, copies of those of the 18th century, also came in the group.

Such activity is a great joy for the Cubans, particularly the commodore of the Hemingway Club, Jose Miguel Diaz Escrich, main animator of the recreational boating activity in the island.

Exhibitions at the Havana’s Malecon coastlines and a competition of the Hobbie Cats, very fast and colorful sailboats, are expected for May 19-20.

(Prensa Latina)

This afternoon – it is stunning to actually witness – Diana is swimming stronger and stronger. Her strokes are up to 50 per minute, she is eating pasta, gobbling bananas, bits of peanut butter sandwiches, along with high-carb & high calorie liquid concoctions. Bonnie Stoll has not left her side.

Conditions remain calm beyond expectations. Angie Sollinger, a crew member, said she has lived in the Caribbean for 27 years and has rarely witnessed this extensive period of the Doldrums.

Around 1pm – and don’t everybody get excited here – an Oceanic white tipped shark was spotted near Diana in the midst of the three boat flotilla. Diana is deeply committed to the safety of these extraordinary animals. It was a testament to the talents of her safety divers as they approached the shark. Rob MacDonald, one of the divers, swam towards the shark, where they faced off within 10 feet of one another. “I guess he thought I was more aggressive than him, and he turned in the other direction,” said MacDonald. Everyone else, it must be said, breathed a huge sigh of relief.

At 3:15pm today, Diana is now 35 statutory miles from Havana about one-third of the way to Florida.