Members of Congress Call for End to “Inhumane” Blockade on Cuba

"The State Department just published a ridiculous report about the threat to America from Cuba. It may be the stupidest, most fantastical, most biased thing I've ever read from a government agency. Enough. The people of America are tired of war and regime change. We don't want another Gaza in Cuba. We need to end the blockade," said Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI).

"Mr. Speaker, the American people need to know that their government is intentionally suffocating the nation of Cuba," said Rep. Maxine Dexter (D-OR).

"Earlier this month, I traveled to Cuba with a congressional delegation to see firsthand how U.S. policy is affecting this country that is just 90 miles off our shore," Dexter said.

"Let me tell you what I found on this trip. The United States blockade of Cuba is crushing the Cuban people. We are hurting the very people we profess to care about," Pocan said.

"And we are not doing so for national security reasons, but for political reasons. Our blockade is inhumane. Food, medicine, fuel for energy, literally everything you need to live and thrive is blocked by us," he continued.

"And it's not just us. We force the world into an involuntary global blockade, as well as will punish anyone who does business with these sanctions," Pocan added.

"Ultimately, it comes down to fuel. Immediately after coming back into office in January 2025, Trump decisively cut off the ability for any fuel to get into their country. Cuba is not a nation that can produce its own. So without imported fuel, there is no electricity," Dexter said.

"And this has reverberations across every aspect of Cuban life. Basic services have broken down. Daily life is a constant struggle," she added.

"After over 65 years of blockading their government, our punishing of the people of Cuba has not brought the regime change that some politicians want," Pocan said.

"In fact, we didn't just go back to the same old repression, but instead we went to new levels of sadism against the Cuban people. Ships can't bring supplies due to our blockade. Goods can't be exchanged with the Cuban people because of our blockade. Medicine, even in war, we allow medicine through. Medicine and medical parts can't get to the Cuban people due to our blockade," he continued.

"They have tens of thousands of people waiting for surgeries because supplies are insufficient and only a fraction of their operating rooms are running," Dexter said.

"I sat face to face with these doctors and understood the deep pain that they are feeling. Having the skills and the will to care for people, but being denied the opportunity, for political reasons. The difference is here in the U.S., we've never had the will to ensure that every American has access to health care," she continued.

"As a physician, I do not know what it is like to care for every patient that comes in my door without worrying whether they can afford it. In Cuba, they have spent decades fulfilling their promise to make health care a human right," Dexter said.

"Every person has access to health care for free. Can you imagine? We should be aspiring to that commitment to human health, not punishing an entire population for it," she added.

"I met with some ambassadors from other countries and one thing really stuck. One said it was like a silent Gaza. No, there aren't bombs destroying buildings and neighborhoods, but there's a destruction of the power system," Pocan said.

"There's a devastation to their health care system. There's an attack on their ability to educate their children. The people of Cuba are hurting economically more than ever, all due to the U.S. sanctions and blockade, not because of the Cuban government," he continued.

"The Cuban people deserve dignity, safety, self-determination. It is past time for the United States to choose engagement over isolation and humanity over cruelty. And as Trump continues to act erratically abroad, Congress must send a clear and unified message," Dexter said.

"There will be no military action against Cuba," she added.

"Unfortunately, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is making this personal and political rather than about the best interest of the United States," Pocan said.

"And the State Department just published a ridiculous report about the threat to America from Cuba. It may be the stupidest, most fantastical, most biased thing I've ever read from a government agency. Enough. The people of America are tired of war and regime change," he continued.

"We don't want another Gaza in Cuba. We need to end the blockade," Pocan concluded.