Salazar Backed Mass Deportations—Until It’s Re-election Time

"Cuba is the mothership of evil in the Western Hemisphere," said Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), in archival footage.

"The regime is a satanic nightmare," Salazar said in a separate archival clip.

"It's time for you guys to go because there is a new sheriff in town. And that sheriff is Donald Trump," she added in another clip.

"Miami politician María Elvira Salazar hates Cuba's government. And she loves Donald Trump. That combination helped get her elected to Congress," said María Karla Acosta Toledo, journalist with Belly of the Beast.

"Where are the Cubans in this rally?" Salazar asked in archival footage from a July 9, 2024 Trump rally.

"I will vote for Donald Trump," the crowd sang in a November 1, 2020 Trump rally.

"With Salazar's support, the U.S. has waged economic war on Cuba, destroying Cuba's economy," Acosta Toledo said.

"It's been three months since they don't receive any type of fuel shipment. That's exactly what they need," Salazar said in an interview with Fox News.

"The result has been a historic wave of migration into the U.S. and, under Trump, sweeping ICE detentions and deportations, especially in Miami," Acosta Toledo said.

"Since President Trump took office, the Miami field office has made more than 41,000 arrests," according to a CBS Miami report.

"We are looking to set a goal of a minimum of 3,000 arrests for ICE every day," said Stephen Miller, Donald Trump's homeland security adviser, in an interview with Hannity.

"For months, Salazar insisted her constituents had nothing to worry about," Acosta Toledo said.

"I am sure that they're going to hone in on the criminals who arrived less than four years ago," Salazar said in a PBS NewsHour interview.

"But that's not what happened," Acosta Toledo said.

"This is a great injustice," one interviewee said in an NBC News report.

"A wave of disappointment," the NBC News reporter said.

"My daughter can't see her dad," another interviewee said.

"Still, Salazar voted to give more than $100 billion to ICE," Acosta Toledo said.

"You give money to ICE to look for the illegals who are criminals," Salazar said in an interview on CNN's Inside Politics.

"Now, Salazar's hard-line Cuba policy and her devotion to Trump have created a big political problem for her," Acosta Toledo said.

"One of President Donald Trump's most loyal voting blocs, Cuban and Venezuelan immigrants, now speaking out in Miami," an NBC News report stated.

"Earlier this month, Salazar did a 180," Acosta Toledo said.

"The same Hispanics who helped you get to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed today," Salazar said in a campaign ad.

"For a Republican these days, especially one from Miami, publicly criticizing Trump is practically an act of rebellion. So what changed?" Acosta Toledo asked.

"I'm running for Congress against María Elvira Salazar in Florida's 27th Congressional District," said Eliott Rodriguez, Democrat Congressional nominee, in his campaign announcement.

"Democrat Eliott Rodriguez is tied with Salazar in a recent poll. And he knows Salazar's weak spot," Acosta Toledo said.

"These immigration policies are impacting Cuban Americans, Venezuelan Americans, Haitian Americans and others, and it's cruel and inhumane," Rodríguez said in an interview with CBS Miami.

"A pure 'toss-up,' in the pollster's words, in a seat she won by 20 points 2 years ago," Acosta Toledo said.

"It's a new dawn for the country. President Trump needs to win. Then, we will sit and see what type of deportations they are going to be conducting," Salazar said in archival footage from 2024.

"That was then. This is now," Acosta Toledo said.

"Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far," Salazar said in a campaign ad.

"'Too far,' she says now. Funny how different Trump's policies can look when they hit close to home," Acosta Toledo concluded.