Trump Says He Wants to Get Cuba Done Before Leaving Office and Would Certainly Consider Military Force
President Trump said in a telephone interview with conservative host Hugh Hewitt on November 12 that he wants to "get Cuba done" before he leaves office, and answered "I would certainly consider that" when asked whether he would use military force to do it. The interview aired on Salem News Channel.
Trump's term ends in January 2029. Asked by Hewitt whether he would accept using force to free Cuba, even a week-long military campaign, Trump replied: "I'd be — I would certainly consider that, yes." He announced no decision to use force and gave no conditions or operational details. Politico reported it was the first time Trump had attached a timeline to a possible operation against Cuba.
In the interview Trump called Cuba "essentially a failed nation" and said his administration was "watching it very closely." He named Secretary of State Marco Rubio as the leading figure in the administration's opposition to Cuba's government: "We have a very good, talented guy from Cuba named Marco. He would love to do it." Rubio's parents are from Cuba.
Trump also said he won 94 percent of the Cuban-American vote in Florida and believes he is more popular now, adding that he would love to do it for the Cubans who came to America.
The remarks go further than his tone earlier this year: in late September he said he expected a deal with Havana and that "I don't think we'll need the military," and on Monday, November 9, he said Cuba would "fall fairly soon." The United States has imposed an oil blockade and sanctions pressure on Cuba this year.
(Source: Salem News Channel)
Source: Salem News Channel
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：特朗普 11 月 9 日在白宫布雷迪简报室举行简报会（资料图，本站档案图复用）。白宫官方视频截图。 / Photo: President Trump holds a briefing in the White House Brady Briefing Room on November 9 (file photo; GSM archive reuse). Still from the official White House video.
