“It looks like I'll be the one that does it.
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DOJ Indicts Raúl Castro; Trump Threatens Military Action Against Cuba
May 20, 2026
On May 20, 2026, the Justice Department unsealed a superseding indictment charging former Cuban President Raúl Castro and five Cuban regime co-defendants with murder and conspiracy for ordering the 1996 shootdown of two Brothers to the Rescue civilian aircraft over international waters, killing four people including three U.S. citizens. The announcement came as the USS Nimitz carrier strike group arrived in the Caribbean, and President Trump threatened he would be "the one" to intervene in Cuba. Democrats Kaine, Schiff, and Gallego responded by reintroducing a war powers resolution to block unauthorized military action.
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“The president always has the option to do whatever it takes to support and protect the national interest... Over the years, Cuba has gotten used to buying time and waiting us out. They're not going to be able to wait us out or buy time. We're very serious, we're very focused.
“The repressive Cuban regime has suppressed its population and stifled the economic progress of its people for decades. Much as I wish the regime gone and a better future for the Cuban people, there is no indication that Cuba poses a significant national security threat to the United States. The American people have spoken loud and clear that they do not want any more costly wars of choice that skyrocket prices at home.
“I was sent abroad with other working-class kids to fight a war that the elites manufactured to line their own pockets—and now I'm watching the same playbook being run on Cuba in plain sight. The President's poll numbers are sinking, so he's ginning up a reason to invade and looking for a quick win to feel tough.
“The last thing that our country needs right now is a regime change war in Cuba based on imaginary threats to the homeland that would devastate the Cuban people and generate a man-made migration crisis.
“For nearly 30 years, the families of four murdered Americans have waited for justice. My message today is clear: The United States and President Trump does not and will not forget its citizens.
“The indictment gives us the legal basis to go and remove [Raúl Castro from Cuba].