President Joe Biden and his administration were largely silent about Sunday's anti-communist protests in Cuba, the most extraordinary outpouring of pro-democracy sentiment in more than 60 years. The only response from the Biden administration came from a rather junior official who tweeted that the protests were about COVID deaths, and who urged Cubans to donate to each other.
Really.
The protests are political in nature, to the point where people have been marching openly with the American flag -- a banner that much of the Democratic Party today detests. Several conservatives have pointed out on Twitter that when truly oppressed people around the world march for freedom, they wave the American flag that our "woke" elites over here insult and disdain.
Even assuming, for argument's sake, that the Biden administration were right -- that the protest is about COVID -- it is a stunning failure for the left, which has praised Cuba for decades for its supposed medical advances. Cuba and Canada are both held up as examples to shame the U.S. over health policy and yet have both failed miserably during the pandemic, while American firms created the life-saving vaccines that are enabling us to return to normal.
I imagine there will be some damage control today from the Biden White House. I don't expect it to repeat the Obama administration's mistake with the Green Revolution in Iran, though it might. Remember that the uprising is evidence that the Obama-Biden policy of "normalization" with the regime was an utter failure, so a shift will require a bit of creative amnesia. Then again, Biden can't remember much anyway, so there's a chance to get this right.
UPDATE: Here's Biden's statement, a dramatic improvement from the day before:
We stand with the Cuban people and their clarion call for freedom and relief from the tragic grip of the pandemic and from the decades of repression and economic suffering to which they have been subjected by Cuba’s authoritarian regime. The Cuban people are bravely asserting fundamental and universal rights. Those rights, including the right of peaceful protest and the right to freely determine their own future, must be respected. The United States calls on the Cuban regime to hear their people and serve their needs at this vital moment rather than enriching themselves.
Today's episode is devoted to the second anniversary of the October 7 terror attacks. It was produced before the announcement of a ceasefire deal, yet remains current & relevant.
Please listen, and #bringthemhome.
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This week's portion is a beautiful poem, containing the Covenant between God and the people of Israel. But given the breaking news that Hamas may actually have agreed to release all of the Israeli hostages, I will devote my remarks to that.
One hopes it is true; if so, it makes this week's additional reading, from II Samuel 22, even more relevant: David's song of praise to the Lord for delivering him from the hand of his enemies.
"18 He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.
19 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the Lord was my support."
So much to focus on this week -- and much breaking news. A peace deal in the Middle East, perhaps? Eric Adams dropping out of the mayor's race? And a looming shutdown as Democrats push their demands beyond absurdity.
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