CNN and other news outlets are noting that lawmakers with actual ties to Cuba are, in stark contrast to the White House, reacting strongly to news of Fidel Castro’s death. One of those legislators is Sen. Ted Cruz, the son of a Cuban immigrant, who dedicated his Twitter timeline Saturday to correcting the record on Castro’s dictatorship.
Rubio kicked things off with a bang, calling President Obama’s carefully worded and non-judgmental statement “pathetic” and following up with choice facts culled from media reports on Castro’s life.
President Obama issued a pathetic statement on death of dictator #FidelCastro with no mention of thousands he killed & imprisoned. #Cuba
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
History will remember Fidel Castro as an evil, murderous dictator who inflicted misery & suffering on his own people pic.twitter.com/Y7207S6qVD
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
So called "Journalists" hail #FidelCastro’s Achievements, ‘George Washington,’ ‘Folk Hero to Most of Us’ https://t.co/72GUOkqhEq
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
Today let's remember how #FidelCastro used MIG-29 combat pilots to kill unarmed civilians #Brotherstotherescue back in 1996. #cuba
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
"a ruthless dictator..executed thousands of opponents, imprisoned tens of thousands..": https://t.co/7tTXe8KYtp
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
#FidelCastro "created repressive state where his secret police & pro-government mobs attacked those who dared to call for democratic change"
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
Well into the 1970s, #FidelCasto was imprisoning gays and long-haired young people in work camps.
Read more here: https://t.co/7tTXe8KYtp
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
When #FidelCastro ships spotted tugboat full of refugees on July 1994, blasted it to pieces with high-pressure fire hoses. 41 refugees died
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
Under #FidelCastro Cuba represses nearly all forms of political dissent,” the independent group Human Rights Watch observed in 2008.
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
Remarkably, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau managed to outdo President Obama’s eulogy, inspiring a hashtag game in the process and leading Rubio to ask if he was reading a parody site.
Is this a real statement or a parody? Because if this is a real statement from the PM of Canada it is shameful & embarrassing. https://t.co/lFXeqU7Ws0
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016
It’s real, and it is shameful and embarrassing.
@bcbluecon sadly it's real. Absolute embarrassment for Canadian people
— Gerry Ritz (@GerryRitzxMP) November 26, 2016
It's real. AND a disgrace. In NO WAY does it represent what Most CDNs thk or feel about this repressive monster. #embarrassed
— Alex Pierson (@AlexpiersonAMP) November 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/ChristianHeiens/status/802590896667684866
@CanadianPM It's not just a shameful statement; it'll haunt his legacy when the time comes to judge him in history books.
— vbspurs (@vbspurs) November 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/right_sider/status/802590971636482048
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Update:
Rubio’s tweet blasting the president’s statement has garnered more than 10,000 likes, and Ted Cruz appears to be one of them:
Marco's right. Why does Obama persist in showering love on our enemies? Castro was not leftist chic; he was a murderer and a thug. https://t.co/OnlXRvvdA7
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) November 26, 2016
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