Carlos Giménez to Lis Cuesta: "You still have time to hand over to Díaz-Canel."

The Cuban-American congressman Carlos A. Giménez issued a direct warning this Sunday to the wife of Miguel Díaz-Canel, the "not first lady" Lis Cuesta Peraza, following the recent events in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores by U.S. special forces.

“Our message to the first henchwoman Lis Cuesta: you still have time to hand over Díaz-Canel. I don’t think you’ll fare well in a federal prison,” the Republican lawmaker wrote on his X account (formerly Twitter), in a message that quickly went viral among Cuban exiles and opponents of the regime.

Giménez's comment referred to Operation Delta Force ordered by President Donald Trump on January 3, during which Maduro and his wife were detained in Caracas, marking the definitive collapse of chavismo after more than two decades in power.

The message is part of a series of warnings issued in recent days against the regime in Havana. The Republican lawmaker had already stated that "the days of the Cuban regime colonizing Venezuela and oppressing its people are over," referring to Cuba's role in sustaining Chavismo.

Shortly after, he posted another image on his social media with the text "The puppet dictator of Cuba is next," accompanied by an illustration of Miguel Díaz-Canel handcuffed, similar to the photographs circulated after the capture of Nicolás Maduro.

In that series of posts, Giménez has openly suggested that the fate of the Cuban ruler could resemble that of the former Venezuelan leader, while emphasizing that "the noose around Havana is tightening" amid the hardening of U.S. policy towards the island.

The congressman, a representative from Florida and one of the staunchest critics of the Cuban regime in the U.S. Congress, drew a parallel between the downfall of the Venezuelan regime and the possible fate of Castroism, warning that "the days of impunity are also coming to an end for Havana."

The message from this Monday was interpreted by many as a signal of the tightening of Washington's policy towards Cuba, in line with the stance of President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who have reiterated that the regime of the island faces "a final opportunity to negotiate a peaceful transition."

In social media, hundreds of users reacted with irony or approval to Giménez's message. “It’s no longer called Díaz Canel. Now it’s called Counted Days”, wrote one.

Another summarized the sentiment of many Cubans: “Every dictatorship believes it is eternal… until its FAFO time arrives.”