Two activists interrupted the entrance of Secretary of State Marco Rubio to a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, shouting slogans against him as he crossed the threshold of the packed room.
The incident was captured in a video shared on the social media platform X by journalist Eric Daugherty, who described the scene as Rubio's entry into "a packed audience" where a protester "immediately began to shout."
One of the activists, described as a man dressed in pink —possibly a member of the pro-Castro organization Code Pink— shouted the following slogans: "Marco Rubio, stop killing Cubans", "repent, repent Marco Rubio", and "God will forgive your sins".
The statements, identified as typical of sectors sympathetic to the Cuban regime or of the American left, accused Rubio of being responsible for the deaths of Cubans, seemingly referring to the sanctions and pressures that the Trump administration has exerted on the island.
Typical of the regime's propaganda and the indoctrination of its supporters, the accusations that Marco Rubio "kills Cubans" distort the reality of a tragedy for which the main and sole responsible party is the Cuban regime.
For more than six decades, the economic policies and state control model imposed by the Communist Party have led to the progressive collapse of national production, infrastructure, the electrical system, public services, and the healthcare system, creating a crisis that directly impacts the quality of life and life expectancy of millions of citizens.
Likewise, the lack of freedoms, opportunities, and future prospects has driven several generations of Cubans to emigrate en masse, often risking their lives in the Florida Straits, the jungles of Central America, or the migration routes to the United States.
The deaths, suffering, and exodus that have marked Cuba's recent history are the result of decisions made by the ruling elite of the island, and not by those who denounce the country's situation internationally or promote measures to pressure its leaders.
Daugherty, who published the video, labeled the protesters as "leftist protesters" and demanded that they be expelled and banned from the Capitol.
The hearing this Tuesday was convened to review the State Department's budget request for fiscal year 2027, and it marked Rubio's first appearance before that committee since the onset of the conflict with Iran, giving him a particularly elevated political profile.
Rubio, of Cuban descent and son of immigrants from the island, has served as Secretary of State since January 2025 and is the first Hispanic to hold this position. Since his appointment, he has maintained a policy of maximum pressure against the regime in Havana.
In the weeks leading up to the incident, Rubio intensified his rhetoric against the regime. On May 21, hedescribed Cuba as a "failed state" and stated that the current system "cannot be fixed" without deep changes.
On May 20, he published a message in Spanish addressed to the Cuban people, offering a "new relationship" on behalf of President Donald Trump and holding the Cuban leadership responsible for the island’s hardships.
On May 14, he stated on NBC that what is happening in Cuba is "unacceptable" and a threat to the United States, and on May 5, he referred to the Cuban regime as "incompetent communists."
This type of interruptions during Congressional hearings by activists has occurred in other recent contexts, such as the appearance of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Daugherty summarized the episode with a phrase that circulated widely among his followers: "Rubio thrives by angering the communists."
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