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María del Carmen Hernández Carús, mother of the head of Communication at the Palace of the Revolution, Leticia Martínez Hernández, posted a powerful message on Facebook this Wednesday against Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, known as "El Cangrejo", demanding that he relinquish the role of negotiator that he has assumed without any official position.
The trigger was the interview that Raúl Castro's grandson gave to the American newspaper USA Today, in which he stated: “I can negotiate with anyone appointed by the U.S. If given the opportunity, of course with Trump.”
Hernández Carús, who identifies as "a citizen of this country, that's simply who I am," posed a series of direct questions: "Why would anyone interview Raúl Guillermo about the topic of Cuba? Why does this young man allow himself to be interviewed and take on a role that doesn't belong to him?"
His criticism was even sharper as he pointed out that Rodríguez Castro lacks the necessary training for those roles: "Can someone bring this kid back down to earth? Can someone tell him to be quiet? Can someone inform him that this is not the job of a bodyguard?"
And he added with irony, "Could someone tell him that the bullets for those negotiations are not bought at a farmers' market?"
The post is particularly striking because its author is the mother of one of the main spokespersons for the regime of Miguel Díaz-Canel, known for defending the regime on social media and for calling U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio a "bandit" last June.
Hernández Carús also pointed to a possible underlying political interpretation: "I don't know if this is the work of Cuba's enemies, to suggest that only the family with the last name Castro can have a voice in Cuba, and therefore not take into account the president and the rest of the foreign relations team."
Rodríguez Castro, 42 years old, is the son of Débora Castro Espín —Raúl Castro's eldest daughter— and the late General Luis Alberto Rodríguez López-Calleja, former head of the military business conglomerate GAESA. His nickname, "El Cangrejo," comes from being born with polydactyly.
Without any position in the Cuban government, he has served for more than two decades as a bodyguard and personal assistant to his grandfather, but since early 2026 he has emerged as an informal channel between the regime's leadership and the Trump administration.
According to reports, he met with Rubio in January and February 2026, sent a letter with economic proposals to Trump in April — intercepted by Customs agents in Miami — and received the CIA director, John Ratcliffe, in Havana last May.
The interview with USA Today marked her first public appearance in a U.S. media outlet and sparked a wave of outrage in Cuba, where many questioned whether the future of the country could depend on someone without popular mandate or diplomatic training, who also lives in opulence while the population suffers from blackouts and shortages.
In the interview, Rodríguez Castro mentioned Díaz-Canel only three times and referred to him as "Miguelito," a detail interpreted as a sign of where real power resides on the island.
Hernández Carús had already been involved in previous controversies on social media: he protested against blackouts in December 2024, criticized ETECSA's rates in May 2025, and defended his daughter after a dispute with the singer-songwriter Silvio Rodríguez in March 2025.
This is, however, one of the few times he directly attacks a member of the Castro elite.
He closed his post with a phrase that sums up his stance: "I dare to say it openly here because I was, I am, and I will be a free spirit; many people on the street say it. Shoes for shoemakers!"
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