Progressive House Dems made secret ‘human rights’ trip to Cuba amid worsening border crisis at home
Fox News
Two of the most progressive Democrats in the House of Representatives led a small delegation on an undisclosed trip to Cuba last week to discuss “human rights,” despite the worsening border crisis affecting everyday Americans here at home, according to a new report late Tuesday.
Far-left “Squad” member Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Chair Pramilia Jayapal, D-Wash., led the group of a dozen people, including a staffer from the office of Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., to Havana, where they, according to a spokesperson for the CPC, “met with people from across Cuban civil society and government officials to discuss human rights and the U.S.-Cuba bilateral relationship.”
The trip was not disclosed by anyone involved and was not reported by Cuban state media despite the ongoing embargo against the communist island nation by the U.S., the Miami Herald reported.
Both Jayapal and Omar have been critical of the embargo, support normalizing relations between the U.S. and Cuba, and each voted against a 2021 resolution supporting protests against the Cuban government and calling for the release of detained citizens.
Efforts by the left-wing House members to cozy up to the authoritarian communist nation come as the U.S. continues to face a daunting flood of illegal immigrants overwhelming officials and communities at the southern border, as well as in cities across the country.
An illegal immigrant was charged this week for the murder of a 22-year-old Georgia college student, whose body was found on the University of Georgia’s campus after she went missing while out for a run in broad daylight.
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The trip was met with sharp criticism from other members of Congress, including Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., who wrote in a post on X that it was “no surprise” Omar and Jayapal went to Cuba “to get a refresher course on communism to bring back to DC.”
“All members of the media should refer to the Progressive Caucus by their more accurate name – the Congressional Communist Sympathizing Caucus,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., wrote in her own X post.
“It’s outrageous that Members of Congress would visit a country that jails, abuses, and murders their citizens and supports Iran, Russia and Communist China against our interests. Perhaps their time would be better spent listening to the Cubans crossing our southern border & risking their lives on makeshift rafts to find out why they’re fleeing Communism,” she added.
Fox News Digital has reached out to the offices of Omar, Jayapal and Lee for comment.