Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Homeland Security secretary Alejandro Mayorkas have received a letter from six Republican lawmakers demanding an explanation of how a high-ranking member of Cuba’s Communist Party was allowed entry into the United States. Despite U.S. laws prohibiting the entry of communist party officials from Cuba, the Biden administration has inexplicably made an exception for Manuel Menendez Castellanos, who was the First Secretary of the Cuban Communist Party in Cienguegos, Cuba.
A group of three Republican congressmen and two senators, four of whom are Cuban-Americans, sent a joint letter on Wednesday to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. The letter calls for an evaluation of whether the law was followed in permitting the entry of former Cuban leader Manuel Menéndez Castellanos into the United States. The lawmakers urge that if any legal provisions were violated, appropriate actions should be taken.
The letter was signed by Republican congressmen María Elvira Salazar, Mario Díaz-Balart, and Carlos Giménez, along with senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott. “Within all applicable rules and regulations, we ask that you assess whether the law was followed in this case and, if not, what specific processes are in place to ensure a similar error does not occur again,” the letter stated, listing potential legal violations.
The INA 212(a)(3)(D)(i) stipulates that, “Any immigrant who is or has been a member or affiliate of the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party (or subdivision or affiliate thereof), whether national or foreign, is inadmissible.” The USCIS website elaborates on this provision by stating: “Generally, any immigrant who is or has been a member or affiliate of the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party (or subdivision or affiliate thereof), whether national or foreign, is inadmissible” (Chapter 3 – Membership in Totalitarian Parties | USCIS).
The letter points out that “given this U.S. legal prohibition, it seems likely that a high-ranking and former operative of the Cuban Communist Party and agent of that brutal dictatorship would be inadmissible for entry into the United States.” The lawmakers expressed outrage that an individual involved in oppressing the Cuban people for decades was allowed to enter the U.S. to enjoy a comfortable retirement.
“Freedom is for the victims of communism, not for the oppressors. I asked @SecBlinken for the immediate cancellation of the visa of Manuel Menéndez Castellanos, former First Secretary of the PCC in Cienfuegos. If he is such a loyal communist, he should spend his retirement in Cuba, not in the U.S.,” wrote Cuban-American congresswoman María Elvira Salazar on X, along with another letter sent to Blinken in her name.
The arrival of a Castro official in the U.S. has sparked outrage in the Cuban American community. While Cuban refugees are regularly deported by the Biden administration, they open their arms for a communist thug.