Editorials & Other Articles

Judi Lynn

(160,542 posts) Sun Sep 16, 2018, 12:54 AM Sep 2018

The F.B.I. Is Quietly Contacting Cubans in Florida, Raising Old Alarm Bells

The F.B.I. Is Quietly Contacting Cubans in Florida, Raising Old Alarm Bells

Demonstrations in Miami in 2015 against the opening of the U.S. embassy in Havana.CreditCreditMichele Eve Sandberg/Corbis, via Getty Images

By Frances Robles
Sept. 12, 2018

Julio V. Ruiz, a 71-year-old retired psychiatrist with a long history of participating in talks with the Cuban government, tried to ignore the persistent knocking at his door by two strangers when they showed up uninvited one afternoon last week.

The rapping on the door went on for 15 minutes. It was the F.B.I.

. . .

At least five Cuban-Americans in Miami, including Dr. Ruiz, who have opposed a trade embargo with Cuba and promoted better relations with the communist government in Havana, said they received surprise visits in the past week from federal agents.

. . .

Some of those contacted said they feared that they were being targeted as part of President Trump’s moves to curtail travel to Cuba and roll back new openings with Havana that had been enacted by the Obama administration.

More:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/12/us/fbi-florida-cuba.html

Editorials and other articles:
https://www.democraticunderground.com/1016215907

16 replies

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Highlight:

The F.B.I. Is Quietly Contacting Cubans in Florida, Raising Old Alarm Bells (Original Post) Judi Lynn Sep 2018 OP

what does this signal? Grasswire2 Sep 2018 #1

I think they are more serious than that. I think they are trying to restart the Cold War. Judi Lynn Sep 2018 #4

passports Grasswire2 Sep 2018 #5

Very serious. recovering_democrat Sep 2018 #12

Also generally unknown, taken from the article: Judi Lynn Sep 2018 #2

This message was self-deleted by its author Judi Lynn Sep 2018 #3

So why do the GOP pols get to visit Russia without scrutiny? dameatball Sep 2018 #6

Obama ended the 1995 wet feet, dry feet policy in 2017. sinkingfeeling Sep 2018 #7

Okay. Thank you. I didn't know that. dameatball Sep 2018 #8

And L O N G overdue. Haggis for Breakfast Sep 2018 #10

Years ago I had an older Cuban gentleman I supervised. He was a rafter. dameatball Sep 2018 #11

Batista was a monster, so I'm not sure why anyone would admit to working for him. nt a la izquierda Sep 2018 #15

He didn't hide it and he hated Castro. Said he went to school with him. dameatball Sep 2018 #16

DAMN CONSERVATIVE NAZI ROB-ROX Sep 2018 #9

Kicked and recommended. Uncle Joe Sep 2018 #13

Hi, Uncle Joe. Thank you. n/t Judi Lynn Sep 2018 #14

Grasswire2

(13,570 posts)

1. what does this signal?

Reply to Judi Lynn (Original post)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 12:59 AM

Sep 2018

Do they intend to pull the passports of Cuban-American citizens, as they are doing with some U.S. citizens living near the Mexico border?

Judi Lynn

(160,542 posts)

4. I think they are more serious than that. I think they are trying to restart the Cold War.

Reply to Grasswire2 (Reply #1)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 01:16 AM

Sep 2018

I think it's entirely possible they would start charging people as "spies" again, as they have done in the past.

It's all dumping down from Trump, trying to destroy Obama's progressive steps which were so hard to implement in the first place, considering the racist right-wing hatred of Obama's progress controling Congress at the time.

Thank you for the information regarding US citizens living near the border. Didn't know.

Grasswire2

(13,570 posts)

5. passports

Reply to Judi Lynn (Reply #4)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 01:42 AM

Sep 2018

[link:https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/us-is-denying-passports-to-americans-along-the-border-throwing-their-citizenship-into-question/2018/08/29/1d630e84-a0da-11e8-a3dd-2a1991f075d5_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.66562e01df2f|

recovering_democrat

(224 posts)

12. Very serious.

Reply to Judi Lynn (Reply #4)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 07:47 PM

Sep 2018

It has never stopped. Nothing else can be said.

Judi Lynn

(160,542 posts)

2. Also generally unknown, taken from the article:

Reply to Judi Lynn (Original post)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 01:06 AM

Sep 2018

Several academics said that, decades ago, it was routine to be visited by the F.B.I. after returning from a trip to Cuba. They would ask whom one had met with and what was talked about, said William LeoGrande, a professor at American University who wrote a book on U.S.-Cuba relations.

“Obviously when U.S.-Cuban relations are bad, one of the ways that manifests itself is greater attention by the F.B.I. to counterintelligence issues,” Mr. LeoGrande said.

María de los Ángeles Torres, a Cuba expert at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said she has had visits from federal agents about her contacts in Cuba, but not for the past 15 years. She never met with them, she emphasized.

“It’s a Cold War atavism,” she said. “A throwback.”

Response to Judi Lynn (Reply #2)

Judi Lynn This message was self-deleted by its author.

dameatball

(7,398 posts)

6. So why do the GOP pols get to visit Russia without scrutiny?

Reply to Judi Lynn (Original post)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 08:09 AM

Sep 2018

Oh, I know. That would be a witch hunt.

Oddly enough I think you can still float from Cuba to Florida and be considered a refugee and get almost immediate asylum. Nicaragua, Guatemala, Mexico, etc.....nope.

If I am wrong, feel free to correct me. I know at one time this was true, but I have not kept up with the policy.

sinkingfeeling

(51,457 posts)

7. Obama ended the 1995 wet feet, dry feet policy in 2017.

Reply to dameatball (Reply #6)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 09:49 AM

Sep 2018

dameatball

(7,398 posts)

8. Okay. Thank you. I didn't know that.

Reply to sinkingfeeling (Reply #7)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 10:12 AM

Sep 2018

Haggis for Breakfast

(6,831 posts)

10. And L O N G overdue.

Reply to dameatball (Reply #8)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 04:49 PM

Sep 2018

It was almost funny watching people try to dodge LEOs in the surf near the beach. Running this way, then that way, like they were playing "tag." If they could make it to the sand, which was NOT dry, they could stay. How does that square with all of the people trying to obtain asylum at the TX, AZ, NM, CA border ? Well, if they could outrun the Border patrol . . . they'd get shot. The Cubans would get citizenship.

dameatball

(7,398 posts)

11. Years ago I had an older Cuban gentleman I supervised. He was a rafter.

Reply to Haggis for Breakfast (Reply #10)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 04:59 PM

Sep 2018

He was a great big guy. He claimed he had worked for Batista.

a la izquierda

(11,795 posts)

15. Batista was a monster, so I'm not sure why anyone would admit to working for him. nt

Reply to dameatball (Reply #11)

Wed Sep 19, 2018, 12:52 PM

Sep 2018

dameatball

(7,398 posts)

16. He didn't hide it and he hated Castro. Said he went to school with him.

Reply to a la izquierda (Reply #15)

Wed Sep 19, 2018, 02:34 PM

Sep 2018

ROB-ROX

(767 posts)

9. DAMN CONSERVATIVE NAZI

Reply to Judi Lynn (Original post)

Sun Sep 16, 2018, 04:04 PM

Sep 2018

They are breaking the law. The bastards should be FIRED and ROASTED for breaking the law. The broke the first amendment: FREE SPEECH. I hope all the creeps are fired and put in prison for their corrupt action......

Uncle Joe

(58,364 posts)

13. Kicked and recommended.

Reply to Judi Lynn (Original post)

Tue Sep 18, 2018, 10:26 AM

Sep 2018

Thanks for the thread Judi Lynn.

Judi Lynn

(160,542 posts)

14. Hi, Uncle Joe. Thank you. n/t

Reply to Uncle Joe (Reply #13)

Wed Sep 19, 2018, 01:54 AM

Sep 2018

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