Outraged Florida lawmakers have called on the Biden administration to investigate how a former Cuban Communist Party official who played a role in oppressing the Cuban people for decades was recently allowed to immigrate to the United States.
Florida’s Republican congressional delegation expressed “deep disgust” over reports that Communist Party official Manuel Menendez Castellanos entered Miami last week using a U.S.-run visa parole program for Cubans. The Miami Herald reported..
“We are outraged that a man who has oppressed the Cuban people for decades has been granted the extraordinary privilege of entering the United States so he can retire in freedom and comfort,” the lawmakers said in a letter sent Wednesday to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Lawmakers, led by Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, D-Miami, pointed to federal law that generally bans immigrants with communist credentials and called on Biden administration officials to investigate the circumstances surrounding Menendez’s admission to the country.
“We ask that you assess whether the law was followed in this case and, if not, what concrete steps have been taken to prevent a similar mistake from happening again,” they wrote.
“Given this prohibition in U.S. law, it appears likely that a high-ranking, long-time member of the Cuban Communist Party and agent of that brutal dictatorial regime will not be admitted to the United States.”
Menendez previously served as a Communist Party official in the Cuban city of Cienfuegos, according to El Nuevo Herald.
The media added that he had also represented Cuba at international forums and received awards from the Cuban government.
Menendez was reportedly allowed into the United States under the Cuban Reunification Parole Program, which allows certain nationals and permanent residents to apply for humanitarian parole for their family members.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection would not comment on the recent arrivals, citing privacy reasons.
The letter was co-signed by Republican Representatives Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez, as well as Senators Marco Rubio and Rick Scott.
