In 2001 and twice in 2002 George W. Bush and Dick Cheney allowed Raul Castro's daughter, Mariela Castro, to enter the United States with a Visa
Here are Mitt Romney's thoughts on the President of the United States allowing Mariela Castro into America:
“The ... administration’s decision to grant a visa to Mariela Castro, daughter of the Cuban dictator Raul Castro, is a slap in the face to all those brave individuals in Cuba who are enduring relentless persecution for fighting for the universal rights we Americans hold dear. Unfortunately, this decision is part of a larger pattern. For even as the Castro brothers have tightened repression on the island over the past three years, the ... administration has softened its approach. The United States should be standing up for freedom, not coddling the privileged children of communist dictators,"
~Mitt Romney - on the President of the United States granting Mariela Castro a visa
Here are Marco Rubio's thoughts on the President of the United States allowing Mariela Castro into America:
"I think the U.S. government’s decision to grant the daughter of Raul Castro a visa to come to the United States and spread the propaganda of her father’s regime is outrageous and an enormous mistake. Not only that, it sends a terrible message to the democratic movement in Cuba, to those brave people in Cuba who every single day resist and speak out against the tyranny of the Castro brothers. Meanwhile, we are granting a visa to his daughter, who is not just his daughter. She is an arm of his regime, an outspoken supporter and is coming to the United States to spread their anti-American propaganda. It is shameful that they would grant that visa.”
~Marco Rubio -on the President of the United States granting Mariela Castro a visa
There ya have it, both Romney and Rubio are disgusted and infuriated that the President of the United States would let Raul Castro's daughter have a visa to come to the United States.
Grant it, those comments from Romney and Rubio are most certainly a delayed reaction as neither Romney nor Rubio actually uttered a word of contempt for the President's Administration granting Mariela Castro a visa in either 2001 or 2002 but rather just the other day ... May 17, 2012 ... wow, that's one heck of a delayed reaction.
Hmmmm .... Republican delayed reaction. Maybe delayed reaction by Republicans is why Republicans have a tough time moving forward?
It should be noted here that in 2002, Mitt Romney was campaigning for Governor of Massachusetts and Marco Rubio was in the Florida State House of Representatives.
Rubio's comments are odd.
First of all, Rubio failed to do his homework regarding Mariela Castro as she is not "an arm of the Castro regime" rather, she is an activist for Gay Rights -- another thing Rubio hates, Gay Rights. Perhaps Bush/Cheney gave Mariela Castro a visa to come to America in 2001 and 2002 to hang out with Cheney's lesbian daughter, Mary Cheney and tell Mary the advances she has made in Cuba regarding Gay rights?
Secondly, Marco Rubio should welcome any and all Cubans who want to come to America -- after all, his parents immigrated to America in 1956, pre-Castro.
Interestingly, Rubio wrote in Politico that his parents did not really like America and so they wanted to move back to Cuba but decided, on their own, not to.
Rubio wrote Politico 2011
"They wanted to go back — and in fact they did. Like many Cubans, they initially held out hope that Castro’s revolution would bring about positive change. So after 1959, they traveled back several times — to assess the prospect of returning home.
In February 1961, my mother took my older siblings to Cuba with the intention of moving back. My father was wrapping up family matters in Miami and was set to join them.
Rubio went on to declared his own desire to go to Cuba:
"What I wouldn’t give to visit these places where my story really began, before I was born."
Here again, Rubio has not done his homework because as a US Politician Marco Rubio would have no trouble getting a
visa to travel to Cuba. My hope is Rubio reads my Diary and realizes that he can very easy schedule his visit to Cuba.
One would think Rubio would encourage Cubans to come to America like his own parents did -- but -- nope.
Romney's bizarre delayed reaction.
As for Romney's bizarre delayed reaction to the President of the United States granting a visa for Mariela Castro ... well ... let's just see if Romney will have the spine to tell Dick Cheney to his face that he was "coddling the privileged children of communist dictators" at the July Fundraiser Cheney gives Romney at his lair in Wyoming ... naw - Romney has no spine.