Gov. Ron DeSantis again pleaded with Joe Biden‘s White House to help break the internet blockade to Cuba before it’s too late.
DeSantis, addressing reporters in Central Florida Monday, expressed frustration with the lack of response or movement as protests continue in Cuba.
“We in the United States have the capability to help provide the connectivity that I think would be essential in exposing the truth and really holding the regime accountable. We have not received a response to the letter I wrote last week. And so we think that time is of the essence. We would like to see not just a response but we’d like to see a positive response. It could make a big difference to the situation that’s going on down there, ” DeSantis noted.
The Governor continued to frame the internet shutdown as a measure of how threatened the communist regime is by the protest movement.
“Once these demonstrations started, I think the regime, understandably, recognized that for what it was. It was really a mortal threat to their existence,” DeSantis said.
“They went to crack down on connectivity and shut down the internet,” DeSantis added, which made it “much more difficult” for Cubans in the protest movement to “converse with one another” and to “beam images throughout the world.”
The Monday messaging continues for a second week a request for movement from the White House that does not seem forthcoming.
On Friday, the Governor suggested that satellite technology could be used to provide internet technology to the island. Some have suggested that balloons could be the mechanism.
“One of the things I think we should be able to do with our private companies or with the United States is to provide some of that internet service via satellite,” DeSantis said at a roundtable last week in Miami.
DeSantis also wrote a letter formally requesting Biden’s help.
“I urge you to act immediately to provide all necessary authorizations, indemnifications, and funding to American businesses with the capability to provide internet access for the people of Cuba. Steps must be taken immediately,” DeSantis urged. “Internet access for the Cuban people is of critical importance as they stand up against the repressive Communist government. In the hands of these brave individuals, such access may be the key to finally bringing democracy to the island.”
Expect DeSantis to continue to hammer this issue, though the White House seems in no rush to accede to the request.