Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, libertad. Freedom. Abajo la dictadura. Down with the dictatorship.

These are the calls we are hearing from the people of Cuba.

They have taken to the streets demanding the end of the Castro tyranny.

We see the American flag waving on the streets of Havana because they yearn for the same thing we have: Freedom. We see the American flag waving on the streets of Havana because that is what they want, freedom.

Castro has taken repression to scientific levels. There are at this hour over 500 political prisoners and thousands more are in jail.

Madam Speaker, we are begging President Biden to stand with the Cubans now. The Castro regime has cut off the internet so no one will see how they are torturing the Cuban people. America has the technology to provide internet now in Cuba.

We don't need any study groups about remittances. What we need is action. We need the President to grant the green light now so that Cubans can organize among themselves and can stay in the streets; so they don't feel abandoned; so they know the whole world is watching; so they can decide their own political future. Time is of the essence.

Madam Speaker, Latin America's dictators exploit their children just like they exploit their own people.

The best example is Nicaragua's dictator, Daniel Ortega. Ortega leads his corrupt, oppressive, dictatorial regime along with his wife and Vice President, Rosario Murillo. Their daughter, Camila Ortega, has defalcated millions and millions of dollars from the Nicaraguan people while her mother and father continue oppressing anyone who opposes them.

Madam Speaker, 10 days ago, the United States Government blacklisted Camila Ortega for corruption. She is officially sanctioned. Her bank accounts are frozen. No one can do business with her at this hour. She will no longer lavishly spend the people's money in the streets of Miami, my district, where I represent thousands and thousands of the Nicaraguan exile community who fled her father's regime and his oppression.

Madam Speaker, from the floor of the United States Congress, from this floor, we ask the European Union and Canada to join America in holding Camila Ortega accountable.

Ortega wants to steal the elections by jailing anyone who opposes him. But make no mistake, he and his family will pay for these atrocities.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. Albert Dotson, Sr., a beloved constituent in our community who served as a pioneer, activist, husband, and loving father throughout his lifetime. On May 29, 2021, Mr. Dotson passed away at the age of 83.

I would like to recognize Dr. Albert Dotson, Sr.'s steadfast leadership, his embrace of the communities he has lived and served in, and his many achievements.

Born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1938, Albert was raised by a single mother who worked as a housekeeper. His mother, Alberta, taught him the value of hard work and respect at an early age.

Later on in life, Albert met his wife, Earlene, while at church. The couple married in 1959 and continued to attend church together throughout the next six decades. Together, they had five children and 13 grandchildren.

Throughout his life, Albert never forgot the value of hard work that his mother instilled in him. After dropping out of college to take an entry-level job at Sears Roebuck and Company, he eventually worked his way up as the corporation's first African American store manager. In 1976, he relocated to Miami, where he eventually decided to launch several of his own businesses with his wife.

Education was always very important to Albert and Earlene. After watching all five of their children graduate from college, they decided to go back to school themselves and complete their undergraduate degrees. Albert eventually went on to complete his PhD in Philosophy in 2004.

Albert continuously remained active in the higher education community, serving on Florida International University's (FIU) Foundation Board of Directors for nearly two decades to secure research funding for architecture and medical students. He eventually went on to chair the FIU Board of Trustees from 2009 to 2011.

Albert cared deeply for the Miami community, being involved with community groups like the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce and the Miami- Dade School Board. In 1989, he joined the Orange Bowl Committee, created in 1935 to promote tourism to the Miami metropolitan area. Less than a decade later, Albert broke records when he became the first African American President of the Committee.

Albert's life is a great example of service-leadership and working hard towards the American Dream. Miami-Dade will always be grateful for his contributions to our community.

Dr. Dotson Sr. is survived by his wife Earlene; his sons Albert Jr. and Jonathan; his daughters Dr. Toya Greene, LeTessa Hall, Christa Dean; and his 13 grandchildren.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to declare my community's unshakable support for the State of Israel.

Israel has been under constant fire for over a week by Hamas, which is a terrorist organization supported by Iran. Over 3,100 rockets have been fired, 10 Israelis have been killed, and millions more would be at risk if not for the Iron Dome missile defense system protecting its citizens.

Make no mistake, Hamas is not interested in peace. Their goal is to destroy the Jewish State of Israel.

Hamas uses children as human shields and pays the terrorists' families for life.

Hamas launches the attacks but tries to paint Israel as the aggressor. At the same time, cynics or opportunists are taking advantage of this violent wave of terrorism to peddle anti-Semitic hate.

I am proud to stand for Israel, the only democratic country in the Middle East and its right to defend itself.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention on the crisis in Nicaragua in Central America.

SOS Nicaragua is our motto. SOS Nicaragua is the rallying cry of millions of Nicaraguans yearning for freedom, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, just like what we have.

Managua is closer to Miami than Miami is to D.C., as Ronald Reagan once said on national television. What happens in Central America has a direct impact on my community in south Florida, home of hundreds of thousands of Nicaraguans.

Since April of 2018, Daniel Ortega's Sandinista regime has carried out a repressive crackdown and killed over 325 peaceful protesters, while thousands of Nicaraguans have fled to neighboring Costa Rica and to the United States, escaping Ortega's reign of terror.

This November, Nicaragua is scheduled to have Presidential elections, yet Daniel Ortega and his wife, Rosario Murillo, are actively undermining the electoral process and persecuting opposition candidates to outright steal the upcoming Presidential election.

The Nicaraguan people have liberated themselves from the shackles of socialist tyranny once before, and they can do it again.

For that reason, the United States must stand with the people of Nicaragua in their struggle for freedom by demanding a free and fair election this November. For that reason, Congressman Albio Sires and myself have introduced my bipartisan RENACER Act, and I urge my colleagues to cosponsor this bill and stand with the people of Nicaragua.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs invasion; specifically, to honor the men of Assault Brigade 2506.

Mr. Speaker, over 1,400 selfless men--many of which were only teenagers at the time--volunteered to save the island of Cuba on April 17, 1961 from communism.

Mr. Speaker, 114 brigaders and 4 American soldiers were killed in action by the brutal Castro regime; while thousands of others waiting on the island for these freedom fighters were arrested, killed by a firing squad, or sent into exile, including my grandmother.

For my Miami exile community that I represent, these are our moral points of reference, our heroes, and are reminders of how the Cuban people continue to suffer under a ruthless communist dictatorship led by the Castro brothers.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to join Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart in introducing a bipartisan resolution honoring the brigaders. I urge my colleagues in Congress to cosponsor our resolution to join us in our fight for freedom, democracy, and human rights in the only communist bastion in the Western Hemisphere, the island of Cuba.

Madam Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 86.