President Donald Trump has had a lot to say about Cuba this weekend, and it sounds like he's getting pretty serious about confronting the regime there and attempting to liberate the people from the decades of communism that have turned it from one of those most developed nations to a third world country.
"What kind of deal are you looking for from Cuba," a reporter aboard Air Force One asked the president on Sunday evening as he flew back to Washington, D.C., after a weekend in Florida.
"You'll find out pretty soon," he said. "We're talking to Cuba, and you'll find out pretty soon."
He didn't share any other details, but he did go on to talk about the Cuban people, especially those who live in the United States. "One of the things I want taken care of, and one of the groups I want taken care of, are the people that came from Cuba that were forced out or left under duress," he said, adding, "You have a lot of people forced out of Cuba unfairly... right now, we're going to take care of the people that came from Cuba that are American citizens of in our country."
.@POTUS on Cuba: "We're talking to Cuba, and you'll find out pretty soon... One of the groups I want taken care are the people that came from Cuba that were forced out or left under duress — and they're great citizens of the United States right now." pic.twitter.com/1iBU2XcthN
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) January 12, 2026
On Sunday morning, the president posted on Truth Social that there will be no more oil or money going to Cuba from Venezuela, and that he strongly suggested the Cuban regime work with him to make a deal:
Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided 'Security Services for the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NOT ANYMORE! Most of those Cubans are DEAD from last weeks U.S.A. attack, and Venezuela doesn’t need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years. Venezuela now has the United States of America, the most powerful military in the World (by far!), to protect them, and protect them we will. THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA - ZERO! I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT
Someone apparently responded and suggested he make Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is the son of Cuban immigrants, the new president of Cuba, and Trump posted a screenshot and said "sounds good to me."
However, the Venezuelan regime, currently led by Delcy Rodríguez, is singing a different tune when it comes to the Caribbean nation. Its Foreign Ministry released its own statement this weekend that said, in part:
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela reaffirms its historical position within the framework of relations with the Republic of Cuba, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and International Law, regarding the free exercise of self-determination and national sovereignty. The relationship between the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Caribbean, and the Republic of Cuba has historically been based on brotherhood, solidarity, cooperation, and complementarity. Venezuela reaffirms that international relations must be governed by the principles of International Law, non-intervention, the sovereign equality of States, and the self-determination of peoples. We reiterate that political and diplomatic dialogue is the only way to peacefully resolve disputes of any nature.
That's cute and all, but I don't think it's going to fly with Trump, who also posted an image of himself in a fake Wikipedia entry listed as the "acting president of Venezuela."
President Donald J. Trump posts a fake image from Wikipedia labeling him as the “Acting President of Venezuela” as of January 2026. pic.twitter.com/VHYiRmIZHs
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) January 12, 2026
The president also said on Sunday evening that Rodríguez "asked us could we take 50 million barrels of oil" and he said "yes we can." That woman is walking quite a tightrope. I'd almost feel bad for her if she wasn't so evil.
Meanwhile, as I've been reporting over the past week, the Cuban regime has been acting defiant yet nervous since the capture and arrest of Nicolás Maduro. They're essentially backed into a corner, and so far, no one is coming around to bail them out.
"President" Miguel Díaz-Canel has cried "imperialism" publicly. Privately, he's shamed the Communist Party for not being communist enough, claiming that's the reason for the country's failures. Today, he made his own social media posts, seemingly in response to Trump's warnings, blaming the country's problems on the United States embargo (these are translated from Spanish):
They have no moral authority to point fingers at Cuba on anything, absolutely anything, those who turn everything into a business, even human lives. Those who today hysterically drain their rage against our nation do so sick with fury over this people's sovereign decision to choose its political model.
Those who blame the Revolution for the severe economic shortages we suffer should hold their tongues out of shame. Because they know it and acknowledge it: they are the fruit of the draconian measures of extreme strangulation that the U.S. has been applying to us for six decades and now threatens to surpass.
Cuba is a free, independent, and sovereign nation. No one dictates what we do. Cuba does not aggress; it is aggressed upon by the United States for 66 years, and it does not threaten; it prepares, ready to defend the Homeland to the last drop of blood.
That's mighty strong language for a man who just watched the U.S. take away his lifeline in a mere two hours on an early January Saturday morning. He may want to look into that deal or he's going to be next, as Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-Fla.), who was actually born in Cuba, posted on X today:
🚨#Cuba’s puppet dictator Miguel Díaz-Canel is next. 🇺🇸🤝🇨🇺 pic.twitter.com/rELvvSCVGq
— Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (@RepCarlos) January 11, 2026
Many Cuban people are responding to this type of rhetoric by telling the regime it doesn't speak for them or simply fleeing the country — something that's expected to ramp up in the days to come. The clock is obviously ticking in Havana.
I don't have much more to add. I'm just watching, learning, and reporting. But I have to say, aside from football games, I haven't turned on my TV since January 2. Donald Trump Takes on the World is far more entertaining programming.
We'll see what happens.
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