Reporters, Democrats blame US embargo for protests, poor conditions in Cuba

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Media top headlines July 12

The New York Times getting ripped for equating 'freedom' to an 'anti-government slogan,' Gov. Kristi Noem saying it was 'tough' being attacked by conservative media over trans-athlete bill, and MSNBC giving Michael Avenatti's prison sentence less than 2 minutes of coverage round out today's top media headlines

Some reporters and Democratic candidates running for Congress blamed the United States’ embargo of Cuba as the reason for the recent protests against the communist regime there.

Thousands of Cubans have taken to the streets to lash out at the worsening economic and health conditions under the autocratic leftist government.

President Biden released a statement saying the United States stands with the Cuban people and called for the "Cuban regime to hear their people and serve their needs at this vital moment rather than enriching themselves." 

CUBANS PROTESTING COMMUNISM WITH AMERICAN FLAG BECAUSE IT’S A SYMBOL OF FREEDOM: REP GIMENEZ 

Meanwhile, a few fellow Democrats parroted Cuba’s communist government’s talking points and blamed the U.S. for the suffering of the Cuban people rather than the communist government. Many called on President Biden to end the decades-long embargo on the country. 

"The Cuban people suffer doubly from a repressive government and a cruel US embargo. They deserve policies that empower them and help them improve their lives," former senior advisor to President Obama and MSNBC contributor Ben Rhodes tweeted.

Allen Glines and Shahid Buttar, both Democrats running for Congress, called for an end to the embargo. Buttar went further and added that Cubans "enjoy" more rights that Americans are denied like healthcare and housing. 

California Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna also called for an end to the U.S. embargo but also added that "Cuba’s dictatorship must not interfere with peaceful protests."

Progressive reporters from outlets like NPR, Al Jazeera, The Nation, and The New Republic echoed Rhodes sentiment that the U.S. is to blame for poor economic conditions in Cuba. 

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Critics of the U.S. embargo of Cuba failed to mention that food and medicine are routinely exempted. Julie Chung, now acting assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs, tweeted last year that the U.S. "routinely authorizes the export of humanitarian goods, agricultural products, medicine, and medical equipment to support the Cuban people."