In this mailing: Con Coughlin: It Is Time for Regime Change in Communist Cuba Pete Hoekstra: Enemies of the State It Is Time for Regime Change in Communist Cuba by Con Coughlin  •  July 22, 2021 at 5:00 am       For US President Joe Biden, the recent unrest in Cuba should persuade his administration not to repeat the mistakes of the Obama era and attempt some form of rapprochement with Havana. The US, as it is apparently able to do, should also immediately restore the ability of the Cuban people to use their internet. One of the reasons Cuba's communist regime is struggling to survive is the impact the hard-hitting sanctions that the previous administration imposed on Cuba is having on the Cuban economy. Any attempt now by the Biden administration to lift the sanctions would simply be to reward the regime for its brutal repression of the Cuban people. To keep the sanctions in place would further increase the pressure on the Cuban regime, pressure that could ultimately result in its collapse and the liberation of the Cuban people from their communist oppressors. If Cubans truly want to make a better life for themselves, then they first need to dispense with their oppressive and incompetent communist regime. Pictured: Cuban police in riot gear are deployed to quell anti-regime protests in Havana on July 12, 2021. (Photo by Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images) Nothing better illustrates the utter bankruptcy of communist ideology than Cuba's basket case economy, which has resulted in the country suffering its largest wave of anti-government protests in at least three decades. To date, at least one protester has been killed and hundreds more detained, as the communist regime founded by Cuban dictator Fidel Castro has responded with characteristic brutality to the outpouring of nationwide dissent. The root cause of the protests has been the dire state of the Cuban economy, with Cubans protesting at the lack of basic food and medicines. To further add to their misery, the country's inept mishandling of the Coronavirus means that the country's 11 million inhabitants now have more Covid cases per capita than any major Latin American nation. Continue Reading Article Enemies of the State by Pete Hoekstra  •  July 22, 2021 at 4:00 am       Taken together, the administration's efforts paint a picture of an emerging, out-of-control police state. Those of us who disagree with the administration are no longer citizens, we have become "enemies of the state." Just in the last few days, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration was coordinating with Big Tech on correcting "misinformation." This is censorship. They are doing this with increasing frequency.... When individuals engage with social media, the federal government, in coordination with Big Tech, will, at best, have planned responses that will move them to sites designed to give them the "right" answer. Sound far-fetched? On its webpage, Moonshot CVE, a company already doing work for the Pentagon, says it uses "targeted advertising to connect people searching the internet for violent extremist content with constructive alternative messages." Rather than the federal government using its massive power to facilitate our access to knowledge and information, thus enhancing our individual freedom and decision making, the Biden administration appears to be seeking to become a behemoth propaganda machine targeting its perceived enemies. In the last few days, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration was coordinating with Big Tech on correcting "misinformation." This is censorship. They are doing this with increasing frequency. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) The Biden Administration, Big Tech, and other organizations will go to almost any extreme, including propaganda, to promote their priorities. Their efforts on COVID vaccines may be a trial run for what we may see for the next three years on a range of issues. With vaccines, we have already seen social media censor those who have raised legitimate concerns or objections to various COVID vaccines. "Now we need to go to community by community, neighborhood by neighborhood, and oftentimes, door to door — literally knocking on doors — to get help to the remaining people protected from the virus," President Biden said. "Trusted" local leaders could be going door-to-door to discuss getting vaccinated. The administration also may enlist Big Tech companies to manage our views countless issues, by controlling our access to information. Continue Reading Article