CUBA ESCALATION: Trump revives THREAT of military action after Casto indictment

Added: 2026-05-26

[00:00:01]Welcome back. Well, there was fresh escalation in the Middle East overnight.

[00:00:04]The US conducted defensive strikes on Iranian ships in the street of Hormuz, sinking two ships that the US said were attempting to lay new mines in the key waterway. And also, the US hit a missile base on land. Sentcom saying that it used restraint during the ongoing ceasefire. But Iran is threatening retaliation this morning. President Trump says that he will make quote a great deal for all or no deal at all, vowing Thyrron's nuclear program will be totally destroyed. The president gave Iran an ultimatum on nuclear ambition, saying on Truth Social over the weekend, quote, "The enriched uranium will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or destroyed in place where it is or at another acceptable location." The commander-in-chief also calling for countries in the Middle East to join the Abraham Accords.

[00:00:54]normalize relations with Israel. Writing on Truth Social, most mo most should be ready, willing, and able to make this settlement with Iran a far more historic event than it would be otherwise.

[00:01:04]Joining me now is New York Congresswoman Nicole Malotakus. Congressman, good to see you. Thanks so much for being here.

[00:01:09]We are still in this war. The president is trying to balance uh keeping Iran uh nuclear free while also getting oil and gas prices lower ahead of the midterm elections. your reaction.

[00:01:24]>> Yeah, look, it's quite the challenge and what happened over the last 24 hours just shows how fragile these negotiations are and also shows how Iran simply, you know, has to be taken with a grain of salt here. You always can't necessarily trust them. U but they are trying to negotiate in good faith the United States of America. I hope that the president will be able to walk away with this with a a good deal. I believe that he will and I think the stocks today are showing that he uh they believe as well that he can make a deal that is in the best interest of the United States. You're seeing oil prices come down a bit. Uh but at the end of the day, it needs to be a deal uh that will have lasting uh peace stability there. We've already seen Iran's industrial base basically destroyed.

[00:02:05]We've seen uh the Ayatollah obviously killed and so many in the regime uh devastated. And I think that this is a a real good opportunity for us to move forward. And if he can bring in some additional countries into the Abraham Accord, I think that will be really incredible and really be a great sign for longer lasting peace. But he's right to take the no dust, no dollars approach here. That has always been the objective at the end of the day to ensure that they do not have that enriched uranium and be able to move toward a nuclear weapon.

[00:02:35]>> Well, the president's also talking about Cuba, Congresswoman. I mean, the president suggesting possible US military intervention there. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the US prefers a peaceful deal, but he doubts Cuba's current government will agree to it. Ex-Cuban President Raul Castro was indicted by the DOJ on charges, including murder and conspiracy to kill US nationals connected to his alleged role in the 1996 downing of two planes where four men were killed, including three Americans. Uh you're you're calling on ju the military to to get Raul Castro out of Cuba and drag him to justice like Maduro was. What do you want to see here?

[00:03:15]>> Look, I want to see uh justice. At the end of the day, this has been three decades in the making. No other administration has been willing to do what this administration has done to actually hold Ro Castro accountable for the murder of three Americans and one American permanent resident. Uh, but I would also be pleased to see if the pressure is increased to a point where you see this communist regime flee the island. At the end of the day, we want to see not only a free Cuba. I have family there. They're suffering tremendously. They lack access to food, to medicine, to basic necessities, but it's also in our own national interest.

[00:03:49]Remember, they not only harbor our fugitives, uh, but they have been providing access 90 miles from our shore to our adversaries, whether it be communist China, whether it be Russia, whether it be Iran, whether it be many of those terrorist organizations uh backed by Iran. Uh, this is this is a dangerous uh this is dangerous for the entire hemisphere. We've known that they've been doing this, allowing spies to be so close to our country, and we need to take action. Now, what what I will say also is organizations like Code Pink, I'm so glad that we're seeing Treasury and Justice investigate them.

[00:04:23]Code Pink should have its 501c3 revoked.

[00:04:26]This is an organization where its leaders have not only met with the Communist regime in Cuba, but with the Iranian regime. They've also even met with the leaders of Hamas. They are funded by billionaires associated with the Communist Party in China. They're here to undermine our country, to act as agitators and disruptors. And so we need to take organizations like that serious and follow the money. And on that note, Congress people like uh Gyipal and Johnson who went to Cuba just last month when this administration is trying to do what it's trying to do with Cuba to take them away as a as a remove them as a a national security threat. To me, they should be investigated for treason. It is unacceptable that US dollars funded that trip and the speaker has to cut off any type of trip like that to communist Cuba going forward.

[00:05:15]>> Well, look, the president is dealing with so much at once. Meanwhile, I want to get your take on why it is that the reconciliation bill is not going to be on the president's desk by June 1st like he wanted. I mean, Texas is holding their polls. Uh they're going to head to the polls in just a few hours where they will choose between incumbent Senator John Cornin and President Trump endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the state's GOP Senate runoff. The winner of tonight's runoff will go up against Democrat James Telerico in November. And Congressman, I know that the Senate leadership wanted uh President Trump to back John Cornin. He did not. He backed Ken Paxton. Uh, is this why the uh, reconciliation package is being delayed?

[00:06:02]>> Well, I hope not. I mean, I I you would think the leadership would at least stay behind and try to negotiate a deal. I think it's very simple. We need a skinny reconciliation bill that funds ICE, that funds border protection. We are dealing with threats facing our nation. We have the 250th anniversary events coming up.

[00:06:19]You have the 25th anniversary of 9/11.

[00:06:21]We need to know who's coming in and out of this country. And while they are still operating, we need to make sure that they have all the funding that they need to get the job done and protect our homeland. And so, you know, I I was disappointed, like so many other House members, to see the Senate leave for an entire week. We should have stayed and worked on this piece of legislation.

[00:06:40]Obviously, we're waiting on the Senate, but to try to add all sorts of things in there, I think, is the wrong approach at this time. Let's focus on homeland security and then we can work on a reconciliation three that can have other things in there uh that are outside of that realm of homeland security specifically.

[00:06:56]>> I mean but but but you know Congressman the president was on board with that, right? I mean he told me in an interview a month ago it's going to be a skinny bill. It's going to just focus on you know um Customs and Border Patrol and and ICE and funding those two things. So he was on board with that. I guess there was some conversation about the ballroom as well, but beyond that, so I still don't understand. Is this just trying to get President Trump back for backing Ken Paxton?

[00:07:26]>> I I hope not. I mean, that would be ridiculous to for the Senate to mess with our homeland security in in such a a ridiculous and dangerous way. By the way, um I I don't know the Senate politics. We often say in the House that the Senate is another planet. We really don't understand sometimes their procedures or their schedule or why they do the things that they do. What I do know is that the House is ready and we are willing and we are we just want to vote to fund our homeland security.

[00:07:55]>> So there are new concerns over this $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund created by the DOJ. Uh the DOJ says it's going to establish a formal process for Americans who say they were targeted through politically mo motivated actions under past administrations like the Biden administration and the Obama administration. It's part of the settlement agreement tied to President Trump's lawsuit against the IRS. What can you tell us about that?

[00:08:22]>> Well, I I can't tell you much about this, Maria, because a lot of us are left in the dark about exactly what this uh fund will be used for. Now, the idea, if it is true, that this weaponization fund, anti-weaponization fund was supposed to go into this reconciliation package, I think that is, again, is exactly what I'm saying we shouldn't be doing. We should be focusing on a skinny bill that just funds the rest of Homeland Security. However, I'm willing uh to hear what the White House has to say in terms of why this fund is needed.

[00:08:51]And I do believe that there are people who have been legitimate victims of the weaponization particularly under the Biden administration uh that that do deserve to be compensated. Many of them their lives were destroyed. They had legal expenses. Uh they went bankrupt.

[00:09:05]And so I I would like to learn more, but it does need to be specifically tailored. And I would like to see some parameters put in place. But obviously, look, many of us, this has been a Senate deal, by the way. We have not been informed in the House exactly what would be in that fund, but I look forward to learning more.

[00:09:21]Um, Congressman, I know you recently resigned as the Problem Solvers Caucus vice chair after Democrats in the group voted against your effort to build a women's history museum on the National Mall. What happened? I know Democrats buried the bill because Republicans limited the institution to women, biological women, excluding transgender individuals. Is that is there more to it than that?

[00:09:45]Well, look, the problem solvers caucus I've always found to be a a good effort for Republicans and Democrats to work together. However, it's only been one-sided. We've seen time and again the Democrats on this caucus, side with the radical left to shut down our government, to not fund and reopen our government. We've also seen them side with far right member Matt Gates to take out the speaker of the house and bring our uh our um co I'm sorry, the capital to a standstill. And here we're seeing something so simple like a women's history museum, a bipartisan legislation where you had 20 of those caucus members sponsors. We had 230 sponsors overall and then they all decided to vote against it simply because during the process an amendment was added in committee to ensure that the exhibits were only for biological women. I mean, if we can't come together to support a women's history museum that's actually for women, then what is the problem solvers caucus going to be good for? and where would the Democrats actually side with us on the bigger larger ticket items that are so critical to our nation? And so I decided it was not in the best interest to participate uh in that organization anymore. And hopefully the Democrats will actually start siding with Republicans here and then for actual solutions moving forward instead of just being afraid of their leadership and the radical left.

[00:11:01]>> Well, that's too bad, Congresswoman. Uh I think you need a women's museum on the National Mall for sure. Congresswoman, good to see you this morning. Thank you.

[00:11:08]>> Thank you.

[00:11:11]All right, we will be right back. Stay with us.