Republican lawmakers urge Biden to green-light efforts to bring stable internet to Cuba

Florida Republican leaders are urging the Biden administration to green-light efforts to help provide consistent internet access to Cubans amid unprecedented protests against the communist regime.

On Thursday afternoon, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, U.S. Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez, and Federal Communications Commission Commissioner Brendan Carr, called on the president to approve the deployment of “high-altitude stratospheric balloons” to create aerial wireless networks that Cubans can connect to.

“We need the Biden administration to say, ‘We are fully behind efforts to bring internet service to the Cuban people,’” Carr said. “Once we get that done, [the Department of Defense] will provide any authorizations needed, [the Federal Aviation Administration] will cover any air rights, [the FCC] will provide whatever spectrum rights needed. The State Department will deal with the international issues.”

Carr continued: “As soon as the federal government says they are behind this, there is not a technological challenge that cannot be overcome.”

On Thursday evening, President Joe Biden indicated he was open to using technology to restore internet access to Cubans, though he didn’t provide specifics.

“They’ve cut off access to the internet. We’re considering whether we have the technological ability to reinstate that access,” Biden said at a White House press conference.

Thursday’s statements from Republicans follow a letter penned by DeSantis to President Biden Wednesday night.

“I write to urge you to assist in providing Internet access to the people of Cuba standing up against communist oppression and demanding a voice after decades of suffering under the yoke of a cruel dictatorship,” DeSantis wrote, a sentiment he echoed on Thursday when dismissed the idea of U.S. military intervening on the island, suggesting that any intervention should come from the Cuban military.

“The best role for military is the Cuban military to realize that time is up,” DeSantis said. “I think that the best thing would be for those military — particularly some of the younger military folks — to understand: you could really be heroic in this, you could play an instrumental role in founding a free Cuba, refounding the country, and a free republic. And that will be something that will help millions of people.”

The governor’s comments follow a week of unprecedented protests in Miami where thousands of people have flooded streets and highways calling on the U.S. to intervene on the island. The clogging of the Palmetto Expressway — one of Miami’s busiest highways —could have put protesters in violation of a new law championed by DeSantis himself.

The new law, known as the “anti-riot” law, is clear: A person shall be cited for a pedestrian violation if they “willfully obstruct the free, convenient, and normal use of a public street, highway or road.” But so far, none of the protesters have faced pedestrian violations, authorities say. When asked about it, DeSantis called the highway takeovers “disrespectful.”

“We can’t have that. It’s dangerous for you to be shutting down a thoroughfare, you’re also putting other people in jeopardy,” he said. “You don’t know if an emergency vehicle needs to get somewhere. And then obviously it’s just disrespectful to make people stand in traffic.”

Raven Technologies, a South Dakota-based company Salazar said could potentially provide internet access. on the island, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Lawmakers would not say what the price tag on the efforts would be, but did say money is not an obstacle.

“If the federal government is not willing to pay for it,” Salazar said. “I am sure that we can bring a prestigious law firm to create an escrow account and the Cuban-American community will pay for it. We don’t need the money, we need the green light, the political willingness from the Biden administration.”

Social media and messaging services had mostly been restored in Cuba on Thursday, four days after protests against the authoritarian regime swept the island.

NetBlocks, a London-based nonprofit that monitors internet access, said the Cuban government had restricted access to social media and messaging platforms including Facebook and WhatsApp starting on Monday, and that disruptions were ongoing on Tuesday. The organization said the targeted restrictions limited the flow of information to and from Cuba.

On Wednesday, messaging apps for some users remained suspended, NetBlocks said. Then, on Thursday morning, the nonprofit’s metrics showed that access to YouTube was also limited in some parts of the country. Service was restored after a few hours.

On Wednesday, Salazar and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo touted a secure channel set up in 2019 for Iranians to send videos and photos of crackdowns on protests that led to an internet blackout in Iran.

Salazar said President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken should do the same for Cuba.

“When the Ayatollah shut off the internet in 2019, Mike Pompeo took decisive action, setting up a secure channel for people to upload videos of the atrocities being committed,” Salazar tweeted. “The Castro regime has shut off the internet in Cuba. Where are POTUS and Secretary Blinken?”

“We know how to help the Cuban people — we did it for the Iranians. Let’s do it,” responded Pompeo, who served under President Donald Trump from 2018 to 2021.

Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio has called on the Biden administration to authorize funding for balloon-supplied internet coverage, something the U.S. government did in 2017 after Hurricane Maria wiped out Puerto Rico’s power grid.

“American firms have made real strides in telecommunication technologies, including fiberless solutions, that can be deployed to remote regions at a rapid pace,” Rubio said in a video message on Wednesday evening.

On Thursday, a group of Republican elected officials, including Salazar, Rubio, Sen. Rick Scott, Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart and House Republican leaders also sent a letter to Biden with a list of policy changes related to Cuba, including increased funding for anti-regime broadcasting.

“Your administration’s request of under $13 million for broadcasts to Cuba is an embarrassingly low number,” the lawmakers wrote. “This funding is equal to amounts provided in the mid-1980s, before the establishment of Television Martí. At this critical time for the Cuban people, and as the regime is blocking internet access, access to outside information in Cuba is critical.”

Miami Herald staff writer Adriana Brasileiro contributed to this report.