Marco Rubio Shares 2 Powerful Words with American People
President Donald Trump’s energy quarantine against Cuba is meant to bring down the communist government, which is at a breaking point in its fight for survival.
The effects are hitting the 10 million people hard. The U.S. fuel blockade is making an economic crisis that has been going on for decades worse, making it harder to get water and making food and medicine shortages worse.
“There’s a number of epidemics rippling through the population right now, repression is increasing as the regime feels cornered, and they are not signaling any willingness to negotiate with the United States,” said Sebastián Arcos, interim director of the Cuban Research Institute at Florida International University.
“These people are really, really bad guys, and they have shown this capacity to survive difficult crises,” he added. “I don’t think they can survive this one.”
Trump on Friday suggested the U.S. could achieve a “friendly takeover” of Cuba, perhaps mirroring America’s approach to Venezuela, where the military took out its leaders but kept the regime largely in place while demanding greater economic cooperation.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in leading the administration’s strategy and is said to be talking to the grandson of Raúl Castro, the 94-year-old de facto leader of the authoritarian government.
Raúl Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, Castro’s grandson, is his bodyguard and is thought to be in charge of GAESA, the conglomerate that runs Cuba’s armed forces and controls a lot of the island’s economy. The Miami Herald said that GAESA had about $18 billion in assets and bank accounts that were not known about in 2024.
The meeting reportedly took place this past week on the sidelines of the regional Caribbean conference Caricom in St. Kitts and Nevis.
Rubio, speaking to reporters, signaled that the Trump administration is not demanding immediate regime change in Havana.
“Cuba needs to change. It needs to change. And it doesn’t have to change all at once,” he told reporters Wednesday.
This comes amid the United States and Israel’s campaign against Iran, which began on Saturday.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Saturday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio notified senior congressional leaders ahead of the joint U.S. Israeli military operation against Iran. Leavitt’s statement, posted to X, came as critics questioned whether President Trump authorized the strikes without the required approval from Congress.
“President Trump monitored the situation overnight at Mar a Lago alongside members of his national security team. The President spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu by phone,” Leavitt wrote.
“Prior to the attacks, Secretary Rubio called all members of the gang of eight to provide congressional notification, and he was able to reach and brief seven of the eight members,” she added.
“The President and his national security team will continue to closely monitor the situation throughout the day.”
Leavitt did not indicate whether Trump would return to Washington or remain at his Florida residence.
The so-called “Gang of Eight” includes the Senate and House majority and minority leaders, as well as the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate intelligence committees. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) confirmed that the group had been briefed.
“The Gang of Eight was briefed in detail earlier this week about potential military action against Iran,” Johnson said, according to The Independent.
Under the 1947 National Security Act, Congress must be kept “fully informed” of significant intelligence activities.
However, according to the Harvard Kennedy School, presidents from both parties have interpreted that language to mean that notifying the “Gang of Eight” satisfies the requirement rather than briefing the full intelligence committees.
Leavitt’s comments followed criticism from Rep. Thomas Massie, R Ky., who wrote on X, “Acts of war unauthorized by Congress.”
Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D Calif., had planned to force a vote next week that would restrict Trump’s ability to launch strikes on Iran without formal congressional authorization.
As the debate over war powers intensified, Rubio announced Friday that Iran had been designated a state sponsor of wrongful detention.
Rubio said Trump signed an executive order last fall to protect U.S. nationals from wrongful detention abroad and that Congress later enacted the Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025.
The statement warned of further measures if Iran “does not stop,” including a potential “geographic travel restriction on the use of US passports to, through, or from Iran.”
CONWAY TWITTY’S DAUGHTER JONI LEE EMOTIONALLY RECALLS HER FATHER’S FINAL MOMENTS
More than three decades after the passing of Conway Twitty, his daughter, Joni Lee Jenkins, continues to speak with deep emotion about the final days of the man millions knew as a country music legend—but whom she simply knew as Dad.
On June 4, 1993, Conway Twitty performed what would become the last concert of his life in Branson, Missouri. During the show, he began experiencing severe pain but pushed through the performance, determined not to disappoint his fans.
Afterward, his condition worsened rapidly.
He was rushed to a hospital, where doctors discovered he was suffering from an abdominal aortic aneurysm—a life-threatening condition that required emergency surgery.
Despite every effort to save him, Conway Twitty passed away on June 5, 1993, at the age of 59.
For his family, the loss came suddenly and without warning.
In interviews through the years, Joni Lee has recalled the shock that swept through the family. Like many fans, they never imagined that a man who had spent decades commanding stages and entertaining audiences would be gone so quickly.
What has remained with her most is not the fame, the awards, or the sold-out concerts.
It is the memory of a loving father whose family always came first.
Joni has often spoken about how Conway maintained close relationships with his children despite the demands of a remarkable career. Behind the superstar image was a father who enjoyed family gatherings, shared stories, and cherished time with his children and grandchildren.
The final hours were heartbreaking for everyone who loved him.
One day, Conway Twitty was still doing what he loved most—singing for his fans.
The next, his family was saying goodbye.
For Joni Lee, the pain of that loss never completely disappeared. Yet she has devoted much of her life to preserving her father’s legacy through musical tributes, stage productions, special projects, and public appearances that celebrate the life and career of one of country music’s greatest voices.
Today, when she speaks about Conway Twitty, her words reveal something deeper than admiration for a famous artist.
They reveal the love of a daughter who still misses her father.
And perhaps that is why her memories continue to touch so many people.
Because behind the legend known as Conway Twitty was a family man whose greatest legacy was not only the music he left behind—but the love he shared with those closest to him.
