For a quarter century, Cuban-American voters in South Florida have been courted by a string of Republican candidates. The traditional playbook calls for all presidential aspirants to secure the endorsement of a prominent Cuban-American politician. Said elected official then accompanies the would-be Commander-in-Chief on a visit to a Cuban restaurant. The contender touts his anti-Castro credentials to assorted local Spanish-language media outlets, preferably while drinking high-octane Cuban coffee in front of the assembled cameras.
Last week, Senator McCain visited Little Havana’s Versailles Café where Representatives Lincoln and Mario Díaz-Balart spoke on his behalf. Also last week, McCain’s campaign placed a heavy-handed ad on local Spanish-language radio stations, which argued “Only one candidate has been a prisoner of war in communist jails – Senator John McCain. He is intimately familiar with the cruelty of communism, the way in which opponents are tortured and the most basic human rights are violated. ” The announcer goes on to describe all eleven million residents of Cuba as “political prisoners”
“Castro’s worse nightmare” is what Mel Martínez, the senator from Florida, last Friday called his Arizona colleague.” It was one of the principal reasons the Cuban American Martínez cited for endorsing McCain’s candidacy. So, Martínez’s endorsement may dent Rudy Giuliani’s large and longstanding support in the Cuban American community.
