Trump says Cuba 'something we'll be talking about' after Maduro ouster

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: USA Today/Palm Beach Post

Updated Jan. 3, 2026, 6:44 p.m. ET


PALM BEACH — With Nicolás Maduro in U.S. custody and American authorities running Venezuela, which is next? Cuba? Colombia? The Panama Canal?

The Havana regime is in his sights, President Donald Trump said Jan. 3.

"Cuba is going to be something we'll end up talking about, because Cuba is a failing nation right now, very badly failing nation, and we want to help the people," the president said during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago a day after a U.S. military operation removed Maduro from Venezuela. "It's very similar in the sense that we want to help the people in Cuba, but we want to also help the people that were forced out of Cuba and living in this country."

The president also reiterated aggressive comments toward Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro, who last month denigrated the Trump administration as a "clan of pedophiles" citing investigatory files from sex abuser and trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/trump/2026/01/03/after-venezuela-raid-has-trump-sets-sight-on-regime-change-in-cuba/88008094007/

[Irish_Dem]

1. Canada, Mexico, Greenland, Cuba. It is going to be an interesting year. :(

[Eugene]

5. Don't rule out Panama, Nicaragua and Colombia. Dump may even by dumb enough to conquer Haiti.

[Irish_Dem]

20. All countries in North and South America are at risk.

The planet has been divided up by the dictators.
Putin gets Europe.
Xi the Pacific.
Trump gets North and South America.

[NotHardly]

10. I seriously hate this timeline ...

Overview of the Great Filter Hypothesis
The Great Filter hypothesis addresses the question of why we have not yet encountered extraterrestrial civilizations despite the vastness of the universe. It suggests that there are significant barriers in the development of intelligent life that make advanced civilizations exceedingly rare.
Fermi Paradox
The Fermi Paradox highlights the contradiction between the high probability of extraterrestrial life and the lack of evidence for such civilizations.
The Great Filter serves as a potential explanation for this paradox.
Steps in the Evolutionary Path
Robin Hanson proposed a series of steps that life must progress through to reach advanced interstellar civilizations. These steps include:

The right star system with habitable conditions
Formation of reproductive molecules (e.g., RNA)
Development of simple single-cell life (prokaryotic)
Evolution of complex single-cell life (eukaryotic)
Emergence of sexual reproduction
Development of multicellular organisms
Evolution of tool-using intelligent species
Formation of a civilization capable of interstellar colonization
A colonization explosion across the galaxy
Implications of the Great Filter
If the Great Filter is behind us, it suggests that humanity has successfully navigated the most challenging hurdles.
If it lies ahead, it raises concerns about potential existential threats that could prevent humanity from advancing further.
Possible Locations of the Great Filter
Early Steps: The filter could be at the beginning, indicating that the emergence of life is rare.
Later Steps: It might occur at later stages, suggesting that intelligent civilizations often self-destruct before achieving interstellar travel.
Understanding the Great Filter helps frame our search for extraterrestrial life and our own future as a civilization.

Wikipedia: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=the+great+filter+hypothesis&atb=v391-1&ia=web

[Irish_Dem]

21. We are living the Great Filter right now.

I believe our current point is exactly where species stumble and cannot progress.
And in fact destroy themselves over and over.

Post industrial world where global oligarchs unite to become extremely
powerful and wealthy. They own the world and destroy it with their lust
and greed for money and power.

I wonder how many times humans on Earth have reached this point
and then had to start all over again?

Yep not a great time line is it?

[Gaugamela]

2. Cuba is subsidized by low cost Venezuelan oil. Once that is cut off their economy will collapse.

[groundloop]

3. If he wants to help the people of Cuba simply lift the damned embargo.....

And allow US tourists to once again visit Cuba.

US politics is one of the big reasons the people of Cuba are hurting. President Obama was taking the first steps toward normalizing relations but tRump put an end to that ( I was disappointed that Pres. Biden didn't do anything toward continuing Obama's work on Cuba).

[pfitz59]

27. the US won't lift Cuban sanctions until

the oligarchs get their property back (barefoot slaves) and the Mafia reopens their casinos. The well-being of the Cuban people does not enter the equation.

[PatSeg]

4. Good god, he will start World War III

probably in an effort to distract from his countless scandals. He is barking mad.

[Probatim]

6. Cuba has oil?

[BumRushDaShow]

7. They got rum and cigars (highly prized ones by the 1%)

[Shipwack]

11. I'm not sure about the cigars...

I don’t smoke, but a friend of mine who enjoys the occasional cigar said that nowadays they are way overrated.

She said they once were excellent, but years of overworking the land and lack of farm chemicals has greatly lowered their quality.

[Xolodno]

17. How dare you sir!

Authentic Cuban Cigars are good. But note the word "authentic"...lot of crap gets passed on as Cuban when its not. Unless you want to believe that Tijuana vendor who sold you a silver necklace as genuine.

Plus the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua have caught up and are just as good. The mythos of Cuban Cigars of being the epitome is no longer valid. Just like French Wines were once considered the best...then California came out of nowhere and slapped everyone.

[Shipwack]

19. Thank you for the education! nt

[Bayard]

8. They have insolence

He hates that.

[Probatim]

9. He isn't going to like me lol

[Festivito]

12. NPR cut out before he mentioned Cuba. NT

[Marie Marie]

13. Isn't this what Little Marco wanted?? I don't understand the whys but I kept reading that Rubio was

fully on board with the Venezuela attack because of Cuba. Oh, who the Hell knows what is true or reasoned anymore. Trump is having a ball playing Army with our troops and becoming more MAD with power by the minute. World - We are so sorry!!

[Skittles]

14. he wants to HELP THE PEOPLE

how about the AMERICAN PEOPLE, ASSHOLE

[C Moon]

15. Aren't Cuba and Russia close? I guess putin is spread kind of thin right now.

[artemisia1]

16. The Sudetenland is taken, Czechoslovakia is next. Poland then France. (SARCASM) /nt

[oasis]

18. Trump's so full of shit. But, we already knew that.

[IcyPeas]

22. I can picture it now... The Trump-Cuba Riviera with trump luxury resorts and golf courses...

[RazorbackExpat]

23. After they "relocate" the natives, of course

[Red Mountain]

24. We don't control SHIT in Venezuela

and won't unless we station a lot of troops there as an occupation force. Putin is indifferent, I think.

Same with Cuba......perhaps decapitation will be enough but probably even less so. Putin probably wouldn't approve, either.

Greenland would be easier to occupy given the small population but.....why? It will take longer to gear up to exploit any mineral resources there than Trump can possibly live. Putin however, would approve. No way NATO survives the US invading Greenland.

Destroying NATO is a Putin dream.

[Emile]

25. So Republicans are all for nation building now.

Let’s Just Say It: The Republicans are the Problem.

[bucolic_frolic]

26. Return of casinos!

[BOSSHOG]

28. I'll continue to talk about

The REPUBLICAN serial lying moral degenerate, rapist, Epstein wingman, 34 time convicted felon who conservatives idolize. Republicans are sick fucks who don’t give a fuck about freedom, democracy and the rule of law. They show a great deal of concern about tan suits and a presidents sleeping habits. Except,of course the aforementioned pervert. Carry on.

[Doodley]

29. What is to stop Trump using nuclear missiles against a non-nuclear nation to create a new world order in his image?