At Florida rally, Trump revives idea of US military intervention in Cuba after Iran

FORT MYERS, Florida — US President Donald Trump tells a rally for candidates in South Florida that US warships returning from the Middle East could stop over in Cuba on their way back from the Iran war, his latest suggestion of taking an interventionist approach to the nearby country.

Trump first floated this idea earlier this year, but has not mentioned it in recent months. But he revives it in response to a shouted question from the crowd about the island nation. He is campaigning just days ahead of midterm elections in which voters have expressed concern about the impact the US war on Iran has had on prices of goods from gas to groceries.

“We’ll do a little stopover,” Trump says. “Actually, what we’re going to do with Cuba is, we’re going to come back from Iran. Those beautiful ships will pass Cuba. We’ll have one of them stop about 50 yards off the coast. They’ll raise up their hands. And then we’re going to send (Secretary of State) Marco Rubio in to finish up the deal.”

Moments after Trump speaks at the rally, Rubio posts on social media that “now is the time” for action on Cuba, addressing his post “to those who seek to create positive change” and urging them “to seize this opportunity to create the change you desire through a discrete partnership with the CIA.”