Florida GOP congressmen slam Biden for Cuban delegation's visit to MIA

Three GOP legislators issued a harsh rebuke of the Biden administration on Friday in response to a visit from a Cuban delegation to Miami International Airport earlier this week. 

Republican Senator Rick Scott and representatives Mario Díaz-Balart (FL-26) and Carlos A. Giménez (FL-28) denounced what they deemed as collaboration with a “state sponsor of terrorism.”

TSA apologized in a statement on Thursday for "not coordinating and communicating about the visit ahead of time with airport and county officials. TSA will coordinate potential visits by aviation officials from other countries well in advance of future visits". 

Five members of the Cuban government spent five hours at the airport on May 20–recognized by many in the diaspora as Cuban Independence Day–and were shown two areas, including a security checkpoint and a baggage screening area.

A TSA spokesperson told NBC6 after the publication of this article that "the date of the reciprocal security visit was chosen only based on when all parties were available".

The visit sparked outrage among local officials, and TSA said it met with Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and others to discuss the tour after it had taken place.

But the GOP legislators said those conversations likely won’t go far enough without their intervention. 

“Now I have to work on a bill that says hey, you won’t show state sponsors of terrorism our anti-terrorism efforts,” Gimenez, who co-chairs the Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee, which maintains oversight of TSA and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), said. “I mean, really, do I have to write a law like that?”

TSA denies anything sensitive was seen. A spokesperson said to NBC6: "Cuban officials did not access sensitive technology or systems. They received a general overview of TSA’s security operations, including the checkpoint and checked baggage. These tours are also available to visiting security officials under escort by TSA and we have hosted media in these areas before".

TSA said Cuban delegations have visited American airports a total of six times in the past decade to MIA and other airports “with the purpose of exchanging technical information on aviation security."

Gimenez denied knowing anything about the visit, or the two previous ones that took place during his tenure as mayor of Miami-Dade in 2011 and 2015.

At the same time, TSA has traveled to Cuba to conduct routine airport assessments and air carrier inspections.

Official visits by Cuban delegations to US airports

• On August 5-8 2011, Cuba inspectors conducted a reciprocal visit to at Last Point of Departure (LPD) airports at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York and Miami International Airport in Miami.
• In January 2013, a Cuban delegation visited airports in Fort Lauderdale and Tampa.
• On May 6-8, 2014, a Cuban aviation security delegation visited JFK and the TSA Systems Integration Facility (TSIF) in Washington, DC.
• On September 14-19, 2015, TSA hosted a seven -member Cuban delegation for visits to U.S. airports in Atlanta, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami.
• On August 20-24, 2018, TSA hosted a three-member Cuban delegation visit to share best practices with the Cuba Civil Aviation in regards to aviation screening technologies and programs. The delegation visited the TSIF in Arlington VA, TSA Training Center, Atlantic City, New Jersey and Philadelphia International Airport.
• On May 20 -24, 2024, TSA hosted a five-member Cuban delegation to share best practices in checkpoint and hold baggage screening procedures. Source: TSA

Senator Scott accused Biden of seeking to work with those who want to "destroy our way of life" in brief comments made at the beginning of the news conference. He also criticized his position on the Israel-Hamas war.  

“Whether it’s giving money to Gazans which goes to Hamas, or having [President Gustavo Petro] from Colombia who is a terrorist and socialist coming to the White House… [Biden wants to] appease, appease, appease,” Scott said. 

Díaz-Balart said he’d welcome Biden’s condemnation of the Cuban delegation’s visit, but insisted that the U.S. "is a much more dangerous place than it was under the administration of President Trump."

“This is the kind of thing that if he heard about it, would cease immediately,” Díaz-Balart said. “Let’s see what this administration is going to do.”

The TSA shared the following statement that we publish in its entirety:

Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials met with Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, along with Miami-Dade County and Miami International Airport (MIA) officials to discuss the recent visit to MIA between TSA officials and Cuban aviation security counterparts. TSA apologized that this visit was not coordinated and communicated ahead of time with airport and county officials. TSA works routinely with all countries with direct flights to the United States, and occasional reciprocal visits by Cuban transportation ministry have occurred as recently as 2018. TSA is committed to coordinating potential visits by aviation officials from other countries well in advance of future visits. 

TSA hosts government officials and members of the aviation community at U.S. airports to foster a strong global aviation security posture. 

U.S. and Cuban authorities jointly manage the airspace between Cuba and the United States and ensure the safety and security of travelers using our airports. The Republic of Cuba has six last point of departure airports with direct flights to the United States, and accordingly TSA continually works to strengthen the security framework with Cuba and other Caribbean nations.