Ashley Moody calls on Biden administration to stop ‘support of Cuba’s communist interests’

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody said President Joe Biden’s administration should stop supporting “Cuba’s communist interests” on Thursday, amidst a recent favorable move that will likely benefit the country’s economy.

Moody’s office said that new changes will let Cuban nationals “open and use U.S. bank accounts,” along with allowing so-called “U-Turn” transactions, which occur when funds are transferred between accounts when either party faces sanctions.

“President Biden continues to be manipulated by the Castro regime, and now for the first time in over 60 years, the U.S. will open its banking institutions to those who may bolster or be affiliated with the Communist dictatorship,” Moody said. “These ill-thought-out amendments will likely do little to help the suffering of the Cuban people and will only strengthen those bad actors who keep the Cuban people oppressed.”

While the new move aims to promote what Moody’s office describes as “free enterprise” in Cuba, her office argued there is “no legitimate” such enterprise in “communist Cuba.”

Moody also penned a letter to Janet Yellen, the secretary of the U.S. Treasury, expressing her office’s concerns.

“[This could] could potentially allow for businesses owned or controlled by relatives or associates of communist regime members to open bank accounts and infiltrate the American market by masquerading as ‘independent private sector entrepreneurs,’” the letter said.

“Further, the permitting of U-turn transactions allows for more money to flow into communist Cuba and could make U.S. banking institutions a shiny new destination for those looking to launder money to or from Cuba,” it said.

The Biden administration’s move regarding Cuba comes not long after officials from Cuba were allowed to tour TSA areas at Miami International Airport, which sparked outrage among Florida officials.