On Sunday, January 11, 2026, President Donald Trump shared his approval of a suggestion circulating on social media that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio could become the president of Cuba. Trump reposted a message from a Truth Social user that stated, “Marco Rubio will be president of Cuba,” originally accompanied by a crying-laughing emoji, and added his own comment: “Sounds good to me!”
The remark came shortly before or around the time Trump issued a separate, strongly worded warning to the Cuban government regarding its economic dependencies and urging it to negotiate a deal with the United States.
In the warning post, Trump explained the longstanding arrangement between Cuba and Venezuela:
“Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided ‘Security Services’ for the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NOT ANYMORE! Most of those Cubans are DEAD from last weeks U.S.A. attack, and Venezuela doesn’t need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years. Venezuela now has the United States of America, the most powerful military in the World (by far!), to protect them, and protect them we will.”
He concluded with a direct message to Cuba:
“THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO! I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT”
These statements follow recent U.S. military actions in Venezuela, including the capture of its former leader Nicolás Maduro, which have disrupted the flow of subsidized oil and financial support that Cuba has relied on for years in exchange for providing medical personnel, security expertise, and other assistance to the Maduro regime.
Marco Rubio, a Florida senator before becoming Secretary of State and a prominent critic of the Cuban government with Cuban-American heritage, has been a key figure in the administration’s hardline approach toward Havana and other leftist governments in Latin America. Trump’s endorsement of the playful suggestion about Rubio leading Cuba aligns with this broader pressure campaign, as the administration signals that Cuba’s economic situation is increasingly precarious without Venezuelan backing.
