President Donald Trump said Thursday he wants to “get Cuba done” before he leaves office and would “certainly consider” using military force to bring an end to the island’s communist government.
In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, Trump described Cuba as a “failed” country that is “doing very poorly” and said his administration was watching developments there closely. He said he wanted to act on behalf of Cuban Americans who had fled the island and endured hardship under communist rule, according to NBC News.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: I want to get Cuba done before I leave, yeah. We have a very good, talented guy for Cuba named Marco. pic.twitter.com/BLJILtcsAl
— Department of State (@StateDept) November 12, 2026
Earlier this year, Trump raised the possibility of a “friendly takeover” through negotiations with Havana. By May, he had reportedly grown frustrated that the Cuban government remained in power despite sustained U.S. pressure. On Monday, he told a White House audience he expected the government to “fall fairly soon.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio made the administration’s case against Havana in July, when his department released a 64-page report on Cuba’s activities in the United States. The department accused Cuban intelligence of cultivating American activists over several decades and sharing intelligence with Russia, China and Iran. Cuban officials have rejected the administration’s allegations and say the island poses no threat to the United States.
Trump has repeatedly suggested that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would play a leading role in his Cuba policy. At a recent Conservative Political Action Conference gathering at Mar-a-Lago, Trump said Rubio would turn his attention to Cuba and joked about sending him in by parachute. He made a similar joke at a Texas campaign rally in late October, where he predicted that Cuba would eventually align itself with the United States as American standing abroad improved. Rubio has separately encouraged Cubans seeking political change to work discreetly with the CIA.
The prospect of military action against Cuba comes as Trump faces criticism from Republicans and Democrats over the war in Iran, which began in late February when the United States and Israel launched joint strikes. Trump has acknowledged that the war contributed to Republican losses in last week’s midterm elections. Russia’s war in Ukraine also continues despite his campaign pledge to end it quickly.
