DeSantis asks Biden to help Cubans get internet access

TAMPA, Fla. - Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sent a letter Wednesday to President Biden, asking for federal assistance in getting internet access to people living in Cuba. 

Internet access in the communist country has been limited as Cubans make a rare outcry against their government. 

"I write to urge you to assist in providing Internet access to the people of Cuba standing up against communist oppression and demanding a voice after decades of suffering under the yoke of a cruel dictatorship," DeSantis said in the letter.

DeSantis told the president that technology exists to give internet access to Cubans remotely and pointed out the US took similar action during the Cold War, broadcasting radio into the Soviet Union. 

RELATED: Cuba protests, Haiti unrest putting political pressure on Biden

"…the federal government has a history of supporting the dissemination of information into Cuba for the Cuban people through Radio & Televisión Martí, located in Miami," DeSantis said. "In addition to sending information, however, our efforts must include creating a means for the Cuban people to speak to the world."

In the Bay Area, local leaders, including U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, called the situation in Cuba "a total collapse," pointing out that there are people there with no access to food, medicine, electricity, or internet.

She went on to call for a peaceful transfer of power in Cuba.  

"The U.S. government should stand with the people of Cuba now to encourage and work towards that peaceful transfer of power," she said.

Hillsborough County Tax Collector Nancy Milan added her voice, saying, "I stand in solidarity with my people and I wish for a free Cuba."

READ: Florida Gov. DeSantis parts with Trump in response to Surfside tragedy