For all the Democrats criticizing Trump for sending the military to the US-Mexico border. Bill Clinton sent the US Navy and Coast Guard to intercept Cuban refugees fleeing Cuba in 1994 & reversed a 30 year policy of allowing them into the US.
Clinton bars the Cuban boat people: Refugee flood forces Clinton to reverse policy of 30 years independent.co.uk/news/clinton-b…
When these Cuban refugees rioted throwing rocks at the US troops in riot gear sent in by General Wilson, they injured over 200 US troops bad enough that they had to be evacuated by helicopter. stripes.com/brutality-of-1…
General Barry McCaffrey, would later send in troops from the 2/75th Ranger Regiment to quell the rioting in Camp 2. I was at Camp 1 with SFOD-A 736 during this time and members of my unit C co, 1/7th SFG(A) were also at Camps 1 through 4.
Operation Safe Haven in Panama located at Empire Ranger housed approximately 10,000 Cuban refugees, called Balseros, in tent cities built within four large camps. When my unit arrived we informed General Wilson the large rocks would present a danger to US troops, he balked.
When General Wilson showed up at Camp 1 as the riot began and ordered troops to go in and quell the riot. He had about 90-100 troops to try to quell up to 1000 rioters. I told him, "It's not enough." He quipped, "They'll hit them so hard they won't know what hit them!"
We were able to regain control of Camp 1 after General Wilson's fiasco. However, Camp 2 was in flames. Cuban refugees had demanded US personnel leave the camp, that they were in charge now. That's when McCaffrey decided to send in 2/75th Ranger Battalion.
The US military, to include the National Guard, has been used in immigration crisis for decades. Bill Clinton used us in 1994. I escorted Cubans from my block, a total of 252 back to Guantanamo Bay on 27 February 1995.
During the entirety of Operation Safe Haven I don't recall any Democratic politicians screaming about Bill Clinton violating the law or that he was playing games with the US military as a political stunt.
