Carlos Alberto Montaner supports Biden

October 30, 2020

The Cuban-American writer and analyst Carlos Alberto Montaner intervened for the first time in an electoral campaign by offering a message in favor of former Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden. As expected, his position has been rejected by the majority of what has been his audience for decades. They even accuse him of being a traitor.

Montaner, known for his heated criticism of the Havana government, now opposes the Republican candidate for whom, according to a recent survey by Florida International University, more than 60% of Cubans settled in South Florida will vote. The writer believes that Donald Trump is not respectful of the Hispanic population, is xenophobic, a liar and manipulator, has been a terrible ruler of the United States, and has no intention of even improving national life.

But Montaner, despite his opposition to the Cuban government, had never in his public life supported a candidate and, much less, made a political announcement in favor of any of them.

"Sometimes I vote with the Republicans and sometimes with the Democrats. I have dedicated my life and written several books against socialists and communists, but in these elections I want to say emphatically that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are not socialists or communists. I have been in exile for many years and I know perfectly well the friends of freedom. They are," Montaner says in the announcement, which also has a television version.

The announcement was made by a polling firm close to the Democrats, whose director Fernando Amandi told the local press that "no one can say that Carlos Alberto is not one of the most recognized historical fighters against communism and socialism."

"That man is in decline, he needs help. He has debts to pay which is why he has gone over to the enemy," says Jorge Menezes without providing details. His is a very popular argument in open-phone programs on local radio stations controlled by Cubans.

"In a matter like this, the public's reaction should not be so prickly and oppositional. But people have reacted angrily precisely because of what Carlos Alberto complains about: that the Trump administration has divided the country and created the idea that whoever favors Biden is a socialist and communist. And that awakens rejection in the exiled community," explains Carlos López Andrade, a Venezuelan analyst based in Miami.

Montaner is a U.S. citizen and is registered as an independent. "I don't have a political color in this country, but I wanted to do it because it seems to me to be an absolute injustice to accuse Biden and Harris of being communists or socialists, because they are not," he told the local press.

In September, the writer and analyst made his opinion known on a Chilean electronic page.

"Joe Biden did very well in choosing Kamala Harris as his VP. She could take the reins of the USA if Biden dies or becomes incapacitated in front of the White House. After all, if he wins the November elections, his term would begin at 78 years old. He would be the oldest president to ever govern in the country. He is only three and a half years older than Donald Trump, but the president has a more youthful appearance, perhaps due to his tan," Montaner wrote.

In his opinion, "Kamala Harris is, like Biden, a centrist Democrat. The two major U.S. political parties are ideological coalitions. In the Democratic Party, being 'centrist' means being a fiscal conservative, as Bill Clinton and Al Gore were, although Biden-Kamala would have to negotiate with sectors of the party that call themselves 'progressives.' These believe in extending Medicare to the entire population and in paying fully or partially for university education expenses under the argument that it is not an 'expense,' but an 'investment' in the nation's future. More or less as it happens in Europe."

The rejection of Montaner comes from the most radical sectors of the Cuban exile community that, perhaps, could be losing strength which, contrary to the opinion of the "old anti-Castro warriors," could be demonstrated with a possible defeat of the president in the coming week.

Montaner, a man of controversial opinions, has always been described as coherent with his ideas, even those that are not necessarily popular. But now, at 77 years old, it is possible that he doesn't care much what people think of him.