Raúl Castro's speech

The Miami Herald notes a speech made by Raúl Castro on Wednesday. The full text (in Spanish) is at Cuba’s state newspaper Granma. The article emphasizes that Raúl made a point of saying that ''Only the Communist Party -- as the institution that brings together the revolutionary vanguard and will always guarantee the unity of Cubans -- can be the worthy heir of the trust deposited by the people in their leader.” In other words, when Fidel dies, the Communist Party assure a smooth transition of power.

I would think this will cause speculation—why make this point? There have always been rumors about Fidel’s health, with the most recent being that he has Parkinson’s, but nobody knows. I think this will fuel even more.

The speech also makes a big deal about the immient threat of a U.S. invasion, which for decades has been a way of rallying the Cuban people:

No sería la primera vez que una potencia imperialista, y en particular los Estados Unidos, acude a la guerra como vía para intentar la salida de una crisis interna de cualquier tipo.