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=== Transcript ===
=== Transcript ===
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Several weeks ago the President released intelligence summaries
which established pretty conclusively that as long ago as 1976 Soviet
and Cuban advisors were asking permission of Angola to go raiding
across the border into Zaire. The government of Angola is, of course,
Marxist and totally sympathetic to Soviet aims. The intelligence
reports stated that Cuban and East Germans trained the raiders for
the '77 invasion and that Cubans were involved in the recent massacre
at Kolweize in Zaire.


Down in Cuba, Fidel Castro brands all of these reports as lies
and implied that the President was lying. He told American reporters:
"We may be private about some things. We may be discreet. But we
have never lied. We never made use of lies as an instrument of
politics". So says Castro.
You know, calling the average man a liar is a pretty drastic
charge and the average man reacts with vehemence when his veracity is
so questioned. But calling a Communist a liar when he is one is pretty
frustrating. How do you insult a pig by calling it a pig? Communists
are not bound by our morality. They say any crime, including lying,
is moral if it advances the cause of socialism. That is Karl Marx
as interpreted by Lenin.
Fidel says he and his fellow communists never lied. When he says
that, Fidel is a liar and he's been lying on a regular basis since
before he seized power in Cuba. In 1958 he said, "we are fighting
to do away with dictatorship in Cuba and to establish the foundations
of genuine representative government." A year later in his victory
speech he pledged to respect and uphold the country's laws. He also
said that if the men in his government proved unequal to the task, the
people could replace them in free elections.
A month later he promised no violation of human rights, no beating
of anyone, indeed no one would even be insulted. His former military
commander, Huberto Matos, in prison now for almost 20 years, could
attest to the honesty of those promises. And he would have confirmation
from the estimated 20,000 political prisoners living under the most
inhumane conditions.
But here are two Castro statements that make our case. In May
of 1958 he made a public declaration: "I never have been or am I a
Communist. If I were, I would have sufficient courage to proclaim
it". Now that is a pretty definite statement. But after he had
seized power he asked, "Do I believe in Marxism?" Then answered his
own question--"I believe absolutely in Marxism. I am a Marxist-Leninist
until the last day of my life."
He added that he was a Communist leader back in 1953 when the
Moncada barracks were attacked and believed in it in 1959 when he
assumed the dictatorship of Cuba. Fidel Castro is a liar.
This is Ronald Reagan.
Thanks for listening.
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Latest revision as of 14:35, 11 February 2026

- Main Page \ Reagan Radio Commentaries \ 1978

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Castro[edit]

Transcript[edit]

Several weeks ago the President released intelligence summaries which established pretty conclusively that as long ago as 1976 Soviet and Cuban advisors were asking permission of Angola to go raiding across the border into Zaire. The government of Angola is, of course, Marxist and totally sympathetic to Soviet aims. The intelligence reports stated that Cuban and East Germans trained the raiders for the '77 invasion and that Cubans were involved in the recent massacre at Kolweize in Zaire.

Down in Cuba, Fidel Castro brands all of these reports as lies and implied that the President was lying. He told American reporters: "We may be private about some things. We may be discreet. But we have never lied. We never made use of lies as an instrument of politics". So says Castro.

You know, calling the average man a liar is a pretty drastic charge and the average man reacts with vehemence when his veracity is so questioned. But calling a Communist a liar when he is one is pretty frustrating. How do you insult a pig by calling it a pig? Communists are not bound by our morality. They say any crime, including lying, is moral if it advances the cause of socialism. That is Karl Marx as interpreted by Lenin.

Fidel says he and his fellow communists never lied. When he says that, Fidel is a liar and he's been lying on a regular basis since before he seized power in Cuba. In 1958 he said, "we are fighting to do away with dictatorship in Cuba and to establish the foundations of genuine representative government." A year later in his victory speech he pledged to respect and uphold the country's laws. He also said that if the men in his government proved unequal to the task, the people could replace them in free elections.

A month later he promised no violation of human rights, no beating of anyone, indeed no one would even be insulted. His former military commander, Huberto Matos, in prison now for almost 20 years, could attest to the honesty of those promises. And he would have confirmation from the estimated 20,000 political prisoners living under the most inhumane conditions.

But here are two Castro statements that make our case. In May of 1958 he made a public declaration: "I never have been or am I a Communist. If I were, I would have sufficient courage to proclaim it". Now that is a pretty definite statement. But after he had seized power he asked, "Do I believe in Marxism?" Then answered his own question--"I believe absolutely in Marxism. I am a Marxist-Leninist until the last day of my life."

He added that he was a Communist leader back in 1953 when the Moncada barracks were attacked and believed in it in 1959 when he assumed the dictatorship of Cuba. Fidel Castro is a liar.

This is Ronald Reagan.

Thanks for listening.

 

Details[edit]

Batch Number78-10-B4
Production Date07/15/1978
Book/PageRihoH-59
Audio
Youtube?No

Added Notes[edit]