Podcast Summary: What A Day – "The Sunshine State Strategy"

Date: January 28, 2026
Host: Jane Coaston
Featured Guest: Patricia Mazet, Miami Bureau Chief for The New York Times

Episode Overview

This episode centers on how South Florida—and particularly the Cuban American community—shapes U.S. foreign and domestic policy, especially under President Donald Trump’s administration. Jane Coaston interviews Patricia Mazet to explore the deep political roots and contemporary influence of Miami’s Cuban diaspora, U.S. policy toward Cuba and Venezuela, changes in immigration dynamics, and the evolving narrative around gun rights and social media accountability.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. U.S. Foreign Policy in the Caribbean – The New "Don Roe Doctrine"

(00:30–03:08)

• US Lawsuit Over Caribbean Strike: The episode opens with news that families of two Trinidadian fishermen are suing the U.S. for wrongful death after a Trump administration missile strike, intensifying scrutiny on U.S. military actions in the region.
• Power Players: Jane identifies Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State/National Security Advisor Marco Rubio as architects of this aggressive policy approach.
• Trump’s Ambitions: Trump’s supposed “Don Roe Doctrine” aims for U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere, targeting not only Venezuela (notably after the dramatic capture of Nicolas Maduro) but also eyeing regime change in Cuba.
• Notable Quote:
  • Jane Coaston: “All of it is part and parcel of President Trump’s desire to control the entire Western Hemisphere. He calls it the Don Roe Doctrine, but I'm not calling it that. And he can't make me.” (01:10)

2. Influence of South Florida—and Cuban Americans—on U.S. Politics

(03:08–14:03)
Interview: Patricia Mazet

a. The Rise of Cuban American Political Power

• Historical Organizing: Cuban American politics have dominated Miami due to concerted efforts since the late 1980s to get Cuban Americans elected and elevate the Cuba issue in Congress and the White House.
• Republican Alignment: Cuban Americans shifted Republican due to successful outreach from figures like Jeb Bush and appeals to anti-communism, distinguishing them from other Latino groups.
• Notable Quote:
  • Patricia Mazet: “Republicans have never given up on not just Cubans, but more and more Hispanics being Republicans... We just have to show them what that is. We have to educate them, we have to bring them into the fold.” (05:20)

b. The Power of Anti-Communism

• Driving Policy: Anti-communism, rooted in lived experience, propels Cuban Americans into leadership and shapes policy like the Maduro seizure, seen as a proxy for what they’ve long wanted for Cuba itself.
• Notable Quote:
  • Mazet: “The Maduro seizure was seen as really a reflection of what Cuban Americans have wanted to do in Cuba for decades... It’s really the peak moment of South Florida’s political influence.” (06:32)

c. Marco Rubio’s Biography and Influence

• Political Identity: Rubio’s personal and family story intersects with broader Cuban American migration waves (including 1980’s Mariel Boatlift).
• Mazet explains: “You just can’t separate [Rubio’s background] from the broader Cuban history… That stuff is the bread and butter of Miami politics.” (08:55)

d. Unique Immigration Experience of Cuban Americans

• Special Treatment: Cubans benefited from the Cuban Adjustment Act, granting a unique path to residency and citizenship—unlike any other immigrant group.
• Wet Foot, Dry Foot: Policy nuances historically favored Cubans, deepening differences from other immigrant experiences.
• Recent Changes: Recent waves of Cuban immigration (post-COVID) face new obstacles, with many unexpectedly vulnerable to deportation.
• Notable Quote:
  • Mazet: “They can sort of afford to be Republicans because they've never had to be part of a broader immigrant rights movement… [They] were treated by the US government as like, welcome refugees.” (09:44)

e. Shift in Immigration Policies

• Policy Shifts: Changes began during late Trump/early Biden years as Cuban arrivals at the southern border grew. Now, many face sudden deportation, surprising the community.
• Mazet: “It’s just sort of simmered and is now starting to boil over where people are just finding out, like, oh, my God, my pharmacist's son got deported…” (12:07)

f. Prospects and Skepticism Around Cuban Regime Change

• Aggressive Timeline: The Trump administration, energized by the Venezuela action, is reportedly targeting Cuban regime change by year’s end—an ambitious goal met with both passion and wary realism in Miami.
• Notable Quote:
  • Mazet: “They've said [they expect Cuba’s regime to fall] by the end of the Trump administration... but they know better than anybody that... Cubans are sort of raised in Cuba to be able to survive on nothing.” (13:45)

3. Recap of Major National News

(16:39–21:01)

• Minnesota ICE/Border Patrol Shakeup: Trump defends a controversial ICE leadership shakeup after the shooting of ICU nurse Alex Preddy, using a farmwork metaphor (“shake up your team if they can’t do the crops fast enough” (16:53)), oblivious to the irony given farmworkers’ vulnerability to deportation.
• Other National Headlines:
  • Virginia court blocks Democratic efforts at mid-decade redistricting.
  • U.S. Census Bureau reports historic post-pandemic population growth slowdown, largely due to falling immigration and rising emigration.
  • TikTok settles a major social media addiction lawsuit, with Meta and Google still facing trial over allegations of addicting and harming young users.

Notable Facts

• TikTok’s legal settlement comes amid mounting scrutiny on tech companies’ use of psychological “slot machine” techniques to hook users.
• A teenage plaintiff alleges endless scrolling features contributed to severe mental health harm.

4. Gun Rights Debate and “Selective” Second Amendment Defense

(21:01–25:42)

• Incident Overview: After the fatal shooting of Alex Preddy, a legal gun owner, by Border Patrol in Minnesota, pro-gun politicians and pundits suddenly reverse their usual absolutist defense of the Second Amendment.
• Hypocrisy on Gun Rights:
  • Key conservative voices, including Trump, now defend restrictions on gun carrying at protests—contrary to prior rhetoric.
  • Jane points out that in Minnesota, not carrying your permit with a firearm is a $25 fine, not grounds for police violence.
• Key Quotes:
  • Jane Coaston: “A swath of the American right revealed that actually they were full of shit the entire time on the whole right to bear arms thing.” (21:14)
  • FBI Director Kash Patel: “You cannot bring a firearm loaded with multiple magazines to any sort of protest that you want. It’s that simple. You don’t have that right.” (22:19)
  • Trump: “He can’t have guns. He can’t walk in with guns.” (23:33)
  • Gun Owners of America (tweet): “Peaceful protests while armed isn't radical. It's American. The first and Second Amendments protect those rights and they always have.” (24:08)
  • Trey Gowdy (Fox News): “You mean you can’t take a firearm to a protest? Because you were just celebrating the guy for doing it a couple of years ago…” (25:24)
• Observational Mic Drop: Jane underscores how, in practice, “gun rights are for them, not you”—notably for white, right-wing protesters, but not for liberals or minoritized people.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “He calls it the Don Roe Doctrine, but I'm not calling it that. And he can't make me.”
  — Jane Coaston, skewering Trump’s rebranding of U.S. imperial ambitions (01:10)

• “Republicans have never given up on... Hispanics being Republicans... we have to bring them into the fold.”
  — Patricia Mazet, on enduring GOP outreach to Cuban Americans (05:20)

• “They can sort of afford to be Republicans because... [they] were treated by the US government as like, welcome refugees.”
  — Patricia Mazet, on Cuban Americans’ special immigration status shaping politics (09:44)

• “It feels more accurate that [Trump] and a big swath of the MAGA right support gun rights for them, not you.”
  — Jane Coaston, calling out inconsistencies after the Alex Preddy case (24:53)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:30–03:08: U.S. foreign policy and the “Don Roe Doctrine”
• 03:08–14:03: Interview with Patricia Mazet on Miami’s Cuban American politics and influence
• 09:36–12:25: Unique treatment of Cuban immigrants; recent changes and community response
• 16:39–18:12: ICE shakeup and fallout in Minnesota
• 19:45–21:01: TikTok’s social media lawsuit and national headlines
• 21:01–25:42: Gun rights, selective application, and political hypocrisy

Tone & Style

• Sharp, skeptical, and dryly humorous—Jane Coaston’s commentary mixes deep reporting with cutting wit and a knack for calling out hypocrisy across party lines. Interviews are thorough, insightful, and break down complex history into easily digestible insight.

This episode reveals how South Florida, buoyed by decades of anti-communist organizing and unique immigration policies, now drives consequential U.S. actions in the hemisphere. Meanwhile, domestic debates—over guns, immigration, and technology—are exposed as riven by doublespeak and shifting allegiances. If you want a guide to the real motivations shaping the news (and a fair bit of righteous snark), What A Day earns your 20 minutes.