As President Obama touched down in Cuba on Sunday, Donald Trump lashed out at the nation's leader.
As President Obama touched down in Cuba on Sunday, Donald Trump lashed out at the nation's leader.
Read: First Presidential Trip to Cuba in Over 80 Years is Also Spring Break for First Daughters
Trump tweeted:
Wow, President Obama just landed in Cuba, a big deal, and Raul Castro wasn't even there to greet him. He greeted Pope and others. No respect
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 20, 2016
But the White House said it is taking no offense that President Raul Castro did not greet the Obamas at the airport. Obama’s deputy national security advisor, Ben Rhodes, said it was “never contemplated or discussed” that Castro would be at the airport, according to reports.
President Obama is set to meet President Castro on Monday night in an event that will be viewed as the official welcoming of America’s first family.
President Obama, his wife Michelle and daughters Sasha and Malia got soaked in heavy rain as they landed and toured Havana.
Obama became the first sitting U.S. president in 88 years to visit the communist country. His trip will last a little over two days.
But Republican candidates have blasted the visit.
Presidential hopeful Ted Cruz wrote on Politico.com: “Political prisoners languishing in dungeons across the island will hear this message: Nobody has your back. You’re alone with your tormentors. The world has forgotten about you.
Read: Trump, Carson Change Words to 'Stand By Me' to 'Stand By Trump' At Sing-Along
“They will not be on TV, rubbing elbows with the Obamas or left-wing politicians like Nancy Pelosi. There will be no mojitos at the U.S. Embassy for them. Raul Castro denies their very existence.”
Cruz’s father was a Cuban political prisoner in the 1950s before immigrating to the United States.
However, Bernie Sanders praised the president’s visit.
“I applaud President Obama for making history by traveling to Cuba and moving relations between our two countries into a new era,” Sanders wrote in statement. “I continue to stand by his calls for Congress to fully lift the failed embargo.”
Watch: Did Obama's 2011 Roast of Donald Trump Make Him Run For President?
