These lawmakers from South Florida justified their proposed actions as part of a plan to economically suffocate the Cuban regime, which they did not hesitate to describe as "a cancer in our hemisphere." But the exile community also has a historical responsibility: to stop giving oxygen to the dictatorship," Salazar wrote. She appealed directly to the historical responsibility of the Cuban exile community, urging them not to continue being an involuntary financial instrument for the same regime they escaped. Although the proposals have yet to be formally presented to the White House, the congressmen claim they have the backing of other key Republican figures and influential Cuban exile groups. Organizations present, including the Cuban Resistance Assembly and the Cuban Democratic Directorate, have been pushing for a more vigorous policy toward the Cuban regime for months.