September 30, 1958
In parallel with the insurgency activities to prevent elections, Castro intensified his attacks on US interests as a protection blackmail scheme—demanding a "revolutionary tax" to forestall attacks. A memo prepared by the US Department of State Officer in Charge of Cuban Affairs (Terrence Leonhardy) described this Castro terror and blackmail campaign against US interests.
A related State Department document summarized US property losses to Castro's rebels from January to September 1958 totalling more than two million dollars. The author, William Arthur Wieland (Director of the Office of Caribbean and Mexican Affairs), suggested in his memo that the information be relayed selectively to US journalists to provide facts for them to include in their stories if they wished. The senior US State Department official receiving the memo, Roy Rubottom (Assistant Secretary for Latin American Affairs), responded with this comment:
"I do not expect the U.S. press will find this information very newsworthy."
based on Manuel Márquez-Sterling's Cuba 1952-1959 and
Cuba 1952-1959 Interactive Timeline
Cuba 1952-1959 Interactive Timeline
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