How do you figure they "qualify as illegal aliens"?
They're Cubans. Feet dry. They can stay and apply for residency.
Well, for starters, the Catholic Church considers it an obligation of the most fundamental human charity to be hospitable to political refugees, and "a crime which cires out to God for vengence" to import laborers to avoid paying a just wage.
It's true there can be some grey areas: If an oppressive political system imposes destitute poverty on someone, and the person flees to a land of economic opportunity, is he a political refugee, or exploited labor? But equating good and evil because there are ethical dilemmas is a trick usually resorted to by scoundrels, criminals and morally relativistic liberals.