This work investigates the strategic motivations behind Fidel Castro's 1980 Mariel boatlift and the subsequent policy crisis faced by the United States government. Alex Larzelere, a retired Coast Guard officer who served as the White House liaison during the crisis, utilizes his firsthand experience and access to government documentation to analyze the intersection of Cuban domestic pressure and American immigration policy. The book argues that the boatlift was a calculated political maneuver by the Cuban regime to export social and economic instability to the United States.

Experts and historians frequently cite this work as a definitive primary account of the Mariel boatlift due to the author's unique position within the administration. Readers often note the clinical, procedural detail provided, which offers a clear view of the bureaucratic and operational hurdles encountered during the mass migration event.