Controversy Over Obama’s Attempt To Ease restrictions On Cuba

Obama’s call to significantly ease restrictions with Havana might be just around the corner as Mr Obama is about to do just that.
It often comes as a surprise to people, especially those used to all-inclusive holiday flights direct from the UK to Cuba, that Americans still can't fly straight to their neighbour just 90 miles away.

If they do go, via Mexico or Canada, the Cuban immigration officials nod, wink and stamp a piece of paper rather than their passport.

So, more than fifty years after Cuba sat squarely in the middle of a looming nuclear war between the US and Russia, the normalisation of relations would appear to make sense to the outside world.

Some Cuban Americans, even those staunchly opposed to the regimes of Fidel Castro and his brother Raul, have begun to soften their tone, especially in the business community in Florida.

But Mr Obama, who had already eased some financial and travel restrictions for families split between the US and Cuba, faces a wave of criticism for the biggest shift in policy for decades.

Senator Marco Rubio, a potential Republican presidential candidate in 2016 and the son of Cuban immigrants, said Mr Obama's decision does little to encourage the Cuban regime to reform its political system or improve its human rights record.

He said: "It potentially goes a long way in providing the economic lift that the Castro regime needs to become permanent fixtures in Cuba for generations to come."

His view runs counter to that expressed by Hillary Clinton, the Democrat he could face in a White House run. In her memoirs, the former Secretary of State said that it was the embargo that had done much to support the Castro regime.

It is not for Mr Obama to lift that trade embargo on Cuba but officials say he will encourage Congress, which put the policy in place, to do so.

In the words of one US official, that policy is well past its "expiration date".

It is a side note, but a fascinating one, how this will play out in the pivotal state of Florida come that 2016 presidential race. The former Florida governor Jeb Bush has already signalled that the starting pistol for that race is being loaded.

 

"I don't think we should be negotiating with a repressive regime to make changes in our relationship," he reportedly told an event in the state. 

Mr Obama said: "Change is hard."

He also used the word "legacy" in his announcement and, for all the diplomacy, economics and high ideals we should remember this is a President very aware of how he will be judged when he leaves office.