Posted on 03/14/2016 7:32:15 PM PDT by jazusamo
President Obama believes Congress will lift the embargo against Cuba — under the next president.
Obama made the admission ahead of a historic visit to the communist island nation, intended to cement his new policy of openness toward the United States’s former Cold War foe.
“My strong prediction is that sometime in the next president's administration, whether they are a Democrat or a Republican, that the embargo in fact will be removed,” he said in an interview with CNN en Español that aired Monday.
The president has relied on his executive powers to establish new trade and travel links with Cuba, but it would take an act of Congress to fully lift the 5-decade-old embargo, which bars large-scale U.S. business operations on and tourism to the island.
The president indicated that support for lifting the embargo has grown in Congress since Obama announced his detente with Cuban President Raúl Castro in 2014.
But many Republicans, and some Democrats who oppose Obama’s Cuba policy favor keeping the embargo in place, arguing that lifting it would be too great of a reward to a government that continues to repress its citizens.
“Ultimately in order to bring down the entire embargo that is going require congressional action,” the president said. “There is bipartisan support to do so, but it is not yet at a critical mass.”
The president’s comments echo those made by Senate Foreign Relations Committee ChairmanBob Corker (R-Tenn.), who said last month it’s “possible” the embargo could come down under Obama’s successor if Cuba improves its poor human-rights practices.
Obama acknowledged concerns, most vocally made by the Cuban government, that the embargo serves as a major stumbling block to fully normalized relations.
“It makes sense for us to be able to sell into Cuba, to do business with Cubans, to show us business practices and how we treat workers and how we approach issues of human rights, that that will help bring about the kinds of changes that are needed,” he said.
Responding to skeptics of his Cuba policy in Congress, Obama stressed he would meet with dissidents on the island, saying it was “part of the deal” for his two-day visit, which includes a meeting with Castro.
“During my visit I intend to meet with dissidents, critics of the Cuban government, just as I did when I was in Panama, and I had the opportunity to meet with activists from Cuba,” he said. “That was part of the deal for me to attend and have Raúl Castro there as well.”
The administration is expected to eliminate a number of trade and travel restrictions in the days leading up to Obama’s visit, which begins Sunday.
Major corporations such as AT&T, Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Marriott are seeking to complete deals to operate in Cuba. Commercial airlines have begun to apply to fly direct to the island, which would dramatically increase the number of Americans able to visit.
The Overachiever-in-Chief has spoken! The US will gain access to literally thousands of pre-1959 cars to be able to have “refurb-it-to-show-condition-in-3-days” reality shows, and cigars.
If I am overhyphenating, please advise.
Must be something he promised the Castro Brothers.
“Obama: Cuba embargo will fall under next president”
It would already have fell if an embargo could be lifted by execuive order.
Oh I’m sure.
LOL! I don’t doubt boy president is thinking along those lines at all.
He may well be disapointed when a Dem doesn’t win the presidency.
Absolutely!
If I am overhyphenating, please advise.
You are, but the excitement prospect of getting your hands on a bunch of rare 1950s vintage cars will do that to you.
I’m not as confident of a Repub victory as you seem to be. The GOP candidates are performing the circular firing squad routine right on schedule, and furthermore making themselves look completely asinine.
Yet people are still supporting HRC, grudgingly, perhaps, but these folks are hard wired to vote Dem. I simply do not understand how someone can support HRC. Flaming pathological liar, a record of uninterrupted failure as SOS leading to a truly growing menace in the Mideast, and transparent pandering exceeded only by Bernie of “gimme my free stuff” fame. Unquestionably committed gross, gross violations of national security with her private server, violations which she ratified in specific detail when she signed her NDA at the start of her term as SOS. But the bar for president has been smashed so low by whom we have now, anything is possible. HRC isn’t out of the running, in brief.
Bay of Pigs II, successful this time....
No, I don’t think a Repub is a shoo-in for prez because of what you bring up about HRC.
It’s inconceivable to me she could be in contention after what she’s pulled over the years but the leftists don’t give a whit.
In my view Trump can beat her by bringing crossover votes but it’’l be close.
As soon as the money hits critical mass.
I’m for lifting the embargo - if, IF there are free elections in return.
I’ve heard that old car enthusiasts are planning trips to Cuba to see the old cars.
But do these old car fans know that most are rusting hulks with rebuilt engines and other jury rigged parts keeping them on the road??? The cars in Cuba are hardly something you would see at a car show of old restored cars in America. I think a lot of those car travelers will be disappointed.
There are folks who actually do the work on those cars; and as a result of those TV shows, there are patzers who believe they can do that same thing. Like anything else, the patzers outnumber the actual competents 15:1 and as a result of those shows, maybe 100:1.
If you have ever restored a car like that, the time commitment involved is astronomical. But we see those TV shows where hulks are brought in with the metal rusted to tissue thickness or gone altogether. Half an hour later, they are spinning donuts in the parking lot.
A ‘57 Chevy is a cool, cool *looking* car. That drives like crap. A ‘54 Chevy is a lot less desirable, to me.
What I’m saying is that a Mercedes is a fine car but not if you pay $450K for a 20 year old standard model.
There you go, I agree. Not likely to happen though with the Castros.
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