Should Bush make an end of the embargo?

[Shelby07]

I really don't know if the embargo is still an executive order or it is now an act of Congress. I'm not sure the POTUS has the authority to lift it by himself. If it's going to be lifted, it will go away at the beginning of a term to give people time to make it a non-issue during the next political election cycle.

I personally think that the Kennedys were pretty much wrapped up in everything that went on in the 60's, and nothing will happen until ol' Teddy goes horizontal.

[Jimmy2]

The Embargo was going to end in the 1970's by President Ford its was going to be finalized but Casto Army helped Rebels attack another African country which ended all chances of that.

And this was with in days of having meetings to finally end the embargo another blunder by Castro..

Now the Embargo is all about the Cuban people in Florida for votes for the Republican party and that a fact!!

No one will be getting there land back as the US has no right to say anything as Cuba is its own country.

[Shelby07]

» The Embargo was going to end in the 1970's by President Ford its was going

» to be finalized but Casto Army helped Rebels attack another African

» country which ended all chances of that.

»

» And this was with in days of having meetings to finally end the embargo

» another blunder by Castro..

»

» Now the Embargo is all about the Cuban people in Florida for votes for the

» Republican party and that a fact!!

»

» No one will be getting there land back as the US has no right to say

» anything as Cuba is its own country.

How does the embargo help the Republican party? I can see why neither party would want to lift the embargo for fear of angering the Cuban-American voters, but I can't see how keeping the embargo in place gives the Republicans an advantage.

If that were the case, then the Democrats would have forced the repeal of the embargo long ago.

[android]

» Get rid of the embargo.

»

» FOH can become a co-operative, purchase our own finca run by Jose with

» Hamlet and Rainer making the cigars we want :-D

I'm with you...get rid of it! Stop oppressing the Cuban's and I'll buy into an FOH franchise for the Eastern US....Atlanta, Chicago & NYC!

[Jimmy2]

The majority of Cubans in Florida are Republicans and in return of there votes a lot of the Cuban organizations get funding from the Gov.

A lot of Cuban Americans that are in the Senate or Congress from Florida get the votes from Cuban Americans there to stay in power.

Cuban American National Foundation became the most powerful lobby machine of Latin American origin ever seen.

Cuban-Americans in the U.S. Congress, four in the House of Representatives and two in the Senate.

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (plays a prominent role in the Cuban-American lobby) a Republican of Florida

Lincoln Diaz-Balart (Also a big player in the Cuban-American lobby)also a Florida Republican.

Mario Diaz-Balart, also a Republican of Florida and I can go on and on.

Money for votes remember the Main Embargo that Kennedy signed was for the Missile Crisis that's over so lets move on.

President Ford was going to do it and he knew it should be lifted.

Since the mass exodus of Cubans in the 1980's there is now political gain for some to keep the Embargo active!!

Also by keeping this embargo active is giving Chavez more fuel for his fire as he uses the US and Cuba embargo to fuel his political machine.

Take away the embargo you take away Chavez's fuel to his twisted vision of Government rule over his people.

I think i have every right to visit Cuba and i really dont care what the Cubans in Florida think as the Embargo was put in place because of the Missle crisis period!!! Not for them and there intrests!!!

[Shelby07]

» The majority of Cubans in Florida are Republicans and in return of there

» votes a lot of the Cuban organizations get funding from the Gov.

Yes, they are republicans, but I fail to see how it follows that they get goodies for it. Do you believe that the Democrats would treat the Cuban-American population differently?

»

» A lot of Cuban Americans that are in the Senate or Congress from Florida

» get the votes from Cuban Americans there to stay in power.

Of course they do

»

» Cuban American National Foundation became the most powerful lobby machine

» of Latin American origin ever seen.

Exactly why the Democratic Congress doesn't want to anger them

»

»

» Cuban-Americans in the U.S. Congress, four in the House of Representatives

» and two in the Senate.

I don't see the relevance

»

» Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (plays a prominent role in the Cuban-American lobby)

» a Republican of Florida

I don't see the relevance

»

» Lincoln Diaz-Balart (Also a big player in the Cuban-American lobby)also a

» Florida Republican.

I don't see the relevance

»

» Mario Diaz-Balart, also a Republican of Florida and I can go on and on.

Again, I don't see the relevance

»

» Money for votes remember the Main Embargo that Kennedy signed was for the

» Missile Crisis that's over so lets move on.

Money for votes? I don't understand that at all. That sounds more like a talking point or a rallying cry than a statement of fact.

Cuban-Americans don't vote Republican because they get paid to... the do it because of the long standing resentment towards the Kennedy administration. At the last minute, Kennedy refused to support the Cuban exiles during the Bay of Pigs invasion which he had previously agreed to do. Many American trained Cuban freedom fighters were captured or killed and American-Cuban relations were all but destroyed. As such, many exiles who felt the Castro regime would be short lived and left their property and families expecting to return in a fairly short time. Instead they found themselves unable to return to Cuba, and they lost everything. Those who live here today hate Castro and do not want the embargo lifted. The bottom line is that the Cuban-American voting block in Florida can swing a close election one way or another. I did some checking since my first post on this and it turns out that Congress, not the President, has the power to lift the embargo. That power was transferred to Congress long before Bush took office. The Congress is controlled by the Democrats, and if they wanted to they could lift it today. However, neither party wants to alienate the Cuban-American population in Florida by lifting the embargo for fear of angering the Cuban-American voting population.

»

» President Ford was going to do it and he knew it should be lifted.

Yes. At the time it was still an executive decision.

»

» Since the mass exodus of Cubans in the 1980's there is now political gain

» for some to keep the Embargo active!!

»

» Also by keeping this embargo active is giving Chavez more fuel for his

» fire as he uses the US and Cuba embargo to fuel his political machine.

»

» Take away the embargo you take away Chavez's fuel to his twisted vision of

» Government rule over his people.

I'll go one better. It appears that Putin has dreams of reviving the old USSR. As Russia gets stronger they have a real opportunity to regain a political foothold in Cuba as long as the embargo remains in effect.

»

» I think i have every right to visit Cuba and i really dont care what the

» Cubans in Florida think as the Embargo was put in place because of the

» Missle crisis period!!! Not for them and there intrests!!!

Let me be clear. I think the embargo is and will continue to be a dismal failure. If it were up to me I'd lift it in a heartbeat. It is accomplishing nothing except aggravating the hardships of the Cuban people. I would love to be able to visit Cuba, but more importantly, I have a deep respect for the people of Cuba and want to see their quality of life improve. But blaming all of Cubas ills on the embargo is just not realistic. Embargo or not, the Cuban people's quality of life will not change until Cuba itself lifts its own travel restrictions on its citizens.

[Jimmy2]

Some good points...

[Shelby07]

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2886.htm

[Claudius]

» I did some checking since my first post

» on this and it turns out that Congress, not the President, has the power

» to lift the embargo. That power was transferred to Congress long before

» Bush took office. The Congress is controlled by the Democrats, and if they

» wanted to they could lift it today.

No, they couldnt. There's still GWB who could, and would, veto it. Last time the US Congress proposed an easing of the embargo (a year or so ago), GWB threatened to veto the whole bill if it wasnt taken out, so they took it out.

[Jimmy2]

Its all about the Vote in Florida thats why its still around the Rep need it for vote.Thats a fact..;-)

[Shelby07]

» » I did some checking since my first post

» » on this and it turns out that Congress, not the President, has the

» power

» » to lift the embargo. That power was transferred to Congress long before

» » Bush took office. The Congress is controlled by the Democrats, and if

» they

» » wanted to they could lift it today.

»

» No, they couldnt. There's still GWB who could, and would, veto it. Last

» time the US Congress proposed an easing of the embargo (a year or so ago),

» GWB threatened to veto the whole bill if it wasnt taken out, so they took

» it out.

Very true. The easing was attached to a standard funding bill for some gov't agencies instead of a unique stand-alone bill to lift the embargo. This is a trick of Congress to bury things that may not pass on their own or may be unpopular or damaging to their party.

However, if Congress wanted to pen a bill dedicated to lifting the embargo, they could do so, the Democrats could bring it to the floor for a vote and the news media would grab onto it. 2/3 majority would override the Presidential veto.

The bottom line is that neither party is fighting to lift the embargo because of consequences with the Cuban-American vote.