Most Americans Agree-- Time To End The Cuban Trade Embargo

Over the weekend, Charlie Crist told Bill Maher's HBO audience that he favors ending the Cuban trade embargo, a complete reversal from his position as the state’s former Republican governor and as an independent Senate candidate in 2010. "The embargo," he said, "has done nothing in more than fifty years to change the regime in Cuba."

Crist couldn't have been surprised by the predictable screaming fit from the far right in his own state. Right on cue, anti-Castro relics Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart, had public meltdowns. Marco Rubio, currently taking heat from the GOP's far right for a series of flip flops-- mostly flops-- on immigration, dismissed Crist's statement as "just the latest in a series of slip flops." And, of course, Gov. Rick Scott, who Crist is besting in the polls, has done the most to rile up elderly Cuban-Americans by lambasting Crist. His latest appointed Lt. Governor, Carlos Lopez-Cantera played the role of the hit man for Scott: “Charlie Crist’s comments just show his ignorance on the issue of what is going on in Cuba. As a Cuban-American I was insulted by it. He should get a little smarter on what’s actually happening." Actually a new poll from the Atlantic Council on U.S.-Cuba relations, suggests its the right-wing Republicans who need to "get a little smarter." The NY Times reported today that "a majority of Americans-- and an even greater majority of Floridians, home to this country’s largest Cuban-American population-- now favor normalizing relations or engaging more directly with the Cuban government."

“This survey shows that the majority of Americans on both sides of the aisle are ready for a policy shift,” Peter Schechter and Jason Marczak, the top two executives at the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center of the Atlantic Council, wrote in an introduction to the survey. “Most surprisingly, Floridians are even more supportive than an already supportive nation to incrementally or fully change course.”

While the survey showed that Americans have concerns about the Cuban government’s political repression, Mr. Schechter and Mr. Marczak said, they “recognize the need for alternatives in light of the failure of the current policy to achieve its objective.”

The survey found that 56 percent of respondents nationwide favor changing Cuba policy, a majority that jumps to 63 percent among Florida adults and 62 percent among Latinos nationwide. While support is strongest among Democrats and independents, the survey showed 52 percent of Republicans also favor normalization.

Narrower surveys have also shown that increasing numbers of Floridians want normalized relations with Cuba, but Mr. Schechter and Mr. Marczak said they believed their survey was the first to show that Florida leads the nation in that regard.

The survey found that the economic cost to the United States of maintaining the trade embargo with Cuba, a nation of 11 million, was a major reason a majority want to normalize ties. More than six in 10 respondents nationwide want the policy changed to enable American companies to do business in Cuba and permit Americans unfettered freedom to travel and spend money there.

Fifty-two percent also said Cuba should be deleted from the United States government’s list of countries that are considered state sponsors of terrorism, the others being Iran, Syria and Sudan. The designation automatically restricts the type of trade and other interactions Americans can have with Cuba. Although the Obama administration has loosened some of the restraints on travel and the ability of Cuban-Americans to send money to Cuba, most types of trade and investment are forbidden.

And this morning, two senators, Democrat Patrick Leahy (VT) and Republican Jeff Flake (AZ) called on President Obama to lift the trade embargo in an OpEd for the Miami Herald. "Challenging conventional wisdom that Floridians-- and especially the state’s large Cuban-American population-- are in lockstep with the embargo," they wrote, "the poll finds stronger support for normalization in Florida (63 percent) than in the country overall (56 percent). A full 67 percent of Floridians support removing all restrictions for Americans to travel to Cuba, and 82 percent favor meetings with the Cuban government on issues of mutual concern. Simply put: The state that reportedly once had the greatest reluctance to re-engage has reversed its position."

Trade with Latin America is the fastest growing part of our international commerce. In 2014, economic growth in Latin America is expected to continue to outpace U.S. growth. Rather than isolate Cuba with outdated policies, we have isolated ourselves.

For example, the presidents of our Latin American partners, including close allies such as Colombia and Mexico, recently traveled to Cuba alongside the U.N. secretary general. In January, Brazil joined Cuba in inaugurating a huge new shipping terminal on the island. And our European and Canadian friends engage with Cuba. Meanwhile, U.S. companies are prohibited from any economic activity on the island.

Just about the only beneficiary of our embargo has been Cuba’s current regime. The embargo actually has helped the Castros maintain their grip on power by providing a reliable and convenient scapegoat for Cuba’s failing economy. Change will come to Cuba. These counterproductive U.S. policies have delayed it.

President Obama has already relaxed some facets of our Cuba policy, lifting restrictions on Cuban-American travel and remittances, which have had positive effects. Anecdotally, U.S. remittances have been crucial in allowing Cuban entrepreneurs to take full advantage of economic openings that the Castro regime has been forced to allow.

This not only improves Cubans’ lives but will make future economic contractions by the Cuban government difficult for the regime to attempt. Current policy boxes U.S. entrepreneurs and companies out of taking part in any of this burgeoning Cuban private sector.

Further, there is simply no legitimate justification for restricting any American travel to Cuba. The travel ban, like the rest of the embargo, only bolsters the Cuban government’s control over information and civil society. Instead of willingly restricting the liberty of our own citizens, we should be taking every opportunity to flood Cubans with American interaction, with our ideas, with our young people.

Americans want a change in our Cuba policy. The president should heed the majority of those across the country who recognize that we have much to gain by jettisoning this Cold War relic.