The
long-running legislative effort to liberalize U.S.-Cuba trade began anew as a
bipartisan group of 14 senators introduced a bill to lift the Cold War-era
embargo on the island nation. The latest
iteration of the embargo repeal effort was Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who
urged to finish the job begun by former President Barack Obama. "This bipartisan legislation would
benefit the people of both our countries by boosting American exports and
creating opportunity for the Cuban people," according to Amy Klobuchar.
"We need to turn the page on the failed policy of isolation and build on
the progress we have made to open up engagement with Cuba by ending the embargo
once and for all."
"While
there are no guarantees, engaging with Cuba economically is more likely to
nudge Cuba toward democracy than a half century of trying to isolate the
island," It's long past time we move ahead." Unfortunately, it remains highly unlikely
that the bill will pass as introduced, given how divisive the issue of Cuba
trade still is. This bill will
certainly function as a test for the new Congress and for the
administration.
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| John F. Kennedy signing the Cuban Quarantine in October, 1962 |
Among the
strongest supporters for freeing up U.S.-Cuba trade is the powerful U.S. farm
lobby, which has consistently argued that Cuba imports up to 80 percent of its
food at a price of roughly $2 billion a year and the United States is a natural
export market because it is only 90 miles from Cuban shores. Although the farm lobby has not been enough
to generate legislative movement in the past.
I feel that this quarantine that has been in effect since October 23, 1962 is lifted. It will be
interesting to follow this piece of legislation to see how the atmosphere in
this senate.
