The Cuban Triangle: Controlled panic on Calle Ocho

[Mika]

Controlled panic on Calle Ocho

A smart friend reminds me regularly that everyone is talking about a coming change in U.S. policy toward Cuba – except the officials who make that policy in the U.S. government.

Still, the talk has provoked unease among embargo advocates, who may be wondering if the wheels are starting to come off the wagon that has dragged this foreign policy relic well into the 21st century.

For some time now they have tried to deny what Republican political operatives know – that the Cuban-American vote in Florida split evenly between President Obama and Governor Romney in 2012, that demographics dictate that Cuban-American support for the embargo will continue to decline, and that Cuban Americans are losing importance in Florida politics as Puerto Ricans and other Latinos have increased greatly in number.

They now see activism in their own community promoting engagement with Cuba (including this recent television ad urging voters to defend their right to travel), and it’s coming not from the Venceremos Brigade but rather from Cuban Americans who want change in Cuba and are not tied to el exilio’s ideas.

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[Judi Lynn]

1. Love that headline! So good to see this author discussing the prisoner swap.

It never made a bit of sense for the current administration to get sniffy about its demands for Gross, when everyone knows how twisted the mechanics were to get the Five into prison, and to keep them there under such horrendous conditions.

Keeping those fingers crossed. There's need for luck, since we haven't seen much common sense employed yet, on this side, only the cheapest, most ignorant Cold War bully sentiments possible.