House Chairman Angling for Markup of Cuba Travel Bill After Elections
By Emily Cadei
From Congressional Quarterly
House Foreign Affairs Chairman Howard L. Berman, D-Calif., indicated Wednesday that he remains determined to mark up a bill this year that would lift the U.S. ban on travel to Cuba.But another longtime House supporter of efforts to lift the ban was less optimistic about the bill’s prospects in the current Congress.
The committee was slated to take up the bill (HR 4645) Wednesday, but Berman announced Sept. 28 that he was “postponing consideration” of the bill “until a time when the committee will be able to hold the robust and uninterrupted debate this important issue deserves.”
The busy end-of-session House schedule on Wednesday, Berman said, made a full debate impossible. Asked Wednesday if he intended to hold the markup in the lame-duck session, Berman responded, “Does the sun rise in the east?”
Berman’s response was in marked contrast to Arizona Republican Jeff Flake, who said Wednesday he would be “very surprised” if when Congress returns the committee is able to move a bill to end restrictions on American citizens’ travel to Cuba. Flake said that there are a “lot of things” the House will have to take up during the lame-duck session, and Cuba legislation is “probably not going to be one of them.”
“It’s not a big enough issue to some to split their caucus,” Flake said, referring to the Democrats. “I’m supposing that’s the reason” Berman postponed the markup in the first place, he said.
A number of committee Democrats remain undeclared on the legislation, including some who are hesitant to take a position on the issue in the midst of tough midterm campaigns. Flake is one of three Republicans on the committee who are cosponsors of the bill; the rest of the minority is expected to line up behind ranking member Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, a vocal opponent of efforts to ease any elements of the nearly 50-year-old Cuba embargo.
DECADES OF STALEMATE
That embargo, begun by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, established the ban on American travel to the communist nation. It has been a source of polarizing political debate virtually ever since. President Obama’s support for easing some of the embargo’s restrictions, however, has raised hopes among backers of re-engagement with Cuba that they can finally break the stalemate.
The clock is ticking on this Congress, however, as Berman and fellow backers continue to scramble for sufficient support from committee Democrats.
Brad Sherman, D-Calif., is among the committee Democrats undecided on the bill, which was sponsored by Agriculture Chairman Collin C. Peterson, D-Minn., and passed out of his committee narrowly in June. The bill was referred to the Foreign Affairs and Financial Services committees, though the latter has waived its jurisdiction.
“I’m still analyzing all aspects of the bill not only from a political standpoint but also from an economic standpoint,” Sherman said. “I’m concerned that it looks like it would increase our trade deficit.”
Sherman said that while he does not have a competitive race, he suspected that vulnerable members on the committee were eager to avoid a vote on the bill before their elections. “I’ve been a vulnerable member, and during the last few weeks I’ve never enjoyed voting on anything controversial,” he said. “The default position of vulnerable members is to prefer to put off anything other than post offices and continuing resolutions.”
MERITS OF DELAY
That approach was embodied by Rep. Michael E. McMahon, D-N.Y., a member of the Foreign Affairs panel and a freshman facing a tough re-election. Asked about his position on the Cuba legislation, McMahon demurred, saying “I’m really just focused on getting this 9/11 bill passed for the folks back home” — a reference to a bill (HR 847) the House passed Wednesday that would establish a compensation fund for victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Waiting until after the election could ease the political pressures on members such as McMahon. “I think it’s easier to deal with in the lame duck,” Sherman said. “I think we’ll be here for a while. We’ll have enough time.”
Flake, on the other hand, is looking ahead to the new Congress, where he maintains the legislation will have a better chance of getting through the House.
“You have a lot of Republicans coming in — anti-establishment, freedom-loving — who don’t have a history of voting for an outdated policy. And if you’re going to tell them that they’re going to have to vote to deny their constituents the right to travel, when there’s no good reason to do so, I think you’re going to get a lot of blowback,” he said.
“If a Republican Congress comes in, I’m confident we’ll have the votes then,” Flake added. “We were able to pass it a couple of times in the past 10 years, we just couldn’t get the last president to sign it. This one will.”
