The White House needs to hear from you on Cuba!
By Angelica Salazar
From her blog, Angelica’s Eyes on Washington
Is it true Mr. President? Oh, please tell me you too believe it’s time for a CHANGE in U.S. policy toward Cuba.
So very few mainstream media outlets have picked up on this so-called “official leak” that “Obama May Ease U.S. Travel to Cuba Even If Congress Won’t Act,” reported in yesterday’s Bloomberg news. According to the article, “Obama may change rules to allow more Americans to visit the island on educational and cultural trips, a U.S. official, who declined to be named because he isn’t authorized to speak on the subject, said Aug. 6. The official didn’t give additional details on what the changes would be.”
I’ll put myself out there and make an educated prediction, based on all the chit-chat floating around town, that this “rumor” could very well be true.
I attempt to shed some light on what’s going down on the ground here in Washington I’ve been doing some political mingling to learn more.
About two-weeks ago, I got a brief one-on-one with White House staffer that is on the record from calling for an “end of the embargo on Cuba.”
I asked if they thought the Administration had any plans to do more to open travel and relations with Cuba. They assured me it was “high on their list.” Of course, I noted that we want a new “Obama Policy” that represents change when it comes to relations with Cuba and that I’d like to see it go beyond Bill Clinton’s policy. I asked and got a simple reply, “it is high on the list.”
So let us reassure the White House that opening travel and relations with Cuba is an issue “high” on our list of things to get done with the stroke of his pen.
Executive Director John McAuliff of the Fund for Reconciliation and Development whom I worked with on this very issue back in 2003, noted “it is important that the President hear at once that [t]his initiative is broadly welcomed and that it should be as expansive as possible.”
Mavis Anderson of the Latin America Working Group, comments, “We applaud the Obama Administration for steps that they may take in the right direction regarding Cuba policy, and we understand they are limited to revising the regulations that govern the travel ban. Only Congress retains the power to end the travel ban–to actually change the law. If members of Congress have been waiting for a sign of approval for their legislative action, this is it. We call upon Congress to act immediately after recess.” So during these critical last months we need to continue to hold the fire on the Congress to move and pass legislation that would open travel to Cuba for all. Readers may send a message to Congress here.
The White House needs to hear from you! Taking only ten minutes of your time over a cell phone you can help give voice and priority to this issue. The timing is now, because any closer we get to the November elections the more difficult it will be for the White House and/or Congress to move on this issue, much less others.
Advocacy Alert
4 ways the White House will listen to you:
1.) Sign the Change.org Petition to the President.
2.) Call the White House at 202-456-1111, with a simple message, “PLEASE, tell the President to take action to expand travel to Cuba. We hope the Administration will also signal its support for Congressional legislation that would authorize travel to Cuba for ALL U.S. Americans!”
3.) Email the President with the same message
4.) Please help to circulate a Coalition Letter that “Urges President Obama to Ease Cuba Travel Restrictions”
Mr. President, we urge you to change 50 years of bad foreign policy toward Cuba!
Read Angelica’s blog, Eyes on Washington by clicking here.
