Rubio pledges to undo Obama’s Cuba thaw
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) says he would undo much of President Obama’s diplomacy with Cuba if elected president.
“Nothing was asked of Cuba,” he said Thursday of the White House’s diplomatic thaw with the island nation earlier this year, according to The Associated Press.
“We somehow ignore the fact that 90 miles from our shores is an anti-American communist dictatorship that oppresses its people and sows instability,” Rubio added.
“We have a vested interest in ensuring there’s stability on that island, and you won’t have it as long as it’s a dictatorship,” the GOP presidential candidate continued. “People think it’s because we’re being stubborn or holding onto old policies. I’m prepared to change strategies with Cuba, but it has to be one that yields results.”
Rubio said he would downgrade the Embassy of the United States opened in Havana earlier this year if he wins the presidency, instead making the facility a diplomatic interests section, which it was before the Obama administration.
He also pledged to snap back into place restrictions on U.S. government and business dealings with Cuba.
Rubio criticized American corporate interests for blindly rushing toward Cuba’s markets.
“American companies think that they want to invest in Cuba. They have no idea what the terms are,” he said. “The terms are, you don’t own anything. You can’t go to Cuba and open a business and own it.”
He also charged that Cuba’s restrictive society presents an immediate humanitarian concern for Americans.
“As long as they’re an oppressive regime, people are going to get in rafts and leave that island and come to the U.S.,” the presidential candidate said. “It’s our Coast Guard that’s going to have to go and save their lives in those straits.”
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On a personal level, Rubio is more appealing and probably a nicer guy than Cruz, but Cruz is tougher and probably more focused–and we need tough, both in the nominee and in the presidency. Rubio, even apart from his major mistake on immigration, seems too intent on being liked by people who will NEVER like or support him no matter what he does, and that is a significant weakness (shared by LOTS of Republicans, notably by Jeb! Bush, who frankly repels me with his creepy Mexican fetish). Rubio also feels more Cuban than Cruz, which may be a plus for us but not necessarily for this country, and the job in question is POTUS, though it’s a wonderful fantasy to imagine Rubio as Cuba’s president. Thus, while I supported Rubio wholeheartedly in his bid for the Senate, I have to go with Cruz now, though I have some reservations about him as well. It’s really nothing personal, just what I think is best for the job.
When you voluntarily join the likes of Chuck Schumer, Dick Durbin, John McCain, and Lindsey Graham to propose a law that a majority of Americans oppose, don’t expect them to come flocking to you.