Cuba, Gitmo, and the surrendering of America

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David Grantham in Townhall:

Cuba, Gitmo and the Surrendering of America

President Obama praised his decision to restore diplomatic relations with Communist Cuba in the State of the Union address. America’s credibility in the region would now be restored, he argued. The president clings to a Cold War notion that Cuba represents Latin America in the 21st century, and in the same breath scolds his opponents for living in the past. Meanwhile, the rapprochement strategy shows no signs of changing economic liberties and human rights on the island. Indeed, the Castro regime used the new era in U.S.-Cuban relations to deploy troops to the Middle East in support of Russia and Syria. Real achievements should involve supporting the free-market, U.S.-friendly leaders realizing electoral victories throughout Latin America, rather than illusions of progress with a government still hostile to freedom.

The president has diverted enormous government resources towards its work with America’s foes and has little to show for it. Russia practically ignored the administration’s “reset” proposition. The Bear then went on to occupy parts of Ukraine, where it currently remains. The so-called “pivot” to Asia looks more like a “trip-and-face plant” as China moves undeterred in the South China Sea. Iran also saw no reason to alter its behavior after the nuclear deal and has since deployed forces to Syria and test-fired a ballistic missile in direct violation of the agreement. American officials suspect that Iranian representatives were even present during North Korea’s most recent nuclear detonation. In all, adversaries remain collectively unresponsive to the president’s rapprochement tactics.

The same miscalculations plague the Cuban situation. Aside from reestablishing diplomatic relations, the president eased a handful of existing economic policies that previously limited U.S. business interaction, American travel, and remittance to and from Cuba. The administration correctly understood that political change in Cuba would involve access to American capital. The administration wrongly believes economic initiatives alone will lead to political reform.

Senior Scholar at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies José Azel believes easing U.S. financial restrictions will not inspire broader reforms in Cuba so long as the political system remains unchanged. No amount of remittances can overcome the fact that the government controls the flow of capital. These stifling controls have, for example, relegated the self-employed to a small band of subsistence workers who specialize in menial tasks like fixing umbrellas. In fact, Azel reminds us that the Castro administration’s longstanding hostility towards the entrepreneur means “self-employment without the guarantees of political freedom” will invite “intensified repression.” In other words, more capital without political change may actually create more oppression.

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