Cuba

[sy Dolce Vita]

Maybe there is hope yet .


WASHINGTON (AP) -- Defying a threatened presidential veto, the Senate joined the House Thursday in moving to end four-decade-old restrictions on travel to Cuba.

"It is not constructive at all to try to slap around Fidel Castro by imposing limits on the American people's right to travel," said Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-North Dakota.

The Senate voted 59-36 to bar the use of government money to enforce current travel restrictions. Last month a nearly identical measure passed the House, setting up a showdown with the administration, which says President Bush will veto a $90 billion Transportation and Treasury Department bill if contains the Cuba language.

"The administration believes that it is essential to maintain sanctions and travel restrictions to deny economic resources to the brutal Castro regime," the White House said in a statement.

The Treasury Department estimates that about 160,000 Americans, half of them Cuban-Americans visiting family members, traveled to Cuba legally last year. Humanitarian and educational groups, journalists and diplomats are also allowed visits, but thousands of other Americans visit illegally, by way of third countries, risking thousands of dollars in fines and imprisonment.

Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, who co-sponsored the amendment to the spending bill with Dorgan, said the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Asset Control, a key office in the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking, shouldn't be devoting resources to American tourists going to Cuba.

"Ten percent of the OFAC budget is used to track down little old grandmas from the West Coast who through a Canadian travel agency chose to bike in Cuba," he said.

Opponents warned that the provision sent a wrong signal at a time when the Castro regime has escalated its crackdown on dissidents. "Why should we now open up travel to Cuba to give additional cash flow to the Castro regime?" asked Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, chairman of the Appropriations Committee.

[delmarrey]

I really don’t think we should get off a marine related forum. But I, an American, stand my ground against communism. We here are having enough problems with part of this society leaning towards socialism let alone communism wanting the government to take care of everything. As well as snuffing out the capabilities of the average American being able to earn as much as he can, legally.
I know up in Canada that doctors are restricted to how many patients they are allowed to have in a day restricting their ability to earn a respectable living for all the school that they go through. Socialism, what’s the use?
Communism believes in an aggressive take over rather than diplomacy. Just what we don’t need is to start associating with these people. If people don’t like the way we Americans are then they can go to some other country rather then trying to ruin the society that we have been building for 225 years. It’s bad enough that we have to fight off terrorist. We don’t need another antidemocratic group trying to influence our young ones. And that’s just who Cuba would try to attract in for tourism. Ignorant, foolish young people with no foundation or historical political knowledge. Then show them a goodtime and try to sway them towards communism, then bring that crap home to us.

NO THANKS!!!

[tenknots]

My government shouldn't be able to stop me from visiting any country I desire - it's not their business to regulate my travels. Strange that the politcal party that touts less government is the one that wants to restrict what I can do as a citizen.

Our government may hate their government, but our people don't hate thier people. I've travelled to many countries, and found that they all have something that they can teach us. The people of Cuba are not sinister. Screw the government (both of them), I am a citizen of a free country, and if I want to visit a communist country, that's my right. What message is the US goverment sending out if they say Cuba is evil, but it's OK to travel to North Korea? Maybe another agenda?

I will sail to Cuba someday - with permission or not.

I'm not afraid of communism. I am afraid when a government dosen't want me to know about another politcal system or goverment.

[Stede]

I won't pretend to understand all the issues the U.S.government has with the Cuban government, because I don't. I do respect our Presidents viewpoint, and won't travel to Cuba until conditions there change.I believe that we're foutunate to live in a free society, but even so, we must abide by the restrictions our government has in place as far as visiting some areas of the world. It's our government that U.S.citizens call upon to get them out of countries when there is unexpected upheaval, as is what's happening in Bolivia, and has happened in the past in numerous other countries. I would like to sail to Cuba one day. From the pictures I've seen of it, it's very beautiful. Hopefully one day soon, U.S./ Cuban relations will improve,and I will get to go there legally. Until then, I support my governments viewpoint and will wait for when that time comes.