With Rubio in Wonderland, Dems Denounce Blockade

In a now-familiar display of political make-believe, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week told Al Jazeera that the U.S. government has done “nothing punitive” to Cuba. Rubio added that the U.S. oil blockade is not the reason for fuel scarcities. As is usually the case when Rubio speaks to the media, his ludicrous claims received no pushback from the journalist interviewing him. 

More than 50 senators and representatives presented a more accurate description of U.S. policy toward Cuba in a letter to Donald Trump on Thursday that condemned the administration for “engineering an accelerated energy collapse.”

“Doubling down on failed strategies by restricting access to energy and health care is contrary to American values and is needlessly exacerbating a humanitarian crisis,” reads the letter, which was headlined by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA). “Cuba has signaled its willingness to cooperate on issues you have claimed to be priorities, namely migration and drug trafficking, and we urge you to pursue diplomacy over failed pressure tactics.”

The letter was sent a week after Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) introduced the Cuba War Powers Resolution, which seeks to prevent U.S. military actions against Cuba without congressional approval.

“Donald Trump's belligerent foreign policy is creating new wars and conflicts across the world. As our country is already embroiled in a new war with Iran, the President has set his sights on regime change in Cuba,” Velázquez said in a statement.

​A similar resolution was introduced earlier last month by three Democratic senators.