In-Depth: As a cosponsor of this legislation, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) wants to “unleash a trade tsunami that washes the Castros once and for all into the sea,” and he believes that:

“The 50-year embargo just hasn’t worked. If the goal is regime change, it sure doesn’t seem to be working, and probably, it punishes the people more than the regime because the regime can blame the embargo for the hardship.”

This comment inspired a dismissive comment from fellow Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), who said that after the U.S. normalized relations with Cuba: “All that’s going to change here is that there’s going to be more money going into Cuba… and what that means is they’re now going to be able to solidify themselves in power.”

Freedom House’s 2015 ‘Freedom in the World’ report gave Cuba the lowest possible rating for political rights, a half a notch above the bottom for overall freedom, and one notch above the lowest possible rating for civil liberties.

Of Note: Following the Cuban Revolution that saw Fidel Castro establish a communist regime in Cuba, relations deteriorated between the U.S. and Cuba. In 1960, two years after Castro’s revolution succeeded, the U.S. banned all exports into Cuba aside from food and medicine. The failed Bay of Pigs operation and the Cuban Missile Crisis over the next two years exacerbated the tensions, which led to the enactment of a ban on all imports from Cuba.

In December 2014, the U.S. and Cuba formally restored full diplomatic relations -- though it has not yet led to the re-opening of embassies in each country.

Media:

• Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) Press Release on U.S. - Cuba Policy Reform
• TIME - Op-Ed by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY)
• The Daily Signal (Context)
• Huffington Post (Context)
• Politico (Context)
• Reason (Context - In Favor)
• Freedom House (Context)

Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: Flickr user dayblakelydonaldson)