President Donald Trump’s administration has announced that several Obama-era Cuban policies are now up for review. One policy that could possibly be reversed is the ‘wet foot, dry foot‘ policy that Obama discontinued eight days before Trump took office. According to The Daily Caller, the Trump administration has been trying to figure out a way to start reviewing and changing parts of the policies Obama made with Cuba since February 2017. Now, with the urging of Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Republican Representative Mario Diaz-Balart, it has been confirmed that Cuba-U.S. policies are under full review. During a press briefing, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer cited Trump’s commitment “to an agenda of ensuring human rights for all citizens throughout the world.”
“We’ve been walking through all these issues with the president and his team, figuring out the right steps to take and when,” Rubio told El Nuevo Herald. “I am confident that President Trump will treat Cuba like the dictatorship it is and that our policy going forward will reflect the fact that it is not in the national interest of the United States for us to be doing business with the Cuban military.”
If Trump follows through with the review and implementation of the recommendations, there could be new restrictions on travel and trade but will not impact the thawing of diplomatic ties with the island nation. According to The Independent, we can expect a decision from the White House about Cuba in June.
People were quick to make jokes that Trump is really just trying to curry favor for a new Cuban hotel.
Trump is reversing Cuba policy b/c he cares about human rights & by “human rights” he means “rights to build a hotel in Cuba”#PressBriefing
— ThisTallAwkwardGirl (@thistallawkgirl) May 30, 2017
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Like, seriously. The Trump Tower in Cuba joke was the joke du jour.
@JimONeilPOV Wouldn't happen if Cuba opens talks on a new Trump Tower in Havana.
— Trevor Hotchkiss (@TrevHotch) May 30, 2017
After all, nothing says Cuba like a giant gold tower in Havana, right?
Some lamented the likelihood of not being able to travel to Cuba.
So sad. I wanted to go to Cuba.
Report: Trump to reverse Obama’s Cuba policy https://t.co/lQE5E23hdt
— DMJones (@theumprof) May 30, 2017
“Recognizing the inherent right of Americans to travel to Cuba isn’t a concession to dictators, it is an expression of freedom,” Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake said in a statement. “It is Americans who are penalized by our travel ban, not the Cuban government.”
Some people are celebrating the announcement of a change in policy toward Cuba.
@kevcirilli @TreyYingst Good a reversal of obama Cuba policy needed
— Trump A Team ?? (@TrumpATeam1) May 30, 2017
But many are just left confused about why Trump is putting his energy into Cuba right now.
@Anniej17 @mello6789 @TheView I also don't understand why trump wants to rollback Pres. Obama's Cuba policies. Why??
— Michele Stryker (@_stryker1) May 30, 2017
READ: Cuban Refugees Will No Longer Benefit From ‘Wet Foot, Dry Foot’
