Rubio on his Cuban roots, island’s future

Published 9:43 am Thursday, November 19, 2015

ORLANDO, Florida — As Marco Rubio campaigns for the Republican presidential nomination, he’s pledging to bring generational change to Washington. Yet Rubio’s policy toward Cuba hinges on reinstating a half-century-old diplomatic freeze that failed to unseat the communist government on the island where his parents were born.

The Florida senator sees no contradiction between his pledge to usher in new ideas and his call to restore an old, punitive relationship with Cuba.

“People think it’s because we’re being stubborn or holding on to old policies,” Rubio, 44, said in an interview with The Associated Press.

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“I’m prepared to change strategies toward Cuba, but it has to be one that yields results.”

In the traditional litany of promises candidates pledge to fulfill on “Day One” in the White House, rolling back President Barack Obama’s detente with Cuba is near the top of Rubio’s list. He’d downgrade the newly opened American Embassy in Havana to a diplomatic interests section – the status of bilateral relations before Obama’s rapprochement with Cuba – and put back in place tougher limits on U.S. government and business dealings with the island.

Still, Rubio says there are ways to move forward. He would be willing to allow U.S. companies to invest in telecommunications in Cuba in exchange for free and unfettered Internet access on the island. He can envision restoring full diplomatic relations with Havana, but only if the government there allows opposition political parties and gives them freedom to organize.