U.S.A. - Changing Relations With Cuba

"How Obama can change U.S.-Cuba relations without Congress – Part 2" PBS NewsHour 12/18/2014

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HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour):  Now back to the United States’ plans to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba.

For more on what it means in practical terms and efforts to lift the economic embargo, which is still in place, I’m joined by our foreign — chief foreign affairs correspondent, Margaret Warner, and NewsHour political director Domenico Montanaro.

So, Margaret, let me start with you.

What can the President do on his own, without needing Congress?

MARGARET WARNER (NewsHour):  Well, first of all, as you said, he can normalize relations with Cuba, just as, for example, Nixon normalized relations with China, with whom we were still at odds.  So that’s the first thing he can do.

Secondly, I learned just this afternoon that the — establishing a U.S. Embassy, which members of Congress have vowed to not fund, it turns out the U.S. Interests Section in the old U.S. Embassy.  It has 360 people working there, including 67 Americans.

And so one senior official said to me, right now, we’re not even sure we need additional personnel.  The building is a little shabby, but they can go right ahead.  Two, he can take Cuba off the state-sponsor of terrorism list after a six-month review by the secretary of state, and notifying Congress, but they do not have to approve it.

And, three, he can use his licensing authority to ease all these travel and investment restrictions, so people will be able to use American credit cards there, more people will be able to travel, transfer more money there.

What an official said to me today, though, is, it is not open for business, that it is not open, that the economic embargo still holds, if you’re talking about big American hotel chains going down there.  That is not the case.  And so there will be a limit on that.

"American businesses eye Cuban opportunities – Part 3" PBS NewsHour 12/18/2014

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SUMMARY:  As President Obama closes a door on Cold War hostilities between the U.S. and Cuba, American businesses wait in the wings for new opportunities to expand to the nation that has long been off-limits.  Hari Sreenivasan talks to Marcelo Prince of The Wall Street Journal about which industries would be most affected if the embargo was lifted.