The Candidate submitted the following statement in lieu of questionnaire.John McCain supports the Cuban people’s quest to be free and the U.S. economic embargo on the Cuban dictatorship to deny the Castro regime the resources to continue its repression.
We should increase support for the growing human rights, dissident, and civil society movement in Cuba to promote a peaceful transition to democracy.
We should reject concessions to the Castro dictatorship until democracy is restored, and Cubans are allowed to elect their own leaders and choose their own destiny.
The U.S. should continue to pressure the Cuban regime to release all political prisoners unconditionally and to hold free and fair elections. Unless these conditions are met, lifting the economic embargo would only serve to strengthen the Castro dictatorship and delay Cuba’s inevitable transition to democracy. John McCain favors U.S. Government funding for political prisoners and their families, human rights activists, and others seeking a peaceful transition to democracy in Cuba.
7 comments:
It's too bad the Republicans were too chickens@!# to answer the questions. How about some specifics on policy ? Why did only Obama and Clinton answer the questions ??
Senator McCain; First of all thank you for your service to the USA! Q: You were instrumental in normalizing relationship between communist Vietam and the US. If you could forgive the North Vietnamese without insisting that they provide full and complete information on POW's, how can we expect that you will do more than that to protect and account for our political prisors who are serving upwards of 30 years. Will you remain steadfast or tighten the embargo on the communist regime and insist on free and fair elections or will you send someone like jimmy carter in a guyabara to validate false elections as he did in a tragic display of judgement against Venezuelans and for dictator Hugo Chaves.
McCain's advocacy for normalizing relations with communist Vietnam is very troubling. In the 8 years since relations have been normalized, Vietnam is no less repressive a regime nor has it moved any closer to being democratic or respecting human rights. All this process has served is to entrench the VCP in power, enrich interests from both countries who benefit from the state control of the economy (this is no China, and Vietnamese people enjoy almost no economic freedom; it ranks 142 out of 157 countries in economic freedom according to the WSJ), and make it less likely that Vietnam will change (since the carrot of normalization was given without any concessions toward liberty).
The fact that normalization has failed to bring the people of Vietnam any significant degree of freedom or human rights should serve as the latest example of why normalization with a totalitarian Cuba would bring no net benefit to the Cuban people, and instead accrue all benefits and rewards to the Cuban regime, regardless of who/m is at the helm.
But then again, there's got to be a reason why Ileana, both Diaz-Balart brothers, and Mel Martinez have back John McCain, even before he became the presumptive GOP nominee.
He is a man of his word, so if he says he'll keep the line against Cuba, then I guess I'll believe him, and I most probably will support him in November. But it would be nice if he owned up to what was certainly a grave mistake 8+ years ago.
Pablo,
50 years of the embargo and economic restrictions has done nothing for those living in Cuba. Maybe a well intentioned attempt at opening up society in one form or another was his aim, not to mention bringing back the remains of those who fought alongside him.
Economic sanctions are not the cause of the Cuban people's plight. The root of their problem is the failure inherent in a communist planned economy. All trade with Cuba does is help prop up a failed regime. Ask the Canadians, Europeans and everyone else what amount of rights and freedoms their trade and investment has brought the Cuban people. The only ones benefitting are the Cuban regime (and those loyal enough to be assigned jobs in the tourism industry so that they can earn tips) and the foreign capitalists who extract economic profit from a practically enslaved Cuban labor force.
You might also want to check what most POW/MIA groups say about normalization now (I'll save you the time: it didn't do squat).
Just to be sure, I really like McCain. Hell, I voted for him before and I will probably do so again. But I'm just saying that pushing the normalization of relations with Vietnam was not his greatest moment. I believe it was serious miscalculation and mistake.
those who try to impose travelling restrictions for cubans for sure dont have loved ones who could die and you cant be there for that last minute .Just reshape the policies and sanctions if we are so humane as we say we are.
Economic embargo just makes us look bad .Or do we have other intentions .
Do the usa really want cuba to open up .Just think about it .if the embargo does not work ,why do we reenforce it
Why did only Obama and Clinton answer? Because they know what you want to hear and they are willing to lie for their own benefit.
Wake UP!
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