[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 184 (Thursday, December 17, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8747-S8750]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE RELEASE OF ALAN GROSS

  Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, today is an important day for two 
reasons. One, it is a sad day because it was just a few years ago today 
when a dear friend, Senator Dan Inouye, died--one of my closest friends 
and former President pro tempore and senior Member of this body.
  It is also a good day because it marks one year since the release of 
Alan Gross from a Cuban prison where he had spent 5 years. During that 
time he lost more than 100 pounds, he lost five teeth, his mother died, 
his mother-in-law died, his brother-in-law died, and he missed his 
daughter's wedding.
  I worked for years to help obtain Alan Gross's release and the return 
of the remaining members of the so-called Cuban Five, who had served 
more than 15 years in U.S. prisons. Scott Gilbert, Alan Gross's lawyer, 
did an outstanding job, traveling countless times to Cuba. He 
skillfully advocated on Alan's behalf with Cuban and U.S. officials. My 
foreign policy adviser, Tim Rieser, went down several times to boost 
Alan Gross's morale, visiting him in prison and bringing him messages.
  My larger purpose, like my good friend from Arizona Senator Flake, 
who has been a real partner in this, was to finally put the Cold War 
behind us and to start looking forward to a new era.
  Like Senator Flake and many others, I was convinced that such a step 
would be widely embraced by the U.S. business community, by religious 
groups, by academia, the scientific community, the media, and Americans 
across the political spectrum. I also knew it would be welcomed around 
the world, including in countries where people believe in democracy and 
human rights as strongly as we do.
  I remember when an ambassador from a South American country came up 
to my wife Marcelle, saying: We have always respected the United States 
but also we respected Cuba, and your relationship with Cuba was like a 
stone in our shoe. Now, by restoring relations with Cuba, you have 
removed the stone from our shoe.
  He, like so many others, recognized that Alan Gross's release ushered 
in a new day in United States-Cuba relations. I will never forget on 
August 14, standing there when our flag was raised at the U.S. Embassy 
in Havana, listening to our national anthem played, and I heard Cubans 
standing just outside the gates of the Embassy cheering when the 
American flag went up. It was a deeply moving experience to be there on 
a swelteringly hot day.
  We had 54 years of a failed, punitive policy that achieved none of 
its objectives. President Obama and President Raul Castro wisely 
decided it was time to chart a new path.
  The reaction of the people of the United States and Cuba has been 
overwhelmingly positive. Even some of Cuba's most vocal critics of the 
Castro government have welcomed this new opening.
  Which brings me back to Alan Gross. He had every reason to be a 
bitter defender of U.S. sanctions, but instead he strongly supported 
the new policy of engagement. He has never expressed anything but 
warmth and admiration for the Cuban people.
  Contrast that with the small handful of Members of Congress who 
continue to defend a discredited policy of isolation that has been 
repudiated by large majorities of their own constituents, denounced by 
every other government in the hemisphere, and which even they 
acknowledge it has not succeeded. Their answer is to keep it in place, 
even opposing efforts by the State Department to improve security and 
staffing at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, to which the Cuban Government 
has agreed.

  I ask that you to look at this photograph of Alan Gross and his wife. 
I took this just minutes after he was told he

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was going home. Senator Flake, Congressman Van Hollen, and I were there 
to pick him up. This is not the face of a bitter man. When I took this 
picture, I thought as I pressed the shutter that this is the face of a 
man who knows we can have different days.
  I am not so naive to think that reestablishing diplomatic relations 
with Cuba is going to result in the rapid transformation of Cuba into a 
democracy. Cuba's leaders are steadfast believers in a repressive 
political system that has enabled them to hold power unchallenged for 
more than half a century. Their economic policies have been a disaster, 
resulting in daily hardships for the Cuban people. You can see it 
whenever you travel to Cuba. While the Cuban Government blames its 
economic problems on the U.S. embargo, no one seriously believes that, 
although it is undeniable that the embargo has exacerbated the 
hardships.
  It is also undeniable that support for the embargo in the United 
States, from the business community to the human rights community, has 
evaporated. I wonder how many Members of Congress know that in the past 
5 years the Government of Cuba, while blaming us for the embargo, has 
imported more than $1 billion in U.S. agriculture and medical products. 
American exports mean American jobs.
  There would be a lot more exports if we got rid of the embargo. Right 
now it is punishing American workers, as well as Cubans.
  Why are we also punishing half a million Cuban entrepreneurs who 
already work in the private sector and are no longer dependent on the 
government? Why not support the private sector in Cuba as we do 
everywhere else in the world? Why not open the United States to the 
emerging Cuban market?
  I think it is past time to replace vindictiveness and personal family 
grievances with what is best for the American people.
  I have condemned the Cuban Government's arrest and imprisonment, 
after unfair trials, of individuals that have done nothing more than 
peacefully protest against the government's repressive policies. At 
least two of them were among the 53 who were released as part of our 
agreement a year ago. Eleven others released earlier still cannot 
travel freely.
  But Cuba's leaders cannot stop the tide of history any more than any 
of us can. The majority of Cubans were not even born at the time of the 
1959 revolution. They have very different priorities and aspirations 
than those who overthrew Batista's corrupt, abusive regime. Cuba is 
changing in ways that will mean more freedom and more engagement in the 
world, and more economic opportunities.
  During the past 12 months, the Obama administration has taken 
historic steps to implement the new policy. After so many decades, when 
U.S.-Cuba relations were frozen, the progress in the last year has been 
breathtaking. Talks are underway between both governments on a wide 
range of issues, including one wrapping up last night on resuming 
direct mail and air service, but also on law enforcement cooperation 
and property claims.
  Senator Flake, who has been such a leader on this--he and I have 
introduced legislation, cosponsored by 45 other Democrats and 
Republicans, to end restrictions on travel by Americans to Cuba. Those 
restrictions don't exist for travel to any other country, including 
North Korea and Iran. If our bill were called up for a vote, and if we 
listened to the American people, it would pass easily.
  This year the Senate Appropriations Committee passed, with bipartisan 
majorities, a similar travel amendment by Senator Moran and me and two 
other amendments to facilitate U.S. agriculture exports and shipping to 
and from Cuba.
  In contrast, the House of Representatives adopted half a dozen 
provisions offered by just one Member that would turn back the clock.
  I have no doubt that the path begun by President Obama and President 
Raul Castro is the right one for the people of both countries, and that 
the dwindling few who continue to try to stand in its way will fail.
  History is not on their side. Rather than continue to cling to a 
policy that was misguided from its inception and that did nothing to 
help the Cuban people, they should respect the will of their 
constituents and the Cubans on whose behalf they erroneously claim to 
speak.
  It was only 12 months ago that Senator Flake and I walked up the 
gangplank onto the President's plane with Alan and Judy Gross. I took 
many photographs that day, and our son-in-law, Lawrence Jackson, one of 
the President's photographers, was also there recording it for 
posterity.
  Look at how much has been accomplished in those 12 months for the 
benefit of the people of Cuba and the United States. It has done more 
for the reputation of the United States and its influence in this 
hemisphere than has been done in the past half century.
  I ask unanimous consent that a chronology of those accomplishments 
prepared by the Engage Cuba coalition be printed in the Record at the 
conclusion of my remarks.
  I hope that before another year passes the Congress will finally 
recognize that it too has a responsibility to respect the will of the 
people, to end the embargo and to stop interfering with the right of 
Americans to travel. And that exposing the Cuban people to our ideas, 
our principles, and our products is the best policy for the future.
  I see my dear friend, the Senator from Arizona, on the floor.
  I yield the floor.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

      A Look Back at the First Year of the U.S.-Cuba Relationship

                       December 17, 2014-Present


                    Key Actions and Accomplishments

       December 17, 2014: President Obama moves to normalize 
     relations with Cuba.
       Decision follows 18 months of secret negotiations between 
     U.S. and Cuba and the release of American aid contractor Alan 
     Gross.
       Announcement of plans over the coming months to ease travel 
     and financial restrictions on Cuba.
       Paves the way for U.S.-Cuba to restore diplomatic ties, 
     reopen embassies, and potentially lift the embargo.
       January 16, 2015: Departments of Commerce and Treasury 
     announce regulatory changes to Cuba sanctions.
       The amendments implement the changes President Obama 
     announced on December 17, 2014.
       March 31, 2015: U.S. and Cuba hold first formal talks on 
     human rights.
       April 8, 2015: A public opinion poll of Cubans on the 
     island is released; shows that an overwhelming majority of 
     Cubans support an end to the embargo.
       Nearly all Cubans (97 percent of those polled) believe 
     normalization of the relationship between Cuba and the United 
     States is good for Cuba.
       April 11, 2015: Presidents Obama and Castro meet at the 
     Summit of the Americas in Panama.
       Marks the first time the two nations' top leaders have sat 
     down for substantive talks in more than 50 years. Both 
     presidents agree it is time to end the embargo.
       The inclusion of Cuba in the Summit of the Americas comes 
     after Latin American countries pressured the United States to 
     allow Cuba to participate.
       April 20, 2015: Governor Andrew Cuomo leads delegation to 
     Cuba.
       Governor Andrew Cuomo leads a delegation of New York 
     business owners and politicians to Havana.
       His visit marks the first time a U.S. governor has 
     travelled to the island since the U.S. and Cuba normalized 
     relations.
       The trip includes officials from JetBlue Airways, the 
     Plattsburgh International Airport, Pfizer, MasterCard, and 
     the founder of Chobani.
       The trip leads to an agreement between Cuba's Center for 
     Molecular Immunology and Roswell Park Cancer Institute in 
     Buffalo, New York to import a lung cancer vaccine and begin 
     clinical trials in the United States.
       May 4, 2015: New Cuba PAC launches.
       New Cuba PAC pledges to donate to political candidates who 
     support favorable policy toward ending the Cuban embargo.
       May 29, 2015: United States removes Cuba from state terror 
     sponsors list.
       President Obama informs Congress of his decision in mid-
     April; Congress has a 45-day review period.
       Some congressional Republicans oppose the move; however, 
     they do not make any effort to block the decision.
       Cuba had been on the list since 1982. Being listed subjects 
     a country to U.S. restrictions on such things as foreign aid 
     and defense sales.
       June 18, 2015: Cuba expands Wi-Fi access across the island.
       35 Wi-Fi hotspots are created.
       Previously, Wi-Fi was only available at tourist hotels at 
     hourly prices that would amount to nearly a quarter of the 
     average monthly salary for Cubans.
       July 2015: United States restores diplomatic ties with 
     Cuba.
       On July 1, President Obama announces that the U.S. and Cuba 
     would reopen their

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     embassies nearly 55 years since they first closed.
       On July 20, diplomatic relations are officially re-
     established; Cuban embassy holds flag-raising ceremony in 
     Washington. Engage Cuba hosts private dinner between Cuban 
     Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez-Parrilla and American 
     business leaders.
       On July 22, Engage Cuba hosts a briefing at the White House 
     for the Cuban-American community about U.S.-Cuba relations.
       July 23, 2015: Senate Appropriations Committee approves 
     three amendments favorable to lifting sanctions on Cuba.
       The amendments would end restrictions on travel to Cuba, 
     allow private financing for agricultural sales to Cuba, and 
     lift restrictions on ships docking at Cuban ports.
       August 14, 2015: Secretary of State John Kerry presides 
     over the flag-raising ceremony at American embassy in Havana.
       Sec. Kerry's visit marks the first time in 70 years that a 
     U.S. Secretary of State has visited Cuba.
       August 2015-October 2015: American airline companies 
     announce new flights to Cuba.
       American Airlines and Cuba Travel Services announce a new 
     charter service providing nonstop service from Los Angeles to 
     Havana. American Airlines also begins offering a once-weekly 
     flight from Miami to Havana in partnership with Cuban travel 
     services.
       JetBlue announces the addition of a second charter flight 
     from JFK to Havana.
       Delta establishes charter flights from Atlanta to Havana, 
     set to start April 2, 2016.
       September 8, 2015: Leading Republican presidential 
     candidate Donald Trump comes out in support of diplomatic 
     reengagement with Cuba.
       Trump's stance means that for the first time in over a 
     half-century, the leading presidential candidates from both 
     parties support normalization; Hillary Clinton had stated her 
     support a year prior.
       September 18, 2015: Obama administration further eases 
     travel and business restrictions against Cuba.
       The announcement expands telecommunication opportunities in 
     Cuba and allows certain American businesses to establish 
     offices and bank accounts on the island.
       Cuban businesses and residents are now able to set up 
     offices and bank accounts in the United States.
       However, significant barriers to open trade and travel 
     still exist with Congress' refusal to lift the embargo.
       September 19, 2015: Pope Francis arrives in Cuba.
       The Pope visits Cuba before coming to the United States. 
     During his visit, he lauds the normalization process between 
     the two countries.
       September 2015-November 2015: Telecommunications contracts 
     begin to be signed on the island.
       Verizon begins to offer voice and data roaming in Cuba 
     through a third party.
       Sprint signs an interconnection agreement with Cuba's state 
     telecoms monopoly Etecsa.
       September 28, 2015: Governor Asa Hutchinson leads Arkansas 
     delegation to Cuba.
       Governor Asa Hutchinson asks Congress to lift restrictions 
     that prevent U.S. food companies from selling to Cuba on 
     credit.
       The measure, led by Senator John Boozman (R-AR), was 
     approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee in July but 
     has yet to receive a floor vote in the Senate and House.
       In 2000, the U.S. authorized cash-only agricultural exports 
     to Cuba, which brought $30 million in sales to Arkansas 
     annually. Since Cuba prefers to buy on credit, sales have 
     fallen.
       September 29, 2015: Presidents Obama and Castro meet on the 
     sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
       For the first time in more than 60 years, a U.S. president 
     meets with a Cuban president on U.S. soil.
       October 6, 2015: Secretary of Commerce Pritzker makes 
     official trip to Cuba.
       Sec. Penny Pritzker becomes the second U.S. cabinet 
     official to visit the island since Fidel Castro's 1959 
     revolution.
       Sec. Pritzker meets with the country's ministers of foreign 
     affairs and foreign investment.
       Sec. Pritzker tours Mariel, the site of a $1 billion 
     investment to create a major shipping hub in Cuba.
       October 14, 2015: Nine state governors sign onto bipartisan 
     letter supporting end to Cuban embargo.
       The governors of Alabama, California, Idaho, Minnesota, 
     Montana, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia and Washington write 
     letter to Congressional leadership highlighting the harm that 
     the embargo has done to American agriculture exports.
       October 25, 2015: North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner 
     Doug Goehring leads North Dakota agriculture delegation to 
     Cuba.
       North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring leads a 
     delegation of representatives from commodity, agricultural, 
     and commerce organizations to the island.
       Full list of participants: North Dakota Department of 
     Agriculture; Bank of North Dakota; Fredrikson & Byron, P.A.; 
     Great Northern Ag; Northarvest Bean Growers Association; 
     North Dakota Grain Growers Association; North Dakota Mill & 
     Elevator; North Dakota Trade Office; North Dakota Wheat 
     Commission; and Red River Farm Network.
       November 2, 2015: Cuba hosts annual international trade 
     fair.
       It is estimated that 50 U.S. companies attend the fair, 
     more than ever before.
       Cuba signs first-ever roaming agreement with U.S. telecom 
     company Sprint Corp.
       November 17, 2015: Engage Cuba partners with the Atlantic 
     Council to release a poll from America's ``Heartland'' voters 
     profiling their opinions on Cuba.
       The poll's findings show bipartisan support in 
     ``Heartland'' states--Iowa, Ohio, Indiana, and Tennessee--for 
     restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba, lifting the travel 
     ban and ending the embargo.
       November 18, 2015: U.S. and Cuba sign historic 
     environmental pact.
       The agreement marks the first accord between the two 
     countries since the announcement that they would be 
     normalizing diplomatic relations.
       The accord will protect nearby fish and marine life living 
     off the coasts of both countries and allow U.S. and Cuban 
     scientists to collaborate on research.
       Cuba's marine ecosystem is considered one of the best 
     preserved and most diverse in the world.
       November 19, 2015: Debit cards become available for use in 
     Cuba.
       MasterCard and Stonegate Bank (based in Ft. Lauderdale) 
     announce that their cards are now active for use in hotels, 
     restaurants and other stores in Cuba.
       They become the first financial institutions to take 
     advantage of new business openings with Cuba.
       Americans travelling to Cuba will be able to use these 
     cards at 10,000 merchants that accept the cards.
       ATM transactions will be available in 2016.
       November 29, 2015: Governor Greg Abbott leads Texas 
     delegation to Cuba.
       Governor Greg Abbott leads a delegation of Texas 
     agriculture and port officials and local businesses to Cuba.
       While in Cuba, the delegation meets with the Ministry of 
     Foreign Trade and Investment, the Port of Mariel, the Chamber 
     of Commerce and two Cuban entities, Alimport and Cimex.
       Texas-Cuba trade relations have decreased over the years 
     due to restrictions and regulations. If full trade were 
     allowed, Texas could see an economic impact of $43 billion.
       December 7, 2015: Engage Cuba launches Tennessee State 
     Council.
       The 16-person council includes representatives from a range 
     of industries, including agriculture, academia, 
     manufacturing, business, and the arts.
       December 8, 2015: U.S. and Cuba hold the first round of 
     discussions on mutual property claims.
       The two governments begin negotiations over U.S. 
     individuals' and companies' properties that were seized after 
     the 1959 revolution; Cuba also presents counterclaims of 
     economic damages stemming from the embargo.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arizona.
  Mr. FLAKE. Madam President, I want to first pay tribute to Senator 
Leahy for the long path to getting here with Cuba, for all of the work 
that he has done, and to his capable staff, including Tim Rieser and 
people on my staff, including Chandler Morse and others, who have 
worked on this issue for so long. I have appreciated working with 
Senator Leahy on this issue.
  It was 1 year ago today, as Senator Leahy mentioned, that we had 
received a call just a few days prior, asking if we would participate 
in a quick mission down to Cuba, but we had to keep quiet about it for 
a few days, which was a bit difficult. One year ago today, we got on 
the President's plane, as Senator Leahy mentioned, and went down and 
picked up Alan Gross. It was wonderful to have Alan's wife Judy on the 
plane with us. What a joyous occasion that was to see that reunion 
there in Cuba and then to climb on the plane.
  As we climbed away from Cuba, I will never forget that about 20 
minutes into the flight, the pilot came on and said that we had now 
entered U.S. airspace. Alan Gross stood up, threw his arms in the air, 
and then breathed deeply. Then he said, ``Now I finally know I am 
free.''
  Then we watched on the news on the plane as the announcement came 
that we would be changing our policy, that we would be seeking full 
diplomatic relations, and that many of the policies of the past would 
go away.
  It has been a wonderful year to see some of that happen. One of my 
best moments--favorite moments--in Congress was going down with Senator 
Leahy again and watching the American flag being raised over the U.S. 
Embassy in Havana after 54 long years, to have those marines there, the 
same three marines who had lowered the flag in 1961 and who returned to 
Cuba to help raise the flag back up. What a wonderful symbol. What a 
wonderful thing about a new policy and a new way forward with Cuba.
  It is significant to note, as Senator Leahy mentioned, that after 
spending 5 years in prison in Cuba, Alan Gross came out of prison 
without bitterness. From that time forward, he has promoted meeting 
with colleagues of ours

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and telling anybody who will listen that this way forward is the right 
way forward on Cuba; that we should change our policies; that we ought 
to have closer cooperation and diplomatic relations; and that the 
problems that Cuba has are the problems of the Cuban Government, not 
the Cuban people.
  I want to pay tribute to Alan Gross for that. He continues to work 
till this day for better relations between Cuba and the United States. 
That is a significant thing. When Senator Tom Udall and I visited Alan 
Gross in prison in November of last year, just 1 month prior to his 
release, he was in a bad way. He had lost a lot of weight. He had lost 
some of his teeth. It was a tough time to be in prison. Being there for 
5 years, he missed many events at home with his family.
  I cannot imagine coming out of that experience and still feeling the 
compassion that he has for the Cuban people. Just last night it was 
announced that the U.S. and Cuba have agreed to enter into a bilateral 
agreement on flights to allow airlines from America, U.S. carriers to 
fly to Cuba. Instead of just charter flights, we will now have directly 
scheduled flights. That will allow Americans to travel to Cuba easier 
and more inexpensively.
  I would encourage all Americans who can find themselves in 1 of the 
12 categories for travel to do so. There are a group of Cubans who came 
to the United States a while ago. They were asked: What can America do 
for you? These were Cuban entrepreneurs who are looking to change the 
system in Cuba.
  They said: Visit Cuba. Come see us. Come to our private restaurants. 
Stay in our homes. Spend money in Cuba that we have access to. I should 
note that those who oppose a new policy--the new policy that we have 
with Cuba--often say that if you travel to Cuba, every dime that you 
spend goes right to the Cuban Government. That is not the case.
  In Cuba right now, you can stay at a bed and breakfast. In fact, 
Airbnb has 2,500 listings in Cuba. You can stay at an Airbnb. The bulk 
of that money, most of that goes to those Cubans who are hosting you, 
not the Cuban Government. You can eat at a private restaurant where 
those who prepare the meal, serve the meal, and cook the meals will see 
the bulk of that money to them.
  In fact, about 20 percent of the Cuban workforce is now outside of 
the Cuban Government. So, when Americans travel to Cuba, Cubans 
benefit. So I would encourage my colleagues and others to take the 
opportunity to go down to Cuba and travel. The policy that we had for 
54 years in Cuba failed to produce the results that we want to see. We 
want to see a democratic Cuba that respects human rights.
  The Cuban Government still has a long way to go, but I truly believe 
that the best way forward, the best way to make progress on those areas 
that we still need to make progress on, is with full diplomatic 
relations. Hopefully, we soon will have an Ambassador in Cuba who is 
the Ambassador. Our diplomatic team, led by Jeff DeLaurentis, does a 
great job in Cuba, but we ought to have a U.S. Ambassador there.
  Americans traveling to Cuba doing legal business in Cuba ought to 
have the same protections they have anywhere else in the world. We need 
good representation, full representation, in countries that are not 
friendly to us more than we need it in countries that are friendly to 
us. So I would encourage the Obama administration to move forward on 
those and other areas as well.
  There are still some measures the Obama administration can take that 
will improve the lives of Cubans and make it more likely that we can 
make progress in these other areas. Having said that, let me just say--
you often don't hear it from this side of the aisle--but I want to 
praise and applaud this President, President Obama, for taking the 
measures that he has taken on Cuba. It took guts to do so.
  There is still opposition to the positions that he has taken, but he 
has taken a position that helps the Cuban people, and it helps 
Americans. It is good for our national interests. It is good for our 
security interests.
  With that, I want to thank again the Senator from Vermont for the 
work that he has done on this issue. It has been a pleasure working 
with him. This past year has been a great year in terms of U.S.-Cuba 
relations. Here is to an even better year ahead.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

                          ____________________