[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 79 (Wednesday, May 18, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2921-S2922]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      UNITED STATES-CUBA RELATIONS

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, since December of 2014, when the United 
States and Cuba ended 54 years of diplomatic isolation that had 
accomplished nothing good for the people of Cuba or the United States, 
there has been an explosion of engagement between our two countries. 
The number of U.S. citizens traveling to Cuba has skyrocketed. Talks 
between both governments resulted in agreements to resume direct 
airline, ocean ferry, and mail service. There is expanded cooperation 
in a wide range of bilateral and regional issues. These are encouraging 
steps, but there is a long road ahead.
  For more than half a century, whatever problems there were in Cuba 
the Cuban Government could blame on the United States because of our 
embargo. Some Members of the House and Senate have expressed 
disappointment, and criticized President Obama's opening to Cuba 
because the restoration of diplomatic relations has not quickly brought 
about dramatic changes in Cuba's repressive political system and did 
not reverse 54 years of history in 54 days.
  Well, these Members of Congress are either naive or simply prefer to 
ignore the positive changes that are occurring and choose to ignore or 
dismiss the views of the overwhelming majority of Cubans and Americans 
who support the restoration of relations. They continue to defend a 
discredited policy of isolation that through all those decades, and 
Republican and Democratic administrations, failed to achieve any of its 
objectives.
  As President Obama said, if you try something for 50 years and it 
doesn't work, it is time to try something else. In the past 15 months, 
although the naysayers will not publicly admit it, the Cuban people 
have a sense of hope about the future that has not existed since the 
time of the 1959 revolution. I know. I have seen and heard it on my 
trips there.
  It is also important to recognize that the majority of Cubans alive 
today were born after the revolution. And just as Cuba's population has 
changed, so the world has changed.
  Overwhelmingly, Cuba's younger generation has experienced enough of a 
paternalistic, Communist dictatorship and economic stagnation to know 
that is not what they want. It is no surprise that their reaction to 
President Obama's extraordinary speech in Havana was warmly and 
enthusiastically received by them, while several top Cuban officials, 
sensing the inspiring impact of the President's words, felt compelled 
to criticize our President. I was there for that visit. I saw the 
reaction of the Cuban people.
  The raising of the American flag in Havana last August symbolized the 
beginning of a new era in U.S.-Cuban relations, but change was 
happening in Cuba well before then, and it is going to continue at its 
own pace. Ultimately, the Cuban people--not the United States--will 
determine that pace and what a post-Castro Cuba will look like.
  My wife Marcelle and I stood there at our Embassy as the flag went 
up, and we heard the cheers of the Cuban people standing just outside 
the gates of the Embassy.
  We can contribute to the process of change in positive ways. One way 
is through student exchanges. Last month, Vermont students from 
Burlington, Essex, Shelburne, and Bristol traveled to Cuba to 
participate in a week of Little League baseball games and cultural 
exchange. Marcelle and I went to Burlington to see them off. I cannot 
begin to describe thrill in their faces, the excitement they felt. We 
gave them an American flag to take with them. The Vermonters didn't 
speak much Spanish, and the Cubans spoke almost no English, but it 
didn't really matter. They had translators, and the game of baseball is 
a language across cultures.
  Here is a picture of the Vermonters with the Cuban ball players 
holding the American flag that we gave them, the Cuban flag, and a 
Vermont flag. This was taken in Cuba. I love to take photographs. I 
wish I had been there to take that one. We know a picture is worth a 
thousand words. They show how just a few days of competing on a 
baseball diamond can help bridge a half-century divide between two 
countries and cultures. Anybody who has children--or grandchildren--who 
play baseball or Little League ball recognizes these smiles. We know 
what it means. They don't speak the same language, but they speak one 
language, which is the game of baseball.
  The Vermonters voiced high praise for the Cuban players who won all 
the games, except the all-star game at the end when they shared players 
and were evenly matched.
  But winning isn't everything. As the Vermont players recounted after 
returning home, it was not only a fun week of baseball, but one of the 
most rewarding parts of the trip was the time spent after the game 
getting to know the Cuban players, getting to know their families, and 
learning about life in Cuba.
  This is actually the second baseball exchange involving Vermont and 
Cuban Little Leaguers, the first being in 2008 when a group from 
Vermont and New Hampshire played a series of games on the outskirts of 
Havana. One of those players said the team went to Cuba just to have 
fun: ``We are not here to win. If they hear about us, maybe other teams 
will want to do this or maybe even get a Cuban team to the United 
States to play.''
  Lisa Brighenti in my office took this photograph. I think it says it 
all. You can't see their faces, but we know one is Cuban and one is 
American. These are kids playing a Little League game. And think of 
what this picture says to all of us.
  Children don't care about the politics. They don't even care about 
the differences in language. They just care about the things that unite 
them.
  I remember speaking with President Obama shortly after he became 
President and saying we had to change our policy toward Cuba. I told 
him there would be a memo saying he should hold tight, the Castros will 
be gone any day. I pointed out that same memo was sent to President 
Eisenhower and President Kennedy and President Johnson and President 
Nixon, and he said: I get your point.
  Nothing changed during more than half a century when we tried to 
isolate Cuba. Now I think change will come.
  Our governments remain far apart on key issues. A few Members of 
Congress continue to stubbornly obstruct efforts to end the embargo, 
but as every poll has shown in this country the American people--like 
these young Vermont athletes--are showing us a way forward by breaking 
down barriers on their own.
  I am so proud of these young Vermonters. They know. They know what 
the future looks like. As for the rest of us, let's step toward the 
future with them.

[[Page S2922]]

  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, what is the pending business?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate is in morning business, with time 
reserved for the Democrats.
  Ms. COLLINS. Thank you, Mr. President.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Sullivan). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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