Report: Obama Expected To Visit Cuba
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HAVANA (CBSMiami) – President Barack Obama is expected to visit Cuba in March, sources told CBS News on Wednesday.
He would be the first U.S. president to visit the island nation since Calvin Coolidge did so in 1928.
The move comes after the Obama administration began to normalize relations with the Cuba in late 2014 following the release of American Alan Gross.
The policy shift was the culmination of secret talks between the US and Cuba that included a series of meetings in Canada. Pope Francis was also involved in the discussion.
At CNN's GOP Town Hall, Sen. Marco Rubio was questioned on the president's trip.
Rubio said as president he would not go "if it's not a free Cuba."
He added, "...they are a repressive regime. There's no election in Cuba. There is no choice in Cuba. I want the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba to change but it has to be reciprocal."
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen also chimed in on the announcement.
"What happened to make the conditions right? Absolutely nothing! In fact, they have deteriorated since the president made is speech," she said.
Just recently, U.S. and Cuban transportation officials finalized an agreement to re-establish commercial air travel between both countries.
Several economic opportunities have presented themselves as well.
In early February, U.S. Federal Communications Commission chairman Tom Wheeler traveled to Havana meet with Cuban officials about increasing Cuba's connections to the Internet.
Hollywood is also getting more involved on the vibrant island country.
Showtime's "House of Lies" made history being the first scripted American TV show to shoot on the island since the Cuban embargo began more than 50 years ago.
And "Furious 8" could be first blockbuster shot there since the embargo.
While the embargo is still in place, that could change soon.
President Obama called for its end in his final State of the Union address.
The president has already used executive authority twice to ease the embargo as part of his opening to the island nation. He would need the help of Congress to lift the embargo.
His request comes as renewed relations between both nations has prompted an influx of travelers and business to the island nation.
Cuban leaders have called for the embargo to be lifted, saying it is a make or break when it comes to normalizing relations with the U.S.
