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Posted on Wed, Jun. 18, 2003 in
The Miami
Herald.
U.S. pulls plug on Cuba expo
By Nancy San Martin. Nsanmartin@herald.com.
WASHINGTON - U.S. officials have denied permission for travel to Cuba to
organizers of last year's unprecedented U.S. Food and Agribusiness Exhibition in
Havana, as part of the Bush administration's reply to the dissident crackdown on
the island.
In a letter made public Tuesday, the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign
Assets Control, which issues the travel licenses, stated that two travel
requests were denied "based on foreign policy guidance received from the
Department of State.''
Exhibition organizers had applied for separate licenses to travel to Cuba to
organize a second food and agricultural fair in Havana as well as a healthcare
exhibition.
The letter dated June 2 was sent to Peter Nathan, the organizer of the
events. He could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
A State Department official said: "We always look at these requests
with an eye toward circumstances on the ground in Cuba. Certainly, circumstances
in Cuba have changed drastically over the past few months. Clearly, events such
as agricultural and health fairs are not appropriate in light of the mass
arrests.''
Taylor Griffin, a Treasury Department spokesman, said the agency is
committed to ''full and fair enforcement'' of U.S. policy toward Cuba and --
repeating comments previously made by President Bush -- would not issue licenses
for events that would help "line the pockets of Fidel Castro and his
cronies.''
The Bush administration released new travel rules on March 24, following the
arrests of scores of government opponents across the island. Summary trials were
held in April and the government ultimately sentenced 75 dissidents to up to 28
years in prison.
When the new travel restrictions were released, officials said the rules
were in response to Bush's ''Initiative for a New Cuba'' announced last May. The
president's initiative is intended "to encourage freedom within Cuba, make
life better for the Cuban people and give the Cuban people greater control of
their economic and political destiny.''
Other revisions include no longer issuing permits to organizations that take
individuals to Cuba to participate in ''educational'' exchanges that are not
related to academic course work and allowing travelers with relatives in Cuba to
carry as much as $3,000 in household remittances, up from $300, each quarter.
The increase in the cash flow is intended to help up to 10 households per
traveler receive funds, some of which is meant to reach government opponents.
The U.S. Food and Agribusiness Exhibition, held in September, included 923
representatives from 291 U.S.-based companies and state organizations, according
to the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council in New York. An estimated $92
million in contracts and agreements were signed between exhibition participants
and the Cuban government.
Mel Martínez rules out U.S. Senate bid
By Peter Wallsten. Pwallsten@herald.com. Posted on Wed,
Jun. 18, 2003
Despite months of pleading from high-level national Republicans eager for a
strong contender to take Bob Graham's Senate seat, U.S. Housing Secretary Mel
Martínez said Tuesday he has ruled out a bid.
Instead, the Cuban-born former chief executive of Orange County said he
plans to remain on President Bush's Cabinet through the 2004 presidential
election, then assess his chances to succeed the president's brother as Florida
governor in 2006.
''I really view myself as more in the executive mold than I do in the
legislative mold,'' Martínez told The Herald during an interview in
Miami, where he was addressing business leaders this week.
''I'm not running for the U.S. Senate,'' he added. "I can close that
door and close it shut.''
Tuesday's remarks marked Martínez's first detailed public comments on
his political future since speculation began brewing earlier this year that GOP
strategists were leaning heavily on him to run for the Senate.
Some of them worry that the two leading Republicans in the race -- U.S. Rep.
Mark Foley, R-West Palm Beach, and former Rep. Bill McCollum -- might not be
strong enough to win next year. Graham is running for president, leaving an open
seat that could help the GOP solidify its narrow majority in the Senate.
Martínez's decision to forgo the race comes as leading Republicans
have encountered trouble enticing their first-choice candidates in other states,
as well, such as former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar and Rep. Jennifer Dunn of
Washington.
MOBILIZING HISPANICS
Republican sources say President Bush and his chief political advisor, Karl
Rove, had tried to encourage Martínez to enter the Senate race in part
because he would mobilize critical Hispanic voters.
Martínez on Tuesday declined to discuss his conversations with the
White House, saying only that the requests for him to run came from "a lot
of friends, people in [Miami] and my hometown in Orlando, and a lot of people
interested in the party.''
Some of the most intense pressure came from Virginia Sen. George Allen,
chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and Pennsylvania Sen.
Rick Santorum, one of the Senate's top Republicans.
A White House spokeswoman, Jeanie Mamo, said Tuesday that Bush was pleased
Martínez would remain in his job.
As the head of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development since
2001, Martínez has built a reputation in Washington as a thoughtful,
substantive leader and future GOP star.
Washington Post columnist David Broder wrote admiringly a year ago that Martínez
is friendly, low-key and "comfortable with himself and seemingly content to
let things develop at their own pace.''
In recent weeks, Martínez has irked the powerful mortgage lending
industry and some congressional Republicans with his push to eliminate ''junk
fees'' that are routinely charged to home buyers at closing.
Martínez, a 56-year-old who fled Cuba as a teenager, said he thought
hard about running for the Senate, but in the end decided that he had no
interest in ''job hopping'' and was not excited about the idea of operating as
one of 100 senators.
Martínez made it clear Tuesday that he was beginning to consider a
vision for the state, although he said he would not decide on a run until after
next year's elections.
He added that his experience outside of Florida has made him yearn to
return, and that state issues such as growth management and education "really
charge my batteries.''
''You live in Virginia, and all of a sudden you begin to see a different
education system,'' said Martínez, who is living in McLean, outside
Washington. "You begin to wonder why it can't be better in Florida.''
SPLIT POSSIBLE
A Martínez candidacy for governor would set the stage for a GOP
primary that could split party leaders along ideological and ethnic lines.
Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher is considered the front-runner, with a
massive fundraising base and years of experience as a statewide contender. But
Martínez would bring the support of President Bush, if the president is
reelected. As the former president of the state's trial lawyers association,
Martínez could also win the backing of a group that typically funnels
millions of dollars into Democratic campaigns. | 
