Wednesday, July 08, 2015

Marco Rubio Doesn't Like Reagan's Approach

Marco Rubio has an op-ed critical of Obama's Cuba policy. It is extremely difficult to understand the logic.

First, he says this is a Faustian bargain. I don't think this is what he means. A Faustian bargain is one in which you sell your soul for riches. I am guessing he refers to the "legacy" issue, but as I've already argued that makes no sense. He does mention U.S. businesses, but it's not clear to me whether he blames capitalism--it would be far more interesting and ironic if he did.

Second, he says we should learn from history:

Just as we have stood on the right side of history against the repression of other totalitarian regimes, we owe the Cuban people more time so we can get it right and not worsen their situation.

The problem here is that President Reagan--who credentials are untouchable for Republicans--had diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union while also criticizing the Soviets for human rights abuses. By the way, he went to the Soviet Embassy to give condolences for Leonid Brezhnev! So it makes sense to have diplomatic relations. It gives you leverage you lack otherwise.

I assume that Rubio would issue a complaint that Reagan was soft on Communism.

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