[xyahoo]

There's more to the Cuban embargo than meets the eye. It is true that the Southern Florida Cuban exile community wields a disproportional amount of influence. Florida is almost equally divided between Democrats and Republicans, and is a big state in terms of electoral votes; so when a sizeable block like the Cuban exiles votes a certain way, it can tip the balance.

However, that is not the entire story. If we (US) were really that concerned about the lost property of the Cubans expelled by Castro, we would also look inward and ponder the fate of the British supporters kicked out in 1776; the KMT supporters kicked out by Mao; etc.

If we can trade with China, Russia, etc. then there's no reason we can't trade with Cuba. In fact, the opening of the borders with USSR is often listed as one of the key factors in bringing it down; so why not do the same with Cuba?

[mcantelon]

Relations, of course, aren't based on morality, they're based on strategy. Otherwise the US wouldn't have allies like Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan.