Chef Jim Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 When Jeff Flake led a congressional delegation to Cuba nine years ago, he came, as is the custom, bearing gifts for his Communist hosts. But instead of a plaque or trinket, Flake brought copies of “The Wealth of Nations,” Adam Smith’s seminal economic treatise, and “Free to Choose,” Milton Friedman’s paean to capitalism. The gospel of free markets has yet to transform Cuba, but Flake will be in Havana on Friday to witness a milestone he has long advocated during his nearly 15 years in Congress: the reopening of the U.S. embassy and the formal end of a 54-year diplomatic freeze. “It’s going to be quite a moment,” said Flake, who has visited Cuba a dozen times, adding, “I wish there were some other Republicans.” http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-jeff-flake-became-the-senates-most-unorthodox-republican/2015/08/13/8363bb2e-2efb-11e5-97ae-30a30cca95d7_story.html Pretty pathetic the rest of The Party refused to go to this. Can't be part of anything this President does because he's just too, well, different, than other presidents. What do you mean by "different"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 When Jeff Flake led a congressional delegation to Cuba nine years ago, he came, as is the custom, bearing gifts for his Communist hosts. But instead of a plaque or trinket, Flake brought copies of “The Wealth of Nations,” Adam Smith’s seminal economic treatise, and “Free to Choose,” Milton Friedman’s paean to capitalism. The gospel of free markets has yet to transform Cuba, but Flake will be in Havana on Friday to witness a milestone he has long advocated during his nearly 15 years in Congress: the reopening of the U.S. embassy and the formal end of a 54-year diplomatic freeze. “It’s going to be quite a moment,” said Flake, who has visited Cuba a dozen times, adding, “I wish there were some other Republicans.” http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-jeff-flake-became-the-senates-most-unorthodox-republican/2015/08/13/8363bb2e-2efb-11e5-97ae-30a30cca95d7_story.html Pretty pathetic the rest of The Party refused to go to this. Can't be part of anything this President does because he's just too, well, different, than other presidents. Which party? Democrats or Republicans? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deranged Rhino Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 The main reason Vietnam didn't "work" is because of the absurd rules of engagement placed on our soldiers. As far as the larger role of the US, and our global military presence, that's our burden as the world's last superpower. It's also our privilege, as we get to project a Western moral philosophy, built around democracy, across the globe . Further, when we vacate our role, bad actors flow into the vacuum. The role of global leader won't go away if we shun it; it will rather be turned over to the likes of Putin and Xi Jinping. How well do you think they'll do with the mantle? That starts at home, and the past decade and change things at home have moved away from democracy towards corporate totalitarianism. It's hard to spread democracy and western philosophical ideals around the globe with a straight face when the government on the home front treats every American as a threat first rather than a citizen. imo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDBillzFan Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 What do you mean by "different"? Ever see Barry throw a baseball? I'm just saying'...you could call him Cait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
/dev/null Posted August 16, 2015 Share Posted August 16, 2015 Ever see Barry throw a baseball? I'm just saying'...you could call him Cait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azalin Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 That reminds me of Lamar throwing the javelin in Revenge of the Nerds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
....lybob Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 The bully who beat the Republicans twice and makes them cry everyday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDBillzFan Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 The bully who beat the Republicans twice and makes them cry everyday. Believe me...Republicans are no longer the only ones crying every day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keepthefaith Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 The windup looked promising, but then we were very disappointed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
/dev/null Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 The windup looked promising, but then we were very disappointed. It's not his fault. The previous administration left the pitchers mound in such poor condition Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 At 0:04, you can see the Republicans obstructing the throw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDBillzFan Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 At 0:04, you can see the Republicans obstructing the throw. And in all fairness, he didn't build that pitch. Someone else built it for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Man Posted March 8, 2016 Share Posted March 8, 2016 (edited) Obama’s Cuba Trip Showing Signs Of Imploding Diplomacy: President Obama’s “historic” trip to communist Cuba is showing signs of falling apart. Far from the beisbol and mojitos junket that the president’s PR team is selling, disputes are all over, starting with which dissidents the regime will let the president see. It goes to show what a bad idea this was. Making the first visit to the island since the Coolidge administration, President Obama’s public relations men are touting a host of fun-filled photo-op activities, such as a “shared love” of baseball, as well as new State Department talks with the Castroites “on cybercrime,” as Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes tweeted, apparently naive to the fact that any hackers in Cuba are agents of the Cuban government. In reality, there are signs of trouble all over with the March 21 visit. After all, this is not a normal relationship. The Cuban government’s goodwill toward the U.S. is nil, even as Obama showers goodies on them and caves in to their every demand. A presidential visit is the last thing they deserve. Yet the administration justifies the junket by saying the president’s trip will “advance our progress and improve the lives of the Cubans,” as White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough tweeted in Spanish. And indeed that’s an echo of President Obama’s original precondition to not visit Cuba until the Castroites improve the rights of Cuba’s citizens — who are fleeing the island in droves now, out of fear the Obama-Castro bromance will lead to an end of their migration privileges, a topic seemingly ignored. Notice the verbal sleight-of-hand: The Obama administration has subtly shifted its goal to now say the trip itself will improve the conditions of Cubans. For Cubans, there have been nothing but problems. For one, dissident arrests have risen fivefold since Obama announced the normalization of ties in late 2014. Some “improvement.” Now there’s even a question of which critics of the regime Obama will be allowed to meet in Havana. In repeated messages, Obama has stated that he wants to meet Cubans from “all walks of life” to justify this trip to Americans. The situation got so bad last week that Secretary of State John Kerry canceled his preparatory trip to Cuba after Cuban officials told him which Cuban dissidents President Obama could meet — and which ones he couldn’t. It was a valid reason to call off a trip. Heads of state in countries with normal relations don’t tell each other who they can meet. But President Obama’s trip is still a “go,” even as Cuba’s henchmen dictate which dissidents he can see — and which will wind up in prison to keep them out of sight. This is now a pattern. At the U.S. embassy opening in Havana last summer, Cuban dissidents were kept away to please the regime, while the U.S. public was told there was no room for them — as reporters (such as CNN’s Jake Tapper) tweeted pictures of wide open space and empty chairs. It was an obvious lie. At a minimum, the President should be shaking hands with Berta Maria Soler, who leads the wives of imprisoned dissidents group called Ladies in White, a group whose members are routinely beaten and jailed every time they walk the streets to church to remind people of their husbands. Jorge Antunez Perez, an Afro-Cuban leader who has been assaulted and jailed for speaking out against the Castroites’ Bull-Connor-style discrimination against black Cubans, also belongs in the list. Rosa Paya, whose dissident father was murdered by Castro’s agents in a “car accident,” merits a presidential visit, too. So does Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, thrown into Castro’s dungeons for years for advocating nonviolent resistance inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King. Even the “beisbol” issue reeks of tyranny: The Washington Post reported that the Obama administration and Major League Baseball have been in private talks for months with the Castro regime to let more Cuban players come to the U.S. to play here. But many already come here, by escaping Castro. These talks sound like a way to give Castro a cut of the players’ high professional earnings. Just another way that the Castro dictatorship leeches off its own people. Workers in Cuba, remember, have no rights, not even the right to their own earnings. If this isn’t a Potemkin trip in the making, what is? http://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/obamas-cuba-trip-showing-signs-of-imploding/ Edited March 8, 2016 by B-Man Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Man Posted March 9, 2016 Share Posted March 9, 2016 Cuba issues bristling editorial ahead of Obama visit https://ca.news.yahoo.com/cuba-issues-bristling-editorial-ahead-obama-visit-135811368.html HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba said it would welcome President Barack Obama to Havana later this month, but the Communist government had no intention of changing its policies in exchange for normal relations with the United States. In a long editorial on Wednesday in Communist Party newspaper Granma and other official media, Cuba demanded Washington cease meddling in its internal affairs and said Obama could do more to change U.S. policy. The March 20-22 visit from Obama comes 15 months after he and Cuban President Raul Castro agreed to end more than five decades of Cold War-era animosity and try to normalize relations. They have restored diplomatic ties, and Obama has relaxed a series of trade sanctions and travel restrictions, leading Republican opponents and even some of the president's fellow Democrats to question whether Washington was offering too much without any reciprocation from Havana. More at the link: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Man Posted March 19, 2016 Share Posted March 19, 2016 White House mum on Obama dissidents meeting in Cuba by Susan Crabtree Original Article The White House won´t yet say which political dissidents President Obama plans to meet with during his upcoming historic visit to Cuba, or whether any of those dissidents include prisoners the Castro regime is holding. Obama will arrive in Cuba on Sunday, and with less than 48 hours before he leaves, the White House is putting off providing a list of dissidents it invited for a meeting with Obama. Instead, White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Friday he hasn´t seen the list. More at the link: Looks like the "Rainbow Tour" is set...................if there was a list of meetings that would make Obama look good....it would have been released by now. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Man Posted March 20, 2016 Share Posted March 20, 2016 West Wing ReportsVerified account @WestWingReport 2h2 hours ago After the usual arrival formalities, President will meet U.S. Embassy personnel, then take tour of Old Havana, family in tow Cuba arrests dozens of human rights protesters before Obama's arrival http://usat.ly/1pCWIV1 via @usatoday Business as usual............... Nine Cubans die trying to reach US on eve of Obama's visittwitchy.com/2016/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unbillievable Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Obama should visit North Korea next. They can show him their grocery store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B-Man Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 Critics blast Obama’s trip to Cuba amid human-rights abuses by Marisa Schultz Original Article What was the point of this trip again? “Savior and scourge, Fidel Castro was many things to many people. One thing all can agree on: He loved his sports.” - ESPN A tyrannical socialist who loves sports — now there’s a first! Oh wait: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiberius Posted March 21, 2016 Author Share Posted March 21, 2016 Critics blast Obama’s trip to Cuba amid human-rights abuses by Marisa Schultz Original Article What was the point of this trip again? “Savior and scourge, Fidel Castro was many things to many people. One thing all can agree on: He loved his sports.” - ESPN A tyrannical socialist who loves sports — now there’s a first! Oh wait: No wonder why we have Trump. Every time Obama does anything, he is Hitler, Stalin and Chairman Mao all rolled into one in the right wing press. When Trump comes along and really is bad, the right wing electorate says oh well, since we already have a dictator, what's the difference? That's what's going on. Crying wolf so much has produced a wolf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 No wonder why we have Trump. Every time Obama does anything, he is Hitler, Stalin and Chairman Mao all rolled into one in the right wing press. When Trump comes along and really is bad, the right wing electorate says oh well, since we already have a dictator, what's the difference? That's what's going on. Crying wolf so much has produced a wolf That's funny. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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