Mel Watt is a congressman who represents part of Guilford County. But his district is a labyrinthine, artificially contrived absurdity that stretches all the way to Charlotte. It was devised by the powers-that-be to assure that we have a black congressman. Authorities have not gone to similar lengths to carve out districts that guarantee we have members of Congress who are Hispanic, Asian or native American.
In any case, this process is referred to as racial gerrymandering. It creates the appearance that Mel Watt is a member of Congress in part because of this awful practice.
In any case, we learn this week that Watt is going to Cuba with other members of Congress as part of an overall effort to thaw relations with that nation.
It is unsurprising that Watt is doing this. After one considers his politics, and that of his president, there can be little doubt they would like our nation to be more like Cuba.
Joe, you can legitimately criticize Mel Watt for a lot of things, but this isn't one. It's long past time to normalize relations with Cuba. The benefits likely would include liberalization, at least to some extent, of the Cuban government. It's certainly clear that the 50-year embargo hasn't worked.
Posted by: Lex | April 07, 2009 at 04:31 PM
Lex, for the most part, Cuba has not posed a major security threat to the United States over the last forty years or so. And that is partially because we have not enriched them and bolstered their economy; and also because we resisted international communism.
Every American dollar that enters Cuba potentially goes to the Castro's and the oligarchy that props them up:
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/cuba_otto_reich/2009/04/06/200388.html
Posted by: Joe Guarino | April 07, 2009 at 04:50 PM
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/07/black-caucus-members-meet-fidel-castro/ :
The U.S. delegation -- all Democrats -- included Lee and Reps. Mel Watt of North Carolina, Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri, Marcia Fudge of Ohio, Mike Honda and Laura Richardson of California and Bobby Rush of Illinois. All are also member of the Congressional Black Caucus except Honda.
Castro issued a statement saying that one member of the delegation, who he does not name, described American society as "racist" and said that former Secretary of State Colin Powell could have been president but his family rightly talked him out of it because of fear that he would be assassinated like Martin Luther King, Jr. was.
Castro said that one unnamed member of the delegation told him that Obama "can not go beyond liberalizing travel and allowing remittances by Cuban-Americans, because proclaiming the lifting of the blockade or the full normalization of bilateral relations could mean the impossibility for him to be re-elected. Besides, he reaffirmed that the anti-Cuban right wing still has enough power to corner him and prevent his re-election," Castro said.
Posted by: Joe Guarino | April 07, 2009 at 05:01 PM
"It's certainly clear that the 50-year embargo hasn't worked."
Gee, maybe you should tell that to Barry O:
"I will maintain the embargo. It provides us with the leverage to present the regime with a clear choice: if you take significant steps toward democracy, beginning with the freeing of all political prisoners, we will take steps to begin normalizing relations. That's the way to bring about real change in Cuba - through strong, smart and principled diplomacy."
...and:
"My policy toward Cuba will be guided by one word: Libertad. And the road to freedom for all Cubans must begin with justice for Cuba's political prisoners, the rights of free speech, a free press and freedom of assembly; and it must lead to elections that are free and fair."
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7011045005
And the evidence that Cuba has taken the steps Obama proposed is.....?
On the other hand, perhaps those statements are no longer operable, because such were subject to a "Hope 'n Change" official revision.
Posted by: bubba | April 07, 2009 at 05:58 PM
Cuban government has not changed significantly in 50 years. So why change our policy towards it?
Posted by: jaycee | April 07, 2009 at 06:01 PM
Fox News is now reporting that one of the black caucus members meeting with the Castro's said we should apologize to them.
Here is what our own Mel Watt said:
"You can't not talk to people and expect to get a desirable result," said Rep. Mel Watt, D-N.C., who added that the embargo "was not effective."
It seems to me we have had a desirable result with Cuba. Even though they are on our doorstep and a communist nation, we have not been seriously threatened by them since the Cuban missile crisis. That seems to me a pretty good result.
It has not been our goal to achieve regime change since JFK's Bay of Pigs fiasco. But we have wisely avoided making Cuba economically strong, because that would lead to more military power.
Overall, the statements of the Black Caucus members demonstrate they are way off to the left, and almost seem to be soulmates of the Castro brothers.
And apparently they did not want to discuss human rights too much because it would be insulting to their hosts. We should be so proud of Rep. Watt.
Again, here are the details:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/04/07/black-caucus-members-meet-fidel-castro/
Posted by: Joe Guarino | April 07, 2009 at 10:07 PM
It shouldn't matter if it's been 5, 50, 100 or 500 years. If a country just off the coast of Florida is still ruled by a regime that gave our enemy the go-ahead to point missiles at us, they don't deserve much of anything from us except a one-finger salute.
Bobby Rush and the rest of the chic crowd need to go to the corner and read Marx and Engels, Mao's Little Red Book or Walter Duranty's old Pulitzer Prize-winning dispatches praising Stalin's Five-Year Plan. That would make for a good Black Panther Party. That's all I got to say about that.
Posted by: Glenn Jordan | April 07, 2009 at 11:24 PM
I can see why the liberal Democratic Black Caucus (and Lex) loves the Socialist Republic of Cuba.
Birds of a (socialist) feather...
Posted by: jaycee | April 08, 2009 at 12:12 AM
Glenn and Jaycee, I agree for the most part.
On one level, I find it troubling that such radical members of Congress are traveling to a foreign nation to conduct diplomacy. It simply is not their place to do so. That is a big enough problem itself, that they would act as Obama's surrogates in this whole affair. If Obama wants to do diplomacy with Cuba, he should send people within his own administration, and take responsibility for it directly.
But it is even more troubling that a congressman representing part of Guilford County is among those members of Congress doing this.
Posted by: Joe Guarino | April 08, 2009 at 07:03 AM
I don't think Obama has anyone in his administration capable of such diplomacy, certainly he's not.
After his gaffes in Great Britain, Turkey, and Iraq during his recent "Apology Tour" I think he'd just screw up Cuba as well.
Obama is on the fast-track to being the Magnanimous Appeaser. I could foresee Obama throwing mucho U.S. taxpayer $$$ at Cuba and providing missile defense or some such nonsense to Fidel and his thugs.
And, yes, the trip by Mel Watt shows just how out of touch he is with his constituents and is a marvelous example of why racial gerrymandering makes for bad government.
Posted by: jaycee | April 08, 2009 at 10:18 AM
Jaycee, I agree unfortunately. The idea that Watt would even consort closely with some of the people that made the trip is of concern. And I truly doubt this foreign policy excursion would have taken place if the Obama administration had not given the green light. The president certainly does not appear to have spoken out against the trip.
But I agree, there is much that is worrisome and problematic with respect to Obama's stance on national security and foreign policy.
Posted by: Joe Guarino | April 08, 2009 at 10:42 AM
Is Watt really all that out of touch with amjority of his constituients? That's the shame about gerrymandered districts. If congressional districts were more compact, I think almost any NC Congressman, black, white, mixed, male female would think twice before doing too much Havana Daydreaming. (All due apology to Buffet. Jimmy not Warren.)
Posted by: Glenn Jordan | April 08, 2009 at 10:27 PM
Glenn, I am not sure he is out of touch with his district on this issue. I doubt his constituents would object so much to what he is doing that they would oust him. They would never elect a Republican; and the only way he could be taken out would be if he were to face a very strong primary opponent-- and beating him even under those circumstances probably would be very tough.
But you are right-- an artificially contrived district is a set-up for this kind of nonsense. Almost any normally demarcated district in the state would be less likely to tolerate Watt's foolishness, as you seem to suggest.
Posted by: Joe Guarino | April 08, 2009 at 11:02 PM
jaycee, I don't love the socialist regime in Cuba. My next-door neighbors when I was a kid were a Cuban emigre family who, under Castro, had had to leave the country on about 24 hours' notice.
But a lot can change in 50 years. I believe normalizing relations and trade NOW, something I haven't always supported, would be the best way to stimulate evolution toward a government more to our (and my) liking. Perhaps I'm wrong about that; I'm no expert. But we agree on the goal here. At least, I think we do.
Posted by: Lex | April 09, 2009 at 10:53 AM