Florida Senator Marco Rubio, who may run for president in 2016, is leading a Republican charge to do everything possible to block President Barack Obamas move to normalize relations with Cuba.
Yet even Rubio says there may be little the Republican-controlled Congress can do.
I would concede that many of the changes that have been made today, such as diplomatic relations, fall within the purview of the presidency, Rubio told reporters yesterday in Washington.
Rubio, whose parents left Cuba in 1956, said Republican lawmakers will use every tool at our disposal in the majority to unravel as many of these changes as possible.
Blocking funds for an embassy in Cuba and refusing to confirm an ambassador to the island nation are steps Rubio and others in his party suggested Congress might be able to take.
Were going to have a very interesting couple of years discussing how youre going to get an ambassador nominated and how youre going to get an embassy funded, said Rubio, who is set to become chairman of a panel that oversees foreign relations in the Western Hemisphere.
The White House shot back at Rubio today, with spokesman Josh Earnest calling it odd that the senator would try to block an ambassador to Cuba, given that he voted to confirm former Senator Max Baucus as ambassador to China earlier this year.
The president announced yesterday that the U.S. will open an embassy in Havana and loosen a half-century-old trade and travel embargo. Fully lifting the full trade embargo would require action by Congress, where both chambers will be led by Republicans starting in January.
Earnest told reporters yesterday that congressional appropriations may not be necessary to set up an embassy in Cuba because theres already a significant U.S. diplomatic presence there.
Obamas action, a day after Congress adjourned for the year, sets up another fight for early 2015 between the White House and Republican lawmakers as attention begins to turn to the 2016 presidential race. Rubio is among lawmakers considering a presidential run, as are fellow Republican senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky.
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Rubio Leads Republican Charge to Block Obamas Cuba Policy