Trump still fighting necessary and inevitable Cuban revolution

Between 1898 and 1959, the US used Cuba as its economic piggybank, to the detriment of the Cuban people. Grabbing Cuba from Spain in the made up Spanish American War of 1898, America reneged on its promise to grant Cuba its independence for four years; then forced Cuba to allow US military intervention anytime it saw fit, which it did in 1906 and 1912. America eventually traded direct military intervention for puppet Cuban leaders; Gerardo Machado from 1924 to 1933, then infamous tyrant Fulgencio Batista from 1933 to New Years Day, 1959. His replacement Fidel Castro began undoing 61 years of US cruelty and exploitation which included US control of over 80% of the Cuban economy. US policy was simple: the Cuban people suffered so US capitalists, both legal in illegal, prospered.

The US response was to foment counter revolution to topple Castro, returning it to a US economic protectorate. Failing to either overthrow or assassinate Castro, US policy imposed an economic embargo that continues 60 years on. President Obama spent his eight years pursuing detente and reconciliation; re-establishing diplomatic relations, encouraging American travel, but failing to end the cruel, senseless economic embargo.

But Trump immediately reverted to the pre-Obama Cuban policy, vowing to overturn Obama's Cuban initiatives in his deranged mission to reverse every sensible Obama policy. He did little at first, mainly restricting US travel to Cuba and ending further detente. Now, lumping Cuba along with Nicaragua and Venezuela in his Latin American 'Troika of Evil', Trump has turned up the screws on Cuba: further restricting travel, limiting currency Americans can send to poor Cuban families, and expanding prohibited financial transactions with entities doing business with the Cuban government. But the big one is ending three decades which prevented Cuban refugees from suing companies doing business on former refugee property. The EU and other countries are pushing back, calling this policy reversal a violation of international law and a non-starter for their compliance. Once again, the sanction obsessed Trump is blowing up normal international diplomacy to feed his crazed mission to destroy all things Obama, the Cuban people be damned.

The Cuban revolution may have been necessary and inevitable, but cruel, heartless US policy in Cuba is anything but.