Flake to Cuba; GOP dead heat
Dec. 11, 2006 12:00 AM
Rep. Jeff Flake R-Ariz., is expecting to head to Cuba this month, in a scheduled trip with about nine other members of Congress to meet with representatives of the island nation's government.
The group also is expected to meet with officials from the U.S. Interests Section and some dissidents.
The trip, if not canceled by the Cuban government, comes as speculation continues to focus on the health of Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
The trip also would come on the heels of a recent General Accountability Office report that revealed some embarrassing news about how money is being spent to bring democracy to Cuba.
The GAO report, made public at the request of Flake and Rep. William Delahunt, D-Mass., disclosed that U.S.-taxpayer-funded anti-Castro groups have been spending the money on, among other things, Godiva chocolates, Harry Potter novels and video games.
Flake has been a leader in Congress in trying to ease the U.S. ban on civilian travel and trade with Cuba. But President Bush opposes the lifting of those restrictions, as well as an easing of embargoes.
How Flake's efforts might be affected by a new, Democrat-controlled Congress is uncertain.
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