Rep. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., the highest-ranking
Hispanic in Congress, told a Miami audience Monday that President Bush
has ignored the needs of Latin America and enacted policies on Cuba
that hurt families more than they hurt Fidel Castro. ''As it relates to
Latin America, I can cover the Bush administration so-called policy in
less than 30 seconds,'' said Menendez, chairman of the Democratic
Caucus. "The Bush administration, in my view, has no policy on Latin
America, aside from trade and counternarcotics programs.'' Addressing
an audience at Florida International University, he said Sen. John
Kerry "promises a vision that I hope to see become a reality. It is a
new vision and a dramatic change in U.S. foreign policy towards Latin
America.'' On Cuba, Menendez said the Bush administration punishes
Cuban-American families, tightening restrictions on visits to relatives
on the island even as U.S.-Cuba commercial exchanges have increased. He
said Kerry supports the U.S. embargo on Cuba but would push for a more
''humane'' policy and would provide massive U.S. humanitarian aid to
Cuba through the International Red Cross, not the Castro government. [more ]
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