House Committee to vote this week on Cuba travel ban

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This is the week we've all been waiting for months, even years.

On Wednesday, June 30, the House Committee on Agriculture will vote on H.R. 4645, the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act (originally it was called the "Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act").

The bill will restore the right to travel to Cuba for ALL U.S. citizens and also lift restrictions on agricultural sales to the communist island.

If the bill passes the Committee, then it will go to the full House of Representatives for a vote early during the week after the July 4 weekend. Here's the great news: the word in the Senate is that it has 62 votes in support. A done deal!

However, with just 205 committed votes in favor in the House, the bill is 13 votes short of passing. Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who favors the bill, is working to bring every possible reluctant Democrat on board.

Here's where YOU could make the difference. If you live in (or know someone who lives in) one of the following swing states with representatives whose votes are up for grabs, then it's time to take action TODAY!

If you live in Alabama, Georgia, Illinois Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, or Texas, you're in a pivotal position to put an end to the absurd and counter-productive restrictions and to regain your unconstitutional right to travel to Cuba!

These are the swing votes on the Agriculture Committee:

Cuellar D-TX-28
Halvorson D-IL-11
Kratovil D-MD-01
Murphy, Scott D-NY-20

These are the NO votes on the Agriculture Committee who need to be persuaded to vote YES:

Kissell D-NC-08
Roe R-TN-01
Schauer D-MI-07
Smith, Adrian R-NE-03
Rogers, Michael R-AL-03
Fortenberry R-NE-01
Marshall D-GA-08

If H.R. 4645 passes out of the Committee and goes to the floor of the House, we'll have only between July 1 and July 5 to contact the swing votes in the full House of Representatives to secure their YES votes for the Floor vote.

These are the "undecided" swing votes in the House of Representatives; 13 of whom must be persuaded to vote YES on H. R. 4645:

We live in a democracy, where our representatives are supposed to respond to the wishes of the people. To do so, we need you—the constituent—to make your voices heard. Together we need to inundate our representative's office with messages of support for H.R. 4645.

Please do the following on Monday, June 28 or Tuesday, June 29 (for more complete details, see Global Exchange).

1) Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to your congressperson's office.

2) Ask to speak with the Legislative Director.

a.) Ask if the Congressperson is supporting H.R. 4645, and if so, thank him/her,and ask him/her to work to educate reluctant colleagues on the importance of H.R. 4645 during the next week.

If the Legislative Director isn't available, leave a voice message asking for a YES vote on H.R. 4645 and for him/her to call you back.

b.) If your congressperson has not yet become a supporter of H.R. 4645, take a few extra steps: Email your Congressperson! Scroll down the page to the link,add your zip code, then follow the simple instructions. He/she needs to hear from you now!

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/625/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY....

c.) Immediately after you hit the send button, pick up the phone and CALL YOUR CONGRESSPERSON at (202) 224-3121. Follow the steps described above, and use this message:

"Hello, my name is ____________ and I'm a constituent of Representative ____________. I'm calling to ask my representative to vote in favor of H.R. 4645, the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act, which will restore my right as a U.S. citizen to travel to Cuba. The bill will also help U.S. farmers send agricultural products to Cuba, creating more than 6,000 U.S. jobs and help put food on Cuban's tables. I respect that Representative ____________ has taken his/her time to consider this issue, but, respectfully, it's time for him/her to move to the YES vote side. Please call me back right away at (your phone number) to let me know how my representative will vote."

The bill is a truly unprecedented opportunity. It's the best opportunity we've had in years to end the restrictions. And it could be our last chance for years to come.

Help me out here folks!

For further information about travel in Cuba, buy Moon Cuba

For further information on Havana, buy Moon Spotlight Havana.

Disclosure: I occasionally accept free or discounted travel when it coincides with my editorial goals. However, my opinion is never for sale. The opinions you see in Cuba & Costa Rica Journal are my unbiased reflection of the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Copyright © Christopher P. Baker