PANAMA CITY, (Reuters) – One of the most influential pro-business lobbyists in Washington said on Wednesday he is optimistic the U.S. Congress might lift the trade embargo against Cuba before the next presidential election in 2016.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Donahue, a longtime opponent of the embargo, said Republican opposition to removing Cuba sanctions could be overcome before the next presidential campaign. U.S. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, has eased parts of the embargo as part of his recent opening to Cuba and has asked Congress to work toward overturning it, but he faces opposition from the Republican leadership in both houses.
“I’m not worried about Republicans,” Donahue told Chamber members and reporters in Panama, where he is attending a business event ahead of a Summit of the Americas that brings together regional leaders, including Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro.
“We’re going to get it done before that,” he said, referring to the presidential election.
When asked if he was saying Congress would lift the embargo before the next president takes office in January 2017, he said, “I don’t make those kind of predictions, but there’s a lot of time … I have some hope that this thing can move in a pretty orderly manner.”
The Chamber has long opposed the U.S. embargo against Cuba as government interference in the private sector.
Under the embargo, U.S. companies have been banned from doing business with the communist-led island, which trades with the rest of the world.
