There is an overwhelming majority who prefer Obama to McCain, not because he’ll necessarily be the better president for the U.S., but because of Obama’s stance on the current embargo versus McCain’s view. NBC News reporters interviewed 100 people in the streets of downtown Havana with the following results: 63 said they preferred Obama, 2 preferred McCain, 13 had no preference, and 22 declined to answer.
The Cuba-U.S. blockade began during the Cold War. Recent American presidents have only continued the bloqueo to win votes in South Florida. This blockade is so obviously political when you consider: the anti-Castro community in Miami, Cubans are very hospitable to American tourists visiting their island, and America is still the seventh largest exporter to Cuba (4.3% of Cuba’s imports are from the U.S.). But Cuba needs even more help now. It was the worst hurricane season in Cuban history this summer with an estimated $5 billion of damage. Supplies have always been scarce but in many places it is feeling like a flashback to the “Special Period.” An estimated 500,000 Cubans are living in government shelters due to the damage from Hurricane Gustav and Hurricane Ike.

Hurricane Ike devastated Baracoa, causing five-story waves last month (September 7, 2008).
The chance of U.S. help won’t happen until President George Bush leaves office. Under Bush’s tightened restrictions, Cuban-American families can only visit their relatives in Havana once every three years. This means if you are a Cuban-American with a dying father, you cannot visit him on his deathbed in Cuba if you’ve seen him in the past three years. And when you do arrive, you cannot give your family more than $300. How does that help family values? Many Cubans are asking the same question. They believe Obama might be their answer.
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