New poll shows bipartisan support for Obama's Cuba policy

New poll shows bipartisan support for Obama's Cuba policy
BY DAVID ADAMS
Wed Mar 11, 2015 5:57pm EDT

(Reuters) - A new national poll shows a bipartisan majority of American
voters support the Obama administration's new Cuba policy and would like
to see an end to the 50-year-old economic embargo against the
communist-ruled island.

The poll released on Wednesday by Beyond the Beltway, a joint public
polling initiative by Washington-based research consultants Benenson
Strategy Group and SKDKnickerbocker, found that most American voters
support expanding trade, travel, and diplomatic relations with Havana.

Some 64 percent of those surveyed supported ending the embargo,
including 74 percent of Democrats, 51 percent of Republicans, and 64
percent of independents.

A larger majority of voters - 72 percent - supported expanding travel
and trade by Americans and having diplomatic relations with Cuba. Of
those, 64 percent of Republicans under the age of 50 agreed that the
recent policy changes "are in the best interests of the U.S. and Cuban
people."

The poll of 1,032 registered voters was hailed by supporters of Obama's
historic announcement in December to renew diplomatic relations with
Cuba, as well as new regulations on travel and commerce with the island.

"This national poll makes it clear that the trend lines we've seen in
recent years continue to rise toward strong bipartisan support for our
new course on Cuba," said Ricardo Herrero, director of CubaNow, a
Miami-based advocacy group that backs the White House opening with Cuba.

Benenson is a Democrat-leaning polling group, which has also done work
for New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez, a Cuban-American Democrat and
vocal defender of the embargo.

While critics of the Cuba opening in Congress have so far not been able
to block the White House moves to normalize relations, the embargo is a
tougher issue for the Obama administration as it can only be removed by
an act of Congress. Both the House of Representatives and the Senate are
controlled by Republicans.

The poll appears to confirm other surveys conducted soon after the Dec.
17 announcement to normalize relations with Cuba, which showed strong
support for ending the embargo and re-establishing ties with the island,
even among Cuban exiles in Miami.

Benenson describes itself as a strategic research consultancy that
advises major companies and heads of state, including the president.

SKDKnickerbocker provides communications advice to companies as well as
political candidates.

The poll was conducted Feb. 26-27 among registered voters selected to
match national demographics of the voting population.

(Reporting By David Adams in Miami; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: New poll shows bipartisan support for Obama's Cuba policy |
Reuters -
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/11/us-cuba-usa-poll-idUSKBN0M72KO20150311