America's #1 Online Cigar Auction
first, best, biggest!

Do you remember this article? There is just never enough hypocrisy in the world.

Bloomberg
June 20, 2001
By Jay Amberg

New York, June 19 -- Members of the U.S. Congress have exempted themselves from U.S. Department of the Treasury regulations that determine the value of Cuban produced products that can legally be brought back to the U.S., according to the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council Inc.

The Congressional Committee on Standards of Official Conduct of the U.S. House of Representatives recently authorized the exemption.

What this means, according to John S. Kavulich II, president of the council, is that members of Congress, following a licensed trip to Cuba, could bring back more Cuban cigars or other Cuban products than are currently permitted by U.S. Treasury regulations.

"Members of Congress, including members of the U.S. Senate, under separate rules, have been permitted to retain boxes of Cohiba brand and other Cuban produced cigar brands, some of which have been signed by Fidel Castro, the president of the Republic of Cuba," Kavulich said.

"A box of Cohiba brand cigars signed by Castro is generally valued at more than $1,000," he said.

According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the office that regulates the U.S. economic embargo against Cuba, individuals subject to U.S. law, including members of the U.S. Congress, travel to Cuba under the auspices of either an OFAC "General License" or an OFAC "Specific License."

They are permitted to return with up to $100 worth of Cuban-origin products (cigars, rum, T-shirts, crafts, etc.) for their personal use.

Kavulich said while the U.S. Customs Service permits returning U.S. citizens to bring back up to 100 Cuban cigars, the total value of the cigars can't exceed the OFAC's $100 maximum for licensed travelers returning from the island.

For a complete overview of OFAC rules and regulations pertaining to travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens, see www.treas.gov/ofac/, or the U.S. State Department Cuba travel site at www.state.gov/www/regions/wha/cuba/travel.html

The U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council is a private not-for-profit corporation which doesn't take position with respect to U.S. and Cuban political relations.

Hypocricy, oh yeah.

It also tells you how seriously politicians take the embargo...that is, not very much at all. A 2002 Gallup Poll found that 86% of Americans think we should end the embargo. I'd guess that many of them were surprised to find that it still exists (I find that amongst my friends and students, anyway).

Makes you wonder about the big question: is this democracy? Where an elite make a prohibitive law, then exempt themselves from it? Hardly democracy. I consider this sort of thing to be a subordination of all things democratic. I wish the public took such hypocrisy more seriously.

Is there a word worse than hypocrisy? If so, it applies here.

John

If they want to buy a product with poor quality control and pay a whopping price, it just shows a serious lack of judgement. That said, they are running the country...makes me think.

Jim

I doubt if my congressman (actually, congressperson) has an interest in cigars ... if she does, it'd be one of the very rare things we see eye-to-eye on ...