Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/656275
ByJuliePaceand Michael Weissenstein The Associated Press HAVANA Laying bare a half-century of tensions, President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro prodded each other Monday over human rights and the longstanding U.S. economic embargo dur- ing an unprecedented joint news conference that stunned Cubans unaccus- tomed to their leaders be- ing aggressively questioned. The exchanges under- scored deep divisions that still exist between the two countries despite rapidly improved relations in the 15 months since Obama and Castro surprised the world with an announcement to end their Cold War-era dip- lomatic freeze. Obama, standing in Ha- vana's Palace of the Revolu- tion on the second day of his historicvisittoCuba,repeat- edly pushed Castro to take steps to address his coun- try's human rights record. "We continue, as Presi- dent Castro indicated, to have some very serious dif- ferences, including on de- mocracyandhumanrights," said Obama, who planned to meet with Cuban dissi- dents Tuesday. Still, Obama heralded a "new day" in the U.S.-Cuba relationship and said "part of normalizing relations means we discuss these differences directly." Castro was blistering in his criticism of the Amer- ican embargo, which he called "the most important obstacle" to his country's economic development. He also pressed Obama to re- turn the Guantanamo de- tention center, which is on the island of Cuba, to his government. "There are profound dif- ferences between our coun- tries that will not go away," Castro said plainly. White House officials spent weeks pushing their Cuban counterparts to agree for the leaders to take questions from report- ers after their private meet- ing, reaching agreement just hours before Obama and Castro appeared be- fore cameras. It's extremely rare for Castro to give a press conference, though he has sometimes taken ques- tions from reporters spon- taneously when the mood strikes. While the issue of polit- ical prisoners is hugely im- portant to Cuban-Ameri- cans and the international community, most people on the island are more con- cerned about the shortage of goods and their struggles with local bureaucracy. Castro appeared agitated at times during the ques- tioning, professing to not understand whether inqui- ries were directed to him. But when an American reporter asked about po- litical prisoners in Cuba, he pushed back aggres- sively, saying if the jour- nalist could offer names of anyone improperly impris- oned, "they will be released before tonight ends." "What political prison- ers? Give me a name or names," Castro said. Cuba has been criticized for briefly detaining dem- onstrators thousands of times a year but has drasti- cally reduced its practice of handing down long prison sentences for crimes human rights groups consider to be political. Cuba released doz- ens of prisoners as part of its deal to normalize rela- tions with the U.S., and in a recent report, Amnesty In- ternational did not name any current prisoners of conscience in Cuba. Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy national security adviser, said the U.S. reg- ularly raises specific cases and some are resolved, but added Cuba typically insists they're being held for other crimes. Rhodes said, "I've shared many lists with the Cuban government." Obama's and Castro's comments were broadcast live on state television, which is tightly controlled by the government and the Communist Party. At an outdoor cafe in Ha- vana, about a dozen Cubans and tourists watched in awed silence. One woman held her hand to her mouth in shock. "It's very significant to hear this from our presi- dent, for him to recognize that not all human rights are respected in Cuba," said Raul Rios, a 47-year- old driver. Ricardo Herrera, a 45-year-old street food ven- dor said, "It's like a movie but based on real life." After responding to a handful of questions, Cas- tro ended the news confer- ence abruptly, declaring, "I think this is enough." Obama then appeared to lean in to pat Castro on the back. In an awkward mo- ment, the Cuban leader in- stead grabbed Obama's arm and lifted it up as the U.S. president's wrist dangled, an image that immediately grabbed attention on social media. White House officials said Obama did not plan to meet with Fidel Castro, the older brother of the Cuban president and his predeces- sor in office, hoping to keep the visit focused on the fu- ture of the island. Rhodes, the White House adviser, said there were also other considerations, including Castro's "health issues." Obama, in an interview with ABC News, said he has no problem with such a meeting "just as a symbol of the end of this Cold War chapter." Obama's visit to Cuba is a crowning moment in his and Raul Castro's bid to normalize ties between two countries that sit just 90 miles apart. The U.S. leader traveled with his family and was taking in the sights in Old Havana and attending a baseball game between the beloved Cuban national team and the Tampa Bay Rays of America's Ameri- can League. Several American busi- ness leaders joined Obama on the trip, many eager to gain a foothold on the island nation. Technology giant Google announced plans to open a cutting-edge on- line technology center offer- ing free Internet at speeds nearly 70 times faster than those now available to the Cuban public. Obama said Google's efforts in Cuba are part of a wider plan to im- prove access to the Internet across the island. While Castro has wel- comed increased economic ties, he insisted his country would still suffer as long as the American economic em- bargo was in place. Obama has called on Congress to lift the blockade, but law- makers have not held a vote on the repeal. HISTORIC VISIT Obama, Castro lay bare tensions on embargo, rights RAMONESPINOSA—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Cuban President Raul Castro, right, li s up the arm of President Barack Obama at the conclusion of their joint news conference at the Palace of the Revolution on Monday in Havana, Cuba. By Ricardo Alonso- Zaldivar The Associated Press WASHINGTON There's growing evidence that most of the dramatic gain in the number of Americans with health care coverage is due to President Barack Obama's law, and not the gradual recovery of the na- tion's economy. That could pose a polit- ical risk for Republicans running against "Obam- acare" in the GOP prima- ries as they shift to the gen- eral election later this year. While the health care law remains highly unpopular in the party, the prospect of taking away health care cov- erage from millions of peo- ple could trigger a backlash if the eventual GOP nomi- nee's plan to replace it is seen as coming up short. "There are different phases of the campaign," said GOP pollster Bill Mc- Inturff. Playing to like- minded voters in the prima- ries, Republican front-run- ner Donald Trump doesn't have to spell how he'd re- place Obama's law. "When you get to the general elec- tion, the demand for what you are going to do differ- ent starts to escalate." Under "Obamacare," the share of Americans with- out health insurance has dropped to a historic low of about 9 percent, with room to go even lower. But even as the economy has ex- panded, major government surveys point to a lackluster rebound for employer-based coverage. "It's very clear that the Affordable Care Act has done most of the work in decreasing the number of uninsured," said econo- mist Robert Kaestner of the University of Illinois at Chicago. The numbers vary across different government sur- veys, but the overall pattern is strikingly similar: • The Census Bureau's American Community Sur- vey found about 3 million more people gained em- ployer coverage between 2010, when the health law passed, and 2014. But the number of uninsured peo- ple dropped by more than 10 million during that same period. The strongest gains appeared to come from Medicaid, which was ex- panded under Obama's law. The percentage of Ameri- cans covered by employers stayed about the same. • The National Health Interview Survey from the Centers for Disease Con- trol and Prevention also found that employer cover- age was essentially flat be- tween 2010 and 2014. But the same survey found 12.6 million more people with health insurance during that period. • The Census Bureau's Current Population Sur- vey found no statistically significant change in the number of people covered by employers from 2013 to 2014, while the number of uninsured people dropped by nearly 9 million as the law's main coverage expan- sion got under way during that time. "This kind of shift in in- surance I don't think can be explained by the economy," economist Christine Eibner of the RAND Corporation said. "The increase (in cov- erage) is large enough that it can't be driven by just economic recovery." Kaestner said "most of the heavy lifting" seems to be coming from Medicaid expansion. Employer-provided in- surance plans remain the mainstay for workers and their families, covering an estimated 150 million to 170 million Americans. But even before the 2007-2009 economic recession, work- place coverage was steadily shrinking because of rising medical costs. Obama's law provides subsidized private insur- ance for those who don't have access at work, along with a Medicaid expansion geared to low-income adults in states that agreed to do so. Most individuals are re- quired to have coverage, and larger employers must offer it or face fines. The health care law has been difficult to nav- igate for consumers, and its skinny policies can ex- pose patients to high med- ical bills. But it's becoming a backstop for millions of Americans in a changing economy. On the campaign trail, Republican presiden- tial candidates denounce "Obamacare" for a litany of woes. But some promi- nent conservative experts recognize that the law has increased coverage, even as they propose other ap- proaches to meet that goal. "Repealing the law with- out a plausible plan for re- placing it would be a mis- take," said a policy pa- per from 10 leading GOP health policy experts, pub- lished by the business-ori- ented American Enterprise Institute. Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has already previewed how Democrats might use the issue this fall, frequently reminding voters they risk losing some pop- ular benefits if the health care law is eliminated. Meanwhile, a nonpartisan analysis of Trump's initial outline for repealing and re- placing the health care law found it would push mil- lions back into the "unin- sured" category. The analysis last week from the nonpartisan Com- mittee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that the Trump plan would in- crease the number of unin- sured by about 21 million people while costing the government nearly $500 billion over 10 years. 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