FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Thank you; it’s great to be here in Miami. I’ve been at the G-7 summit this weekend just a few miles north in Boca Raton, and we had a very productive meeting.  I was pleased to be able to report to that group some very good economic news from the U.S., and I’d like to share that news with you as well.

But first, there is another area of economic policy that I really want to talk to you about today, and that’s the United States’ policy on Cuba. Let me be perfectly clear and candid: The President loathes what the Cuban government has done to Cuba. Castro’s regime has crushed freedom and has held Cuba back from its enormous potential as an economic power and a friend to the United States.

The President is, however, very dedicated to the people of Cuba, who long for freedom and have suffered so much under Castro. Because of his
dedication to the people of Cuba, President Bush offered, in 2002, to ease U.S. bans on trade and travel… but only if the Cuban government held free and fair elections and allowed free speech and free enterprise.

Rather than take this opportunity to move toward a new day for the Cuban people, Castro was contemptuous in response to that offer.  Instead, he followed with a new round of brutal oppression of the Cuban opposition that sickened all those who respect human life, dignity and freedom.

You know this better than anyone: Until Castro’s reign is ended, any money that is spent in Cuba – for products or tourism – benefits only that oppressive government, not the hard-working people of Cuba.  Any economic benefit is used not to benefit the Cuban people, but instead to perpetuate the regime’s strangulation of its population.

That is why sanctions, especially on travel, are being vigorously enforced by the Bush administration, and why the President told Congress he would veto any attempt to weaken the prohibitions on travel and trade. As you know all too well, dollars spent at Cuban hotels go to the dictator’s government coffers. That government in turn pays only a few measly pesos to the staff who work at those hotels.

We must not and we can not have American dollars lining Fidel Castro’s pockets and those who would perpetuate his oppressive regime… and enforcement actions by the Department of the Treasury, along with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), are making sure that does not happen.

Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is working closely with Customs agents on inspecting all direct flights to Cuba at Miami, JFK and LAX. That’s hundreds of aircraft and tens of thousands of passengers… and agents are being extremely meticulous.

OFAC has provided on-site training, specifically on Cuba embargo travel restrictions, to over 500 DHS Customs inspectors. We have accomplished this training on-site in Miami, Los Angeles and JFK, and are now expanding our training efforts to reach Customs inspectors stationed at U.S. Customs Preclearance Facilities in the Caribbean and Canada. We’ve already trained Preclearance Customs staff in Bermuda, Nassau and Aruba. The training will assist inspectors in their efforts to detect illegal U.S. tourist travelers
to Cuba.

We are also providing training to Customs inspectors on a monthly basis at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, Georgia.

OFAC’s Miami Office is working with the Coast Guard to provide Cuba travel embargo training for its personnel.

By increasing training and awareness of existing law, we are tightening the economic noose around the regime.  We expect that this will result in an increase in OFAC civil penalties imposed.

Since October 10th, 264 cases have already been opened by OFAC’s enforcement division for investigation of alleged travel to Cuba.  Three cases have been referred for criminal investigation.

Also since the training and inspection efforts have intensified, at the direction of President Bush, nearly three hundred passengers have been denied travel after an examination revealed they did not qualify under any legitimate license category for travel to Cuba.

Stepped-up inspection efforts have also had a positive ripple-effect on our financial offensive. For example, using information gathered from these inspections, OFAC has been able to suspend licenses issued to two organizations previously authorized to engage in travel transactions allegedly related to humanitarian or religious activities in Cuba. OFAC is now investigating allegations that the licensees may have engaged in activities outside the scope of their licenses.

Homeland Security has assisted the OFAC sanctions program against Castro with almost 400 seizures of products like Cigars and alcohol… again, Cuban profit on these items is Castro’s profit, not the Cuban people’s, and that will not be tolerated by the United States government.

On March 24th, new OFAC rules eliminated the “people to people” educational license that had allowed educational travel unrelated to academic coursework.  The license had increasingly been abused for trips that amounted to little more than tourist travel, thus undermining the intentions of the U.S. sanctions against Cuba. So we got rid of it. Because we’re serious about enforcing the sanctions.

I’m pleased to announce to you, today, another enforcement action that is part of these rigorous efforts to choke off Castro’s supply of dollars:

OFAC is identifying and blocking ten entities that it has determined are owned or controlled by the Government of Cuba or Cuban nationals. They include entities organized and located in Cuba as well as entities organized and located in Argentina, the Bahamas, Canada, Chile, the Netherlands, and England. Nine of the ten are travel companies specializing in Cuba travel and one is a forwarder of gift packages to Cuba.

As a result of today’s action, all property of these entities that is in the possession of persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction is blocked and no persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction may engage in any transactions with these entities unless authorized by OFAC.

These companies have been providing easy access to Cuba to those U.S. individuals who chose to break the law. Today’s action will put a stop to that, and a stop to another illegal pathway for U.S. dollars to Castro’s wallet.

We’re cracking down. We mean business. We’re cutting off American dollars headed to Fidel Castro, period. At the same time, we’re reaching out to the freedom-hungry people of Cuba.

While we will not tolerate illegal travel to Cuba, we sympathize with those desperate to travel here from Cuba. Because until Cuba is free, people will risk their lives to come to these shores of freedom.

That’s why President Bush’s administration is dedicated to finding safe routes for Cubans who are fleeing Castro.

The President also established the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba. The purpose of that Commission, as the President said when he announced its creation, is to “plan for the happy day when Castro's regime is no more and democracy comes to the island.”

The Commission will draw upon experts in our government to plan for Cuba’s eventual transition  - for example, best practices on the establishment of democratic institutions; how to ensure a respect for human rights and rule of law; how to create the core institutions of a free economy; how to modernize infrastructure; and how to quickly meet basic needs in areas of health, education, housing, and human services.

President Bush is also breaking the information embargo that Cuban government has imposed on its own people. We’re doing that by increasing the amount and expanding the distribution of printed material to Cuba, of Internet-based information inside of Cuba, and of AM-FM and shortwave radios for Cubans.

Radio and TV Marti are bringing the message of freedom to the Cuban people. Earlier this year, we launched a new satellite service to expand our reach to Cuba. On May 20th, we staged the historic flight of Commando Solo, an airborne transmission system that broke through Castro's jamming efforts. On that day, our President was honored to speak to the Cuban people in the native tongue.

Until the Cuban people are free, President Bush and his administration will do everything in our power to keep dollars out of Castro’s pocket while extending the hand of freedom to the Cuban people.

Because we know that these efforts will lead us to a day when we will celebrate Cuba’s freedom together. A day when we will see and embrace Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, Martha Beatriz Roque, Oscar Espinosa Chepe, Leonardo Bruzon Avila, Juan Carolos Gonzalez Leyva… you know the names. They are in your hearts and prayers every day.

I look forward to that day of Cuban liberation, and dedicate myself and my office to speeding its arrival.

Before I leave here today, I want to share with you some good economic news that I hope is serving as inspiration to the leaders of the G-7 countries that I met with this weekend.

In recent months, it has become clear that President Bush’s tax cuts did precisely what they were intended to do: unleash the economic potential of this great country. Our economic indicators are now positive, across the board. Homeownership is up, unemployment rates are heading down, GDP growth has been extremely strong, and jobs are being created.

As you know, this administration came to office when those indicators were not nearly as positive. The President inherited an economy that was in decline… one that was then battered by terrorist attacks and revelations of corporate corruption dating back to the 1990s.

The President and his administration took these challenges seriously and we have made serious progress in changing the economic direction of this country.

As you’ve seen here in Florida – your economy is doing generally even better than the national economy – the President’s tax cuts have worked. They provided the stimulus that was necessary to turn the economic ship around…and they are now encouraging and allowing for the economic growth that is continuing into the future.

• Economic growth in the second half of 2003 was the fastest since 1984;
• New home construction was the highest in almost 20 years;
• Homeownership levels are at historic highs;
• Manufacturing activity is increasing;
• Inflation and interest rates are low;
• Over a quarter million jobs were created in the last five months of 2003, and over 100,000 were created in the first month of 2004;
• Unemployment claims – both initial claims and continuing claims – are falling, indicating improvement in the labor market;
• And two weeks ago, the Dow closed at a 31-month-high. This translates into more than three trillion dollars of growth in value in the markets.

These economic indicators all point to the same conclusion: We are on a path to sustained economic growth.

However, there is more to do. We are not, by any means, satisfied. There are still Americans who want to find work and cannot… and this Administration will not rest until that most critical need is met and until every American looking for work can find a job.

We can encourage the creation of jobs by sticking to the President’s six-point plan for growth.

That includes making health care more affordable and costs more predictable; passing tort reform measures to make the cost of doing business lower and less like Russian Roulette; passing an affordable, reliable energy supply; streamlining regulations and reporting requirements – particularly for small businesses, who create the majority of new jobs; opening new markets for American products; and enabling families and businesses to plan for the future with confidence by making the President’s tax relief permanent.

I talked about all of these things before Congress last week, as part of the release of the President’s budget. It’s a good budget, one that speaks to our national priorities of both national and economic security.

The budget combines fiscal restraint with growth-friendly policies that will ultimately add up to deficit reduction.

That’s where we are on our economy, and our economic policy right now… we’re in very good shape, and credit goes to hard-working Americans like you.

Thank you for all you do for our country and our economy, and for the people of Cuba.

Thank you so much for having me here today.