Poll: Most Americans Want Cuba Travel Ban Lifted

Who wants to visit Cuba? Most Americans, according to a new poll that finds that two-thirds of those surveyed said the longstanding U.S. ban on travel to Cuba should be lifted.

The CNN poll also found that 71 percent of Americans say that the U.S. should reestablish diplomatic relations with Cuba.

There have been past false-starts in attempts to warm up U.S.-Cuba relations, but all indicators seem to point in the direction of rapid changes in the near future.

I think the Obama administration will want to see the Castro brothers make some gestures toward increased political freedom before it happens, but I expect the legislation now being proposed by Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) and Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) to get a very serious hearing on Capitol Hill and in the White House. Many Cuban-Americans still object to any easing of restrictions that could benefit the Castro regime. But broader public sentiment seems to be against them, and lawmakers like Lugar and Dorgan argue that the benefits to U.S. farmers and others would be significant -- not an insubstantial point given the current economic situation.

My money is on Cuba travel and tourism for Americans by 2011, if not sooner.

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