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| The Latest: Obama praises courage of Cuban dissidents | The Latest: Obama praises courage of Cuban dissidents |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| HAVANA — The Latest on President Barack Obama’s trip to Cuba (all times local): | HAVANA — The Latest on President Barack Obama’s trip to Cuba (all times local): |
| 12:10 p.m. | |
| President Barack Obama is praising a group of Cuban dissidents for showing “extraordinary courage.” | President Barack Obama is praising a group of Cuban dissidents for showing “extraordinary courage.” |
| Obama is meeting with a group of about a dozen activists at the U.S. Embassy in Havana. | |
| He is noting that the group represented various causes and some in the room have been detained by government authorities — “some in the past, some very recently.” Some have broad concerns about democracy and “the ability to speak freely, worship freely.” He says: “It requires, often times, great courage to be active in civic life here in Cuba.” | He is noting that the group represented various causes and some in the room have been detained by government authorities — “some in the past, some very recently.” Some have broad concerns about democracy and “the ability to speak freely, worship freely.” He says: “It requires, often times, great courage to be active in civic life here in Cuba.” |
| The group includes journalist Miriam Celaya, attorney Laritza Diversent and activist Manuel Cuesta and Jose Daniel Ferrer. | The group includes journalist Miriam Celaya, attorney Laritza Diversent and activist Manuel Cuesta and Jose Daniel Ferrer. |
| Obama says the U.S.-Cuba policy is about engaging people directly. He says he hopes “that by listening and hearing” from Cuban people that U.S. policy will help them “live freely and with prosperity.” | |
| He says: “Much of this is a matter of us being able to hear directly from the Cuban people and making sure that they have a voice and making sure that their concerns and their ideas are helping to shape U.S. policy.” | He says: “Much of this is a matter of us being able to hear directly from the Cuban people and making sure that they have a voice and making sure that their concerns and their ideas are helping to shape U.S. policy.” |
| ___ | ___ |
| 11:55 a.m. | 11:55 a.m. |
| Prominent members of Cuban society who attended President Obama’s keynote address say they are pleased with the president’s message that the U.S. is a friend in helping the nation’s transition, but they also stress that change will come at a pace set by Cuba, not the United States. | Prominent members of Cuban society who attended President Obama’s keynote address say they are pleased with the president’s message that the U.S. is a friend in helping the nation’s transition, but they also stress that change will come at a pace set by Cuba, not the United States. |
| “I think it’s very important that President Obama has recognized the accomplishments of the Cuban people,” says Heriberto Feraudy, a writer. | “I think it’s very important that President Obama has recognized the accomplishments of the Cuban people,” says Heriberto Feraudy, a writer. |
| Feraudy is emphasizing that Raul and Fidel Castro have both already said they would make whatever changes were necessary for the country. | Feraudy is emphasizing that Raul and Fidel Castro have both already said they would make whatever changes were necessary for the country. |
| Gladys Abreu, head of the Cuban Society of Pediatrics says Obama “has delivered us a message of collaboration between the two people, and we agree with that.” | Gladys Abreu, head of the Cuban Society of Pediatrics says Obama “has delivered us a message of collaboration between the two people, and we agree with that.” |
| She says Obama’s calls for change won’t change the pace of reforms. Still, the message that the U.S is no longer a threat is welcome. | She says Obama’s calls for change won’t change the pace of reforms. Still, the message that the U.S is no longer a threat is welcome. |
| “We’re on the path. That path will be easier if there isn’t confrontation,” Abreu said. | |
| ___ | ___ |
| 11:10 a.m. | 11:10 a.m. |
| President Barack Obama is usually a harsh critic of the GOP candidates running to succeed him. On Tuesday, he held them up as evidence of American progress. | President Barack Obama is usually a harsh critic of the GOP candidates running to succeed him. On Tuesday, he held them up as evidence of American progress. |
| Speaking in Havana on his historic first visit, Obama asked the audience to “stop and consider” the remarkable cast of candidates running this year. | Speaking in Havana on his historic first visit, Obama asked the audience to “stop and consider” the remarkable cast of candidates running this year. |
| “You have two Cuban Americans in the Republican Party running against the legacy of a black man who is president while arguing that they’re the best person to beat the Democratic nominee, who will either be a woman or a democratic socialist.” | “You have two Cuban Americans in the Republican Party running against the legacy of a black man who is president while arguing that they’re the best person to beat the Democratic nominee, who will either be a woman or a democratic socialist.” |
| “Who would have believed that back in 1959? That’s a measure of our progress as a democracy.” | “Who would have believed that back in 1959? That’s a measure of our progress as a democracy.” |
| Obama didn’t name the two Cuban contenders — Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who has suspended his campaign, or Texas Sen. Ted Cruz by name. Both have been harsh critics of Obama’s warming of relations with Cuba. | Obama didn’t name the two Cuban contenders — Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who has suspended his campaign, or Texas Sen. Ted Cruz by name. Both have been harsh critics of Obama’s warming of relations with Cuba. |
| ___ | ___ |
| 11 a.m. | 11 a.m. |
| U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan is giving a thumbs-down to President Barack Obama’s trip to Cuba. | U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan is giving a thumbs-down to President Barack Obama’s trip to Cuba. |
| Asked what he thought about the president’s visit, Ryan said: “Not much.” | Asked what he thought about the president’s visit, Ryan said: “Not much.” |
| The Wisconsin Republican said it was “fairly ironic” that Obama was in Cuba on Tuesday when an influential pro-Israel lobbying group was holding a conference in Washington. Ryan said that in Washington, “we were talking about standing up for our allies, fighting for freedom, standing up for national security, and the president takes a trip to Cuba where he effectively gets nothing in return and he legitimizes a tyrannical dictatorship.” | The Wisconsin Republican said it was “fairly ironic” that Obama was in Cuba on Tuesday when an influential pro-Israel lobbying group was holding a conference in Washington. Ryan said that in Washington, “we were talking about standing up for our allies, fighting for freedom, standing up for national security, and the president takes a trip to Cuba where he effectively gets nothing in return and he legitimizes a tyrannical dictatorship.” |
| ___ | ___ |
| 10:35 a.m. | 10:35 a.m. |
| President Barack Obama is keeping up his push to lift the U.S. trade embargo against Cuba. | President Barack Obama is keeping up his push to lift the U.S. trade embargo against Cuba. |
| Obama says the blockade hurts the Cuban people by cutting them off from the world and restricting economic growth. | Obama says the blockade hurts the Cuban people by cutting them off from the world and restricting economic growth. |
| Speaking in Havana on Tuesday, Obama said: “It’s time to lift the embargo.” | Speaking in Havana on Tuesday, Obama said: “It’s time to lift the embargo.” |
| Obama has repeatedly cast the decades-old economic sanctions as an outdated holdover from another time — a policy that should be cast aside for new approach. He says “We are in a new era” and that it’s time to “leave behind the ideological battles of the past.” | Obama has repeatedly cast the decades-old economic sanctions as an outdated holdover from another time — a policy that should be cast aside for new approach. He says “We are in a new era” and that it’s time to “leave behind the ideological battles of the past.” |
| ___ | ___ |
| 10:25 a.m. | 10:25 a.m. |
| President Barack Obama says he’s come to Cuba to “bury the last remnant of the Cold War in the Americas.” | President Barack Obama says he’s come to Cuba to “bury the last remnant of the Cold War in the Americas.” |
| Obama notes his lifetime has spanned the time of isolation of between the two countries and the decades of constant confrontation. But he says the two countries share the same values and someday the decades of hostilities will be viewed as just “one chapter in a longer story of family and of friendship.” | Obama notes his lifetime has spanned the time of isolation of between the two countries and the decades of constant confrontation. But he says the two countries share the same values and someday the decades of hostilities will be viewed as just “one chapter in a longer story of family and of friendship.” |
| Obama is speaking from the Grand Theater of Havana, with Cuban President Raul Castro and his presumed successor, Cuba’s First Vice President Miguel Diaz Canel, looking on. | Obama is speaking from the Grand Theater of Havana, with Cuban President Raul Castro and his presumed successor, Cuba’s First Vice President Miguel Diaz Canel, looking on. |
| Obama stressed differences between the countries, noting Castro has discussed them at length during his visit. But Obama says Cuba and the U.S. share similar colonial roots and he says the countries are like two brothers who’ve been estranged for many years even though they share the same blood. | Obama stressed differences between the countries, noting Castro has discussed them at length during his visit. But Obama says Cuba and the U.S. share similar colonial roots and he says the countries are like two brothers who’ve been estranged for many years even though they share the same blood. |
| ___ | ___ |
| 9:05 a.m. | 9:05 a.m. |
| A number of Cuban dissidents are preparing to meet President Barack Obama on the final day of his visit to the island. | A number of Cuban dissidents are preparing to meet President Barack Obama on the final day of his visit to the island. |
| Catholic activist Dagoberto Valdes says the detente between the two countries has been hard to imagine. He says it’s a challenge both for Obama and for Cuba. | Catholic activist Dagoberto Valdes says the detente between the two countries has been hard to imagine. He says it’s a challenge both for Obama and for Cuba. |
| He says he plans to remind the U.S. leader that “we Cubans are the protagonists of our history.” It’s a point Obama himself made in statements on Monday. | He says he plans to remind the U.S. leader that “we Cubans are the protagonists of our history.” It’s a point Obama himself made in statements on Monday. |
| Some of those invited to the meeting at Havana’s U.S. Embassy were briefly detained by police during a protest demonstration on Sunday. | Some of those invited to the meeting at Havana’s U.S. Embassy were briefly detained by police during a protest demonstration on Sunday. |
| ___ | ___ |
| 8:45 a.m. | 8:45 a.m. |
| The streets around Havana’s National Theater are almost completely empty of ordinary Cubans shortly before U.S. President Barack Obama is to deliver the main speech of his history-making visit to Cuba. | The streets around Havana’s National Theater are almost completely empty of ordinary Cubans shortly before U.S. President Barack Obama is to deliver the main speech of his history-making visit to Cuba. |
| Hundreds of plainclothes policemen and women fill the streets for blocks around. People invited by the Cuban government, including doctors in white coats, are filing from buses into the theater. | Hundreds of plainclothes policemen and women fill the streets for blocks around. People invited by the Cuban government, including doctors in white coats, are filing from buses into the theater. |
| Two enormous framed flags — one Cuban and one American — hang on the stage behind where the president will speak, along with the smaller flags on poles behind him. | Two enormous framed flags — one Cuban and one American — hang on the stage behind where the president will speak, along with the smaller flags on poles behind him. |
| Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |