At the Summit of the Americas, President Obama took the next crucial steps in his quest to normalize relations with Cuba. Not only did he have a cordial meeting with Cuban leader Raul Castro, he announced that Cuba would be removed from the U.S. list of states that sponsor terrorism. Both actions have been long overdue.

Predictably, Obama's rapprochement with Cuba has drawn fire from hard-line hawkish elements in the United States. When the initial reports surfaced in December 2014 that the administration intended to seek diplomatic ties with Havana, outspoken conservatives blasted the move as appeasement of a brutal dictatorship and a betrayal of the oppressed Cuban people. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), the son of Cuban exiles, was especially caustic in his assessment. Critics renewed and intensified such allegations following Obama's latest initiatives.