One of the toughest critics of President Barack Obama’s efforts to restore relations with Cuba will now be working to help the transition team for the next Commander-in-Chief.
Mauricio Claver-Carone, the executive director of the U.S.-Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee, was named by President-elect Donald Trump as a member of the group that will help map strategy and policy for when Trump takes the oath of office January 20th.
USCD PAC says they are a non-partisan group promoting the transition in Cuba toward human rights and the rule of law. Claver-Carone will work on the transition team for the Treasury Department, where he once worked as an attorney and adviser during the administration of former President George W. Bush.
Those who oppose the Obama administration’s efforts regarding Cuba since 2014 praised the move, saying Claver-Carone is the right person to help fix what they believe was a major error by the President.
Others, including some in the Cuban community in South Florida, oppose Claver-Carone having a seat at the transition table – believing he has worked more for people with financial motives behind a continued embargo with the island nation.
USCD PAC, according to election records obtained by the Miami Herald, donated over $600,000 to candidates that have been critical of the Obama administration’s plans – including Sen. Marco Rubio and Reps. Carlos Curbelo and Debbie Wasserman-Schultz.
Calver-Carone has also spent time as a college professor while writing for several different websites on the issue of Cuba policy.
