McGovern Introduces Bill to End U.S. Embargo Against Cuba
On Thursday, Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts introduced a bill to the House of Representatives calling for an end to the 64-year-old United States embargo against Cuba. The move comes as the Trump administration pursues a stricter policy toward the island nation, including a potential total oil blockade.
The proposed measure follows the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, after which the U.S. Halted all shipments of Venezuelan oil to Cuba. President Trump has also threatened to impose tariffs on countries continuing to supply Cuba with oil.
The resulting oil deprivation has raised concerns internationally, with the United Nations warning that it will exacerbate an already fragile fuel situation and potentially create a humanitarian crisis in Cuba.
“For 60 years, we have been waiting for [the] embargo to do what politicians in Washington claim it will do — deliver freedom or democracy to the people of Cuba. It has failed,” McGovern wrote in his newly introduced bill. “It’s time to throw away the old, obsolete, failed policies of the past and try something different. Let’s focus on the people of Cuba — and let’s treat them like human beings who want to live their lives in dignity and freedom. The Cuban people — not politicians in Washington — ought to decide their own leaders and their own future.”
The bill introduced by McGovern mirrors similar legislation proposed in 2025 by Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley.
McGovern also criticized what he sees as a contradiction in the Trump administration’s policies, noting that the embargo may inadvertently encourage migration to the U.S. “The Trump administration says they want to curtail migration, but their own hard line approach only incentivizes migration to the United States by making living conditions worse in Cuba,” he wrote. “Not only is the embargo absurdly ineffective — it is counterproductive, hurting the very people it purports to help. It’s not Cuban elites who are harmed by our policies — it’s regular people and families who are denied food, medicine, and basic goods. We ought to use diplomacy and engagement to achieve our goals.”
McGovern’s advocacy for ending the embargo dates back at least to 2000, when he published an opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times calling on then-President Bill Clinton to end what he described as Cold War-era politics influencing relations between the two countries.
Other Democratic members of Congress have recently voiced criticism of the impact of the oil embargo. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez compared the situation in Cuba to that in Gaza, while Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota called for the lifting of the “cruel” and “despotic” blockade. Rep. Chuy García of Illinois stated that the blockade is “deliberately starving civilians” in Cuba.
In an effort to address the unfolding humanitarian crisis, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum recently dispatched two naval ships carrying humanitarian aid to Cuba, despite the threat of tariffs from the Trump administration. The ships docked in Cuba last week.
an international coalition is organizing a flotilla to deliver resources to Cuba in March, named “Nuestra América” after the 1891 essay by Cuban independence leader José Martí. The “Nuestra América Flotilla” mission is inspired by the Global Sumud Flotilla, which attempted to deliver aid to Gaza last year.
The coalition, which includes organizations such as Progressive International, the People’s Forum, and Code Pink, stated on the flotilla’s website: “We are sailing to Cuba, bringing critical humanitarian aid for its people. The Trump administration is strangling the island, cutting off fuel, flights, and critical supplies for survival. The consequences are lethal, for newborns and parents, for the elderly and the sick.”
