Cuban-Americans drift to Obama

[nhboy]

"MIAMI (AFP) – Over espresso and cake in Miami's Little Havana, Lidia Arcuri lays bare the way the world's biggest Cuban community in exile is thinking about the upcoming US presidential election.

"I'm going to vote for John McCain," she said, faithful to the Cuban community's historic allegiance to the Republican party.

"But there are many Cubans now who favor the Democrats," added Arcuri, 66, who has lived in the United States for more than 20 years. "And they are going with Barack Obama."

No longer is the struggle against communism in Cuba the main issue in Little Havana. Now, increasingly, Cuban Americans worry about the US economy slowing down, their retirement funds evaporating, and jobs being harder to come by.

"For years we struggled with the Republicans against Fidel Castro's regime, but our children and grandchildren think of economic hardship right here," said Arcuri.

"Do you know what happens then? People feel with their heart, but decide with their wallets."

More than one million Cuban-Americans live in Florida, the US state closest to the Caribbean island where Castro overthrew a US-backed regime in January 1959 amid the Cold War and created a communist state that survived the demise of the Soviet Union.

Some 800,000 of those are settled in the Miami area."

Cuban-Americans, longtime Republicans, drift to Obama - Yahoo! News

[blazinlow89]

Originally Posted by nhboy

"MIAMI (AFP) – Over espresso and cake in Miami's Little Havana, Lidia Arcuri lays bare the way the world's biggest Cuban community in exile is thinking about the upcoming US presidential election.

"I'm going to vote for John McCain," she said, faithful to the Cuban community's historic allegiance to the Republican party.

"But there are many Cubans now who favor the Democrats," added Arcuri, 66, who has lived in the United States for more than 20 years. "And they are going with Barack Obama."

No longer is the struggle against communism in Cuba the main issue in Little Havana. Now, increasingly, Cuban Americans worry about the US economy slowing down, their retirement funds evaporating, and jobs being harder to come by.

"For years we struggled with the Republicans against Fidel Castro's regime, but our children and grandchildren think of economic hardship right here," said Arcuri.

"Do you know what happens then? People feel with their heart, but decide with their wallets."

More than one million Cuban-Americans live in Florida, the US state closest to the Caribbean island where Castro overthrew a US-backed regime in January 1959 amid the Cold War and created a communist state that survived the demise of the Soviet Union.

Some 800,000 of those are settled in the Miami area."

Cuban-Americans, longtime Republicans, drift to Obama - Yahoo! News

Big surprise they want the closest thing to communist.