Obama wants Cuban travel rules eased

MIAMI, Aug. 21 (UPI) -- U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., wants Cuban Americans to have unrestricted access to the island, he said in the Miami Herald.

In an opinion piece published in the newspaper Tuesday, Obama said he also believes Cubans living legally in the United States should not be restricted as to how much money they send back to relatives.

"Cuban-American connections to family in Cuba are not only a basic right in humanitarian terms, but also our best tool for helping to foster the beginnings of grass-roots democracy on the island," Obama wrote. "Accordingly, I will grant Cuban Americans unrestricted rights to visit family and send remittances to the island."

In 2004, the Bush administration restricted Cuban Americans to visiting their relatives on the island to once every three years and limited cash support to $100 per month.

Obama is scheduled to speak at the Miami-Dade County Auditorium on Saturday. Officials said about 1,100 tickets have been sold for $30, which the Herald said is a fraction of most presidential fundraisers, which charge more than $2,000.