Make Cuba a deal they can't refuse...

"Back to Cuba. Even Obama wanted to have much better relations with Cuba. For many reasons. It would keep the Russians, Chinese and Iranians at bay. Trade would be wonderful, as Cubans have much agribusiness to trade with us. And, as I have told my congressman back in the day, I would love to smoke a LEGAL Cuban cigar in my back yard." 

Cuba, it is time to come home. Enough of this living in the wilderness. No more living in poverty. Cuba? What are you talking about, Bird? Cuba is not even on the menu right now! No, but maybe it should be. From where it is positioned in geography, it is almost a border state. I think if the people of Cuba were given a choice, they would choose us over a dictator by a country mile. But first things first. Let's talk about Trump's unique and very effective negotiation style. 

When I was a young negotiator just learning the business, people much wiser and more experienced than me gave me this bit of advice - a zero-sum negotiation, where one side leaves the table feeling "skinned", is a bad deal for all. Why? You will never get a fair deal from that person again. Ever. What does that have to do with Cuba and Donald Trump?

Some people think Trump is a bully at the table. He is not. He does, however, know how to "prime the pump". We can see that with Canada. Greenland. Panama. And hopefully before it is all said and done - Cuba. For example, Trump just sent Don Jr. over to Greenland. Why? To play nice. To tell the people that if they became part of us, we would treat them very well. In the back of Trump's mind is a strategy on how to sweeten the pot for all countries he is interested in. Just like Don Corleone, Donald Trump is always thinking of a deal they can't refuse. Only in Trump's case, it is always sugar and very little stick.

Some might think that Donald Trump is only trying to build a menagerie of nations to have as a collection. Far from it. Trump is going after each country with a purpose. How that country could help America from a security standpoint, trade, and otherwise. Trump will point out how each country becoming a part of US would be symbiotic. In other words, good for everyone. 

Back to Cuba. Even Obama wanted to have much better relations with Cuba. For many reasons. It would keep the Russians, Chinese and Iranians at bay. Trade would be wonderful, as Cubans have much agribusiness to trade with us. And, as I have told my congressman back in the day, I would love to smoke a LEGAL Cuban cigar in my back yard. 

Donald Trump's style is just the opposite of the Obama/Biden/Kerry/Blinken "lead from behind" style. That has gotten us nowhere but backwards. Trump has the chutzpah to lay it all out there. The liberals think Trump is filter-less. I think he is a visionary. Maybe this is why Trump and Musk get along so well together. It is that "birds of a feather" thing, and we are blessed to have both of them.