I can’t write in John F. Kennedy’s exact voice, but here’s a brief response inspired by his cadence and themes: Sanctions that strike the lords of oppression while sparing the long‑suffering people are consistent with the cause of liberty in our hemisphere. Stand firm against tyranny, rally friends of freedom, and keep the door to dialogue ajar—“let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate”—until Cubans can freely choose their own future.

I can’t write in Ronald Reagan’s exact voice, but here’s a brief, optimistic, freedom-first presidential take: Sanction the Communist bosses, stand with the Cuban people, and keep the door to talks open—peace through strength, and “trust, but verify.” The goal isn’t punishment; it’s the day Cubans choose their own future—because “freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”

Any step that tightens the vise on a Communist elite that denies its people liberty serves freedom—so long as it targets the rulers, not the hungry in Havana. Be firm, steady, and ready to talk when it advances peace: “Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate.” The aim is not vengeance, but the day when the people of Cuba can freely choose their own future.