On Sunday afternoon, President Barack Obama did something that no POTUS has done in almost 90 years.
The last time this “thing” happened, Babe Ruth was helping the New York Yankees win championships, Amelia Earhart was making transatlantic flights and not a soul in America was allowed to legally drink an alcoholic beverage.
¿Que bolá Cuba? Just touched down here, looking forward to meeting and hearing directly from the Cuban people.
— President Obama (@POTUS44) March 20, 2016
No joke. It’s true.
Breaking News: Obama has arrived in Cuba. He’s the first sitting U.S. president to visit since 1928. https://t.co/eS0joRxwVu
— The New York Times (@nytimes) March 20, 2016
Speaking of Babe Ruth and baseball, there’s also this:
Soon Cuban baseball players will be able to sign with MLB teams directly: https://t.co/vvEiU5GvoW
— Deadspin (@Deadspin) March 16, 2016
Strange times, indeed.
More from The Los Angeles Times:
The government of President Raul Castro is eager to welcome Obama, but also determined to reassert its own socialist values that it insists will not be bent to U.S. will.
Obama landed in Havana on Sunday afternoon to embark on his historic two-day trip, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to visit the island nation in nearly 90 years.
The trip is a significant step in Obama’s effort to end a half-century of Cold War enmity between the two countries. He plans to tout the economic benefits that normalized relations can bring to Cuba, but he’ll also criticize the government’s human-rights record and meet with dissidents.
UPDATE: Obama will meet with Raúl Castro Monday and address the public in Havana eventually. The current president of Cuba — and Fidel’s brother — greeted POTUS with a military honor guard and renditions of both the American and Cuban national anthems.
INCREDIBLE photo of #AirForceOne landing in #Havana, via @Reuters. pic.twitter.com/Vekx97X3ri
— Chris Martinez (@WFLAChris) March 20, 2016