Congressman Charles B. Rangel (D-Harlem), who was instrumental in obtaining a license from the U.S. Treasury Department on behalf of the NAACP delegation for the trip to Cuba, hailed the planned trade link with Black farmers. Rangel said he considers the results of the NAACP's Cuba visit "an important breakthrough." Rangel is a longtime advocate of U.S. trade with Cuba, arguing that removal of the U.S. embargo would promote democracy in Cuba.