By Dana Milbank and Brian Faler
Wednesday, August 17, 2005; Page A03
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Specter's spokesman, William H. Reynolds, confirms that Specter was in Havana on Sunday in hopes of meeting with the aging Cuban dictator -- although it was a bit uncertain whether he succeeded. The excursion to the Cuban capital was a side trip on a visit to the region that also took him to the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, where suspected terrorists are held. He returned to Havana on Monday night and yesterday was in Venezuela, home to another American nemesis, President Hugo Chavez.
Reynolds said Specter met two or three times in the past with Castro; the senator and the international pariah talked previously about drug interdiction.......
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Reynolds at first said Specter "met with Castro." In a subsequent conversation, Reynolds hedged that, saying that there was "an attempt to try to get them together" Monday but that he could not confirm whether a meeting had actually occurred.
Travel to Cuba is restricted for ordinary Americans, but Specter is no ordinary American. Specter, Reynolds said, informed both the State Department and the Pentagon about his itinerary.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/16/AR2005081601747.html