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"The basic policy driver is concern that the previous policy was enriching the military and the intelligence services that contribute so much to oppression on the island," a senior administration official said.
"That's the opposite of what he wanted to achieve," he added, arguing that Trump's move is not a step back to the Cold War-era embargo that Obama started to dismantle, but a recognition that Raul Castro's one-party regime has a long way to go to meet its promises of reform.
"The hope of the administration is that the Cuban regime will see this as an opportunity for them to implement the reforms that they paid lip service to a couple of years ago but that have not in any way been implemented to the benefit of the Cuban people," he said.
The firm -- run by Castro's son-in-law Luis Rodriguez Lopez-Callejas -- is involved in joint ventures with several foreign firms that have driven a tourism boom on the island, including the Marriott hotel chain.
The official said the new restrictions would not go into place until new regulations are published, and played down the threat to US business interests.
"It's not that he is opposed to any deal with Cuba, he is opposed to a bad deal with Cuba," he said of Trump.
Under a new National Security Presidential Memorandum, Trump is also expected to announce stricter enforcement of the rules under which Americans can travel to Cuba.
American citizens will still be able to take commercial flights to Cuba, but only for 12 specific reasons -- ranging from journalism to educational activities -- which will be more strictly enforced.
Cuban-Americans will still be able to travel to Cuba and send remittances, limiting the impact in Florida, where many Cuban emigres settled and where many of them turned out last year to vote for Trump.
Miami's Cuban-American population, members of which will greet Trump on Friday in the Manuel Artime Theater, have a reputation for diehard anti-communism and an opposition to thawing ties.
But in the Little Havana district on Thursday some -- even those who had fled oppression -- were philosophical about detente.
"Obama did the right thing," said 77-year-old Manuel Gonzales, who left the island in 2006. "The only person responsible for the embargo was Castro. We have to look forward, not back."
Trump's measures stop well short of upending Obama-era policies, which sought to end decades of isolation that did little to dislodge Fidel and Raul Castro's regime.
There are also expected to be exemptions for agricultural products as well as some air and sea operations.
But they signal a tougher stance that could slow the number of Americans who have begun to head to Cuba for Havana city breaks or on week-long beach holidays.
- 'Exceedingly disappointing' -Boosting travel was a key aim of Obama's painstaking effort to restore ties with the communist-run island, which included a landmark visit by the then-president in 2016.
Some 285,000 people visited the Caribbean country in 2016, up 74 percent over 2015, with Americans the third biggest group after Canadians and Cuban expats.
"New restrictions on engagement with Cuban economy only pushes Cuba to China and Russia who will gladly make up the difference," said Ben Rhodes, the architect of Obama's Cuba policy.
"Any limitations on travel hurt Cuban small business owners -- restaurants, shops, taxis -- that depend on travelers for revenue."
Engage Cuba, a group lobbying for an end to the embargo, estimates that 10,000 US jobs in aviation and the cruise business already depend on Cuba.
Even with carve outs, the new policy could pose problems for some US businesses, including hoteliers and airlines who have put on regular flights between the US and the Cuban capital.
In a statement ahead of Trump's announcement, Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson defended the firm's decision to invest in Cuba.
It recently entered a joint venture with GAESA to run the "Four Points by Sheraton" in Havana, investing "significant resources" to establish a foothold.
"It would be exceedingly disappointing to see the progress that has been made in the last two years halted and reversed by the administration," Sorenson said.
Trump accused Cuba of "cruel despotism" in May, which raised ironic cheers from rights supporters used to his cozying up to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and other autocratic states.
But watchdog groups such as Human Rights Watch are skeptical of a return to the terms of the half-century Cold War stand-off, with its total trade embargo and no diplomatic ties.
The Los Angeles Dodgers 2010 season has been careening downhill rapidly since the All-Star Game as the team has gone 14-23, scoring an average of just 3.1 runs per game and being shut out five times.
The relationship between Dodgers center fielder Matt Kemp and the Los Angeles Times sports section has gone downhill even faster in the past two weeks.
"I have one question I'd like to ask him, 'Are you dead tired when the game is over?' My dad told me early on I should be exhausted after every game if I've done my batting practice, taken ground balls, backed up every play and gone all out. I wonder if he's ever felt like that?"
Eleven days later, columnist Bill Plaschke ran an interview with Kemp's agent, Dave Stewart. Stewart broached the idea that perhaps Kemp would find it better to get traded to an organization that would not be as hostile toward him.
General manager Ned Colletti, along with Bowa and bench coach Bob Schaefer (who was also singled out by Stewart for being too critical) seemed to clear the air. Colletti, although disappointed with Kemp's play all year, clearly did not want to trade his team's leading power hitter, especially one whose salary was still...
FOR THE record, I like Kemp, think he's going to be a great player, and believe he needs an off-season to regroup, grow up and get a grip on the day-to-day pressure of being in the spotlight.
Kemp should never have allowed his agent, Dave Stewart, to cry to Plaschke, making Kemp appear as a baby incapable of taking criticism or advice from Dodgers' coaches who are paid to mentor such a young player.
If the fans here turn on him, believing he really doesn't want to be here, he might never recover.
It took only two days before the Times went after Kemp again. This time, it was the paper's Dodgers blogger, Steve Dilbeck, who ripped into Kemp and people who support him in a rambling piece of defensiveness.
Is it even possible for anyone to say or write anything remotely critical of Matt Kemp without his hoard of oversensitive defenders screaming: "They're making him a scapegoat! It's unfair! He's being singled out! They only yell at Matty!"
Now I know this isn't the majority, but still, it's amazing how anything resembling a barb -- or even perceived to be -- gets the Kemp stat wonks' undies in a knot.
Finally, at least for the moment, on Saturday, Simers went for the jugular on both Kemp and Stewart after he received a critical e-mail from Stewart about his column on August 17. Stewart committed one of the biggest sins anyone in the L.A. sports scene can do: he gave Simers ammunition for a tirade.
Simers portrayed Kemp now as a lazy player who failed to give it his all and doesn't care about the fans (unlike that nice Andre Ethier or that gritty Jamey Carroll). Simers also went for the throat pulling out a veiled reference to the time when Stewart was arrested for soliciting a prostitute, an event that took plac...
Because Simers portrays his column as "humor," he essentially receives a "Get Out of Jail Free" card for pretty much anything he writes. Anything offensive gets dismissed as "well that guy just didn't get it."
What I am trying to figure out is: why does Kemp receive what seems to be an inordinate amount of scorn from the Times staff. Granted, Kemp has had a disappointing season, both on offense and defense. On the other hand, so has pretty much everybody else on the Dodgers with the exception of Hong-Chih Kuo.
Does the coaching staff and front office find Kemp to be unteachable? Is he lazy? Or is that an excuse that the coaching staff can use to deflect blame from their own shortcomings? Does Colletti find it easier to blame the team's failings on Kemp's underperformance, or his own failure and/or misfortune to not finding t...
Perhaps Kemp should heed the advice given to Peter Parker by his Uncle Ben. "With great power comes great responsibility." My advice to Matt Kemp: change your name to Scott Podsednik, date someone less famous than Rihanna, and see if anybody even cares what you do on the field.
ASHLEIGH Barty and Daria Gavrilova have continued Australia's stunning grasscourt surge, reaching the Aegon Classic Birmingham quarter-finals with excellent wins.
A day after Jordan Thompson and Thanasi Kokkinakis logged career-best wins over world No 1 Andy Murray and Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic, it was Barty and Gavrilova's turn to shine.
Barty rocked eighth seed Barbora Strycova 6-3 3-6 6-1 to reach her fourth quarter-final of the season and a crack tomorrow against either second seed Elina Svitolina or Camila Giorgi.
Gavrilova is on the verge of cracking the world's top 20 after a roller-coaster 7-5 2-6 6-4 win over Czech Katerina Siniakova.
Gavrilova will break into the elite if she downs French Open finalist Lucie Safarova, overtaking Swiss Timea Bacsinszky in the process.
Barty, 21, was ecstatic after nailing talented Strycova and rising to a provisional career-high mark of No 70.
"It feels great, and obviously I love this grass court season and it's nice to come through this tricky match today," Barty said.
"I love this court, and I'm really excited to be in the quarter-finals."
Barty fended off six break points - including a treble as she attempted to seal the first set.
Daria Gavrilova had a rollercoaster 7-5 2-6 6-4 win over Czech Katerina Siniakova.
Taken to a deciding set, Barty swept through the last five games to close out the contest emphatically.
"I think (Strycova) was a top 20 player for a reason," Barty said.
"She stayed solid and I gave her a few too many cheapies in that second set.
"I think I just had to change a little bit tactically, and that worked in the third."
Gavrilova lost serve six times and delivered seven double faults in an erratic display against Siniakova.
And she actually won few points than the Czech - 98 to 101 - but her tenacity was decisive.
Gavrilova last week took over as Australian No 1, ending Sam Stosur's 452-week reign.
Bernard Tomic's hopes of a Wimbledon seeding are all but dashed after the Queenslander plunged out of the Halle Open.
Needing a semi-final finish or better to surge back up the rankings before the All England Club issues its seedings next week, Tomic lost 6-3 6-3 to Frenchman Richard Gasquet.
The Gold Coaster had shown decent form against former world No 2 Tommy Haas in the opening round but Gasquet was too accomplished.
Gasquet broke Tomic's serve four times in nine service games.
The defeat will leave former world No 17 at the mercy of next week's draw.
It is not yet clear if Tomic will contest Eastbourne next week in search of more consistency.
Matthew Ebden lost to Britain's Marcus Willis 1-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-4 at the Ilkey Challenger, where Alex de Minaur also bowed out.
Thanasi Kokkinakis and Jordan Thompson will tonight attempt to extend giant-killing runs through the AEGON Championships at Queen's Club as Wimbledon preparations intensify.
Kokkinakis, 21. will chase successive main draw wins for the first time since the 2015 French Open when he tackles emerging Russian Daniil Medvedev, attempting to capitalise on a fabulous first-round win over Milos Raonic.
Thompson, 23, will bid to follow a whirlwind 24 hours after toppling world No 1 Andy Murray by adding American Sam Querrey's scalp to a growing collection.
The Sydneysider was feted during a string of local interviews in the wake of his monumental success over Murray, who had never lost to Australian opponents in 21 previous rankings points matches.
But, after practising in the heat under the watchful eye of coach Des Tyson, Thompson wants to show the win wasn't a fluke.
"I think it's all about backing up," he said. "I think that's what I've got to try and do is have consistent results.
"I will do everything the same. Yeah, before the match, I'll obviously go through the usual routine, talk about Sam's game, what I want to do.
"Yeah, just one step at a time."
NFL’s new helmet-hitting rule is in place, but will it have the desired effect?
ORLANDO — NFL leaders put the final piece of their just-announced new safety rule in place by saying Wednesday they expect instant replay to be used to help determine whether a player should be ejected from a game for lowering his head to use his helmet to deliver a hit. Even while the final version of the rule continu...
The NFL announced Tuesday it had ratified the rule, which is to result in a 15-yard penalty and a possible ejection whenever a player lowers his head to initiate contact with an opponent. League officials were quick to say it’s not a targeting rule, given that it is not focused on whether a hit targets an opponent’s he...
Some players immediately expressed concern that the game is being changed too dramatically.
We can Just Stop With The Sugar Coding and Get the Flags Out!! This Obviously Not Football ANYMORE! THE GAME WE LOVE IS GETTING DESTROYED EVERYDAY Because off what? Whatever Your Answer Is. This Is My Reply “THIS IS WHAT WE SIGNED UP FOR!” PERIOD!!!
Goodell said he’s hopeful that players will be more accepting of the rule once they learn the details of it and the reasoning behind it.
The new helmet-hitting rule comes in addition to the NFL’s defenseless-player rules. Those protect a player in a defenseless posture, such as a quarterback throwing a pass or a receiver making a catch, from being hit in the head or neck area.
The new rule came together quickly Tuesday with little advance notice. The rulemaking competition committee initially had planned to issue a directive to the game officials on the matter as a point of officiating emphasis, rather than enact a formal rule. But as the internal conversations took place Tuesday among leagu...
“Everyone really felt like this was a necessary step, something that after really hearing the experts talk that we can clearly identify and point to the officials as to how to see this — and then our ability to confirm it in New York if there is an ejection,” said Payton, a member of the competition committee.
A provision that the league’s officiating department in New York can use a replay review to assist the game officials in determining whether a player is to be ejected from a game under the new standard is not yet part of the rule. But Goodell and others made it clear Wednesday they expect that to be added to the rule, ...
The threat of an ejection, reviewable by replay, could put teeth into the new rule.
Players must realize that the rule is for their own good, said Williams, a former Super Bowl-winning quarterback for the Redskins.
“When you look at some of the older guys that played this game and the condition that they’re in now — what it is, it’s to protect some of these guys [current players] from when they get older going through the same thing,” Williams said.
League leaders said Tuesday the rule resulted from studies showing that the lowering of the head while delivering a hit is associated with a higher risk of injury. It is being enacted at a time when the percentage of concussions suffered by players that result from helmet-to-helmet hits is increasing, according to the ...
Williams said he does not see players lowering their heads to deliver hits with great regularity. But he does see it occur, he said.
The rule potentially applies not only to a defender hitting an offensive player, but also to a ball carrier initiating contact with a defender and also to a blocker. But much depends on how the rule is enforced. A previous restriction disallowing hits delivered with the crown of the helmet seldom was called in games. S...
Rising numbers of schoolchildren are being pushed on to “Mickey Mouse” courses at the expense of traditional academic disciplines, according to new figures.
Almost nine in 10 teenagers sat qualifications in subjects such as call centre skills, cake decorating, health and safety and hazard control last year instead of conventional GCSEs, it emerged.
Official statistics show the number of 16-year-olds taking at least one alternative qualification in the final year of compulsory education has soared by around a fifth in just four years.
Some 26,670 pupils took a course in self development, while 22,885 sat a “working with others” qualification, 22,346 studied “learning skills” and 19,266 passed exams in problem solving.
Other qualifications offered in schools covered subjects such as party décor, advice skills, bookkeeping, fire prevention, make-up, pastry craft, salon reception, stonewalling and warehousing and storage.
The disclosure – made in a series of Parliamentary answers obtained by the Conservatives – comes just days before hundreds of thousands of pupils across England, Wales and Northern Ireland receive their GCSE results.
It will reignite concerns that pupils have been pushed onto unsuitable courses that are poorly regarded by employers and universities just to inflate schools’ positions in league tables.
At the same time, the number of pupils studying conventional GCSEs in history, geography and foreign languages dropped under the last Government, the Tories said.
Chris Skidmore, the Conservative MP for Kingswood, said: “These figures lay bare how Labour lied to a generation, falsely giving them the impression that qualifications that employers will all too often regard as irrelevant were ‘equivalent’ to GCSEs in rigorous subjects like maths and science.

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