Last week, President Barack Obama denied having any part in Jay-Z and Beyoncé’s trip to Cuba after lyrics surfaced from Jay-Z’s song “Open Letter” hinting that Obama may have given the supercouple clearance for their trip. Obama responded by saying, “This is not something the White House gets involved with, we have better things to do,” in a “Today” interview.

Two Florida Republicans — Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart — are requesting an investigation from the Treasury Department to look into the trip, as they believe the couple appeared to look and behave as tourists when they visited the country, basing their judgment on media reports and video footage of the couple strolling through the country’s capital Havana. The United States prohibits tourism in Cuba due to an embargo imposed on the country.

In his interview with “Today,” Obama claimed Jay-Z and Beyoncé traveled to Cuba for an educational visit.

This is interesting because you can travel to Cuba for educational purposes, humanitarian missions and other specific work-related reasons but not to enjoy your stay and sightsee, hang out and eat great food.

The United States devised the embargo as a commercial sanction on Cuba’s economy. So by traveling to Cuba for a vacation as an American citizen, you would be supporting their economy illegally. Knowing the history of America and Cuba and considering the embargo at hand, why would Jay-Z and Beyoncé saunter around Havana so casually when they are both American citizens?

Jay-Z is a multimillionaire, a recognized icon in his field and deemed a smart businessman. And while Beyoncé is a well-known singer internationally, the couple really don’t need this type of controversy. This is where it gets weird.

Beyoncé and Jay-Z both voted for Obama in his past presidential elections, supported him with fundraising campaigns and even performed for the president at rally events, so why would Jay-Z purposely put Obama’s name in a rap once he returned from his trip, knowing that it would stir up controversy?

Is the power couple using its star power to shed light on the embargo imposed on Cuba because of the economic effects it has on the third-world country? I believe so — celebrities are modern day gods, with substantial societal influence and reverent treatment from the public.

Americans will inquire about Cuba’s travel restrictions more as a result of the couple’s recent trip, and the embargo may be viewed as an unfair policy that causes millions of Cubans to suffer economically from the lack of American financial support.

Obama is in a position to fight for social change — even if he reverses the embargo, he does not have to worry about being re-elected again and thus has an opportunity to alter the policy now. Jay-Z and Beyoncé acted as advocates for the Cuban people by publicly traveling to the so-called communist island and filming their encounters with the people, shaking hands and smiling with the locals, giving American politicians and others the impression that they traveled as tourists.

Jay-Z then said he loves Cuba in his song and hinted that he was given special privileges by Obama, who has the power to remove the sanction and open up Cuba to the United States once and for all. Can you see the foundations being laid for a forthcoming social change? Remember the six letters of the Obama campaign back in 2008 — change.

David is a contributing columnist. Email him at [email protected]