In Case You Missed It: Daschle and Frist on the International Affairs Budget

Jun 9th, 2010 11:30 AM UTC
By Steve Wilson

Former Senate Majority Leaders from opposite sides of the aisle — and longtime ONE champions — Tom Daschle and Bill Frist write in Politico this week that in order to achieve a smart, effective U.S. foreign policy, Congress should fully fund the International Affairs Budget, the portion of the budget that supports America’s fight against global poverty.

Senators Frist and Daschle argue that helping the world’s poorest people help themselves is not only consistent with our values and is part of America’s global legacy of saving lives, but is also very much in our security and economic interests.

The senators write:

“As the military does its job in stabilizing troubled states, vigorous humanitarian and diplomacy efforts can ensure that we build a lasting peace by strengthening communities and governments, reinforcing the foundations for growth and opportunity and neutralizing those who wish our country harm.

“Our foreign assistance dollars pay strong dividends economically, as well. Americans’ security and prosperity are tied to the security and prosperity of people around the globe…Today, developing countries represent 40 percent of U.S. exports. Programs supported by the international affairs budget increase economic opportunities, promote our business interests around the world and create U.S. jobs through increased exports.”

For the past several weeks, ONE members across the country have been contacting their members of Congress in support of the International Affairs Budget. This week’s op-ed by Senators Frist and Daschle is another reminder that this portion of the budget is affordable, effective and something both Republicans and Democrats can agree on. As the former Majority Leaders say, “Republicans and Democrats have long worked together to make a difference in the world through humanitarian efforts, and those investments have paid off. In the past 50 years, child deaths worldwide have been reduced by more than half; polio has been nearly eradicated…For a small fraction of slightly more than 1 percent of the federal budget, our investment in helping others to help themselves overseas is one of the most cost-effective ways our government can keep us both safe and prosperous.”

I recommend reading the whole piece here.

TAGS: FY2011 US budget, Sen. Bill Frist M.D., Sen. Tom Daschle