President-elect Barack Obama has appointed Senator Hillary Clinton to be the next Secretary of State, and on Tuesday, January 13th, she will go before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for her confirmation hearing. Senator Clinton has been a strong ally in the struggle against global poverty and extreme disease during her time in the Senate as well as on the presidential campaign trail. But as Secretary of State she’ll face many challenges, including two ongoing wars and a recession, that may shift her priorities.
Funding for our proven, cost-effective, life-saving State Department programs (including global primary education, malaria prevention and treatment, sustainable agriculture, international development, and aid reform) could take a backseat in the new Administration. Or worse — these programs could be cut in an eventual clamor for foreign aid reductions that will do little if anything to take pressure off of the U.S. domestic economy.
That’s why we’re asking ONE members in relevant states (see list, below) to call their Senators on the Foreign Relations Committee before the 9:30 AM (EST) hearing on Tuesday. We don’t have much time, but we must make sure Hillary Clinton’s confirmation hearing features the issues most critical to the world’s poorest citizens — setting the tone for the new State Department’s priorities and reminding Senator Clinton as well as the Committee that Americans want strong U.S. leadership against global poverty and preventable disease.
If your Senator is listed below, please click here to get talking points and instructions for placing your call.
Senators on the Foreign Relations Committee:
Sen. John Kerry (Massachusetts)
Sen. Chris Dodd (Connecticut)
Sen. Russ Feingold (Wisconsin)
Sen. Barbara Boxer (California)
Sen. Bill Nelson (Florida)
Sen. Robert Menendez (New Jersey)
Sen. Benjamin Cardin (Maryland)
Sen. Robert Casey (Pennsylvania)
Sen. Jim Webb (Virginia)
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (New Hampshire)
Sen. Richard Lugar (Indiana)
Sen. Bob Corker (Tennessee)
Sen. George Voinovich (Ohio)
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)
Sen. Johnny Isakson (Georgia)
Also check out this video we made about calling your Members of Congress!
President-elect Barack Obama just announced that he is nominating Senator Hillary Clinton to serve as Secretary of State. Here’s some background on her work around global development.
Quote Archive (from Center for U.S. Global Engagement)
“Gnawing hunger, poverty, and the absence of economic prospects are a recipe for despair. Globalization is widening the gap between the haves and the have-nots within societies and between them. Today, there are more than two billion people living on less than $2 a day. These people risk becoming a vast permanent underclass. Calls for expanding civil and political rights in countries plagued by mass poverty and ruled by tiny wealthy elites will fall on deaf ears unless democracy actually delivers enough material benefits to improve people’s lives.”
Clinton, Speech at George Washington University: February 25, 2008
“We need a president who understands there is a time for force, a time for diplomacy, and a time for both, who understands that we enhance our international reputation and strengthen our security if the world sees the human face of American democracy in the good works, the good deeds we do for people seeking freedom from poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, and oppression.”
Clinton, Compassion Forum: April 13, 2008
“I commend President Bush for his PEPFAR initiative. It was a very bold and important commitment, but it didn’t go far enough in opening up the door to generics and getting the costs down. And as president, I will do that.”
Presidential 2008 Campaign promises
Invest $50 billion by 2013 to combat AIDS across the globe and increase the number of health workers in Africa by 1 million.
Press for quick passage of legislation she introduced to invest $10 billion over five years for the goal of basic education around the globe.
Ensure complete debt cancellation for all Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and expand HIPC to include more than 20 additional poor countries.
Make significant progress toward spending an additional 1 percent of the federal budget on foreign assistance.
Foreign Policy Related Activities
In addition to her work with Education for All, Senator Clinton:
Co-sponsored the successful fight in the Senate to adopt the Biden-Lugar Amendment to the FY09 Senate Budget Resolution restoring $4.1 billion in funding to the International Affairs Budget, which was cut from the Administration’s request of $39.8 by the Senate Budget Committee. The Senate adopted the amendment by an impressive, bipartisan vote of 73-23.
Voted in favor of successful legislation to authorize $48 billion for global HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis programs (PEPFAR) for the next five years, which passed the Senate on July 16, 2008 by a bipartisan vote of 80-16 and the House on July 24, 2008 by a vote of 303-115.
Signed the bipartisan letter to the President urging a robust increase the International Affairs budget for FY 2009 as a critical investment “in strategic tools that are essential to protecting our national security, building economic prosperity and demonstrating our moral values.”
Senator Clinton has also sponsored numerous bills relevant to international development and diplomacy including, as just a few recent examples:
Sponsored S.3909 to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide assistance for developing countries to promote quality basic education and to establish the achievement of universal basic education in all developing countries as an objective of U.S. foreign assistance policy.
Co-sponsored S.2465 to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide increased assistance for the prevention, treatment, and control of tuberculosis, and for other purposes.
Co-sponsored S.RES.383 calling on the President to take immediate steps to help improve the security situation in Darfur, Sudan, with an emphasis on civilian protection.
Co-sponsored S.1129 to provide authorizations of appropriations for certain development banks, and for other purposes.
Co-sponsored S.2125 to promote relief, security, and democracy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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