In this time of fiscal austerity, the American public is looking to its government for smart investments and wise use of a limited treasury. With this as a backdrop, it is ironic that conservatives in the House of Representatives are taking an axe to the international affairs budget. Security experts, military leaders, business executives and bipartisan leaders agree that an investment in diplomacy and development is not only an essential part of maintaining our national security and economic security, it also has an extremely high rate of return. John Kerry's Senate plan to match President Obama's request for 21^st century investments in global power and economic reach is more important than ever. 

Making drastic cuts to the international affairs account that funds the State Department and USAID would:

Squander opportunities to increase exports and grow the economy. As U.S. Global Leadership Council Chairman and former Congressman Dan Glickman writes, "While everyone agrees we need to get our fiscal house in order, we must protect our national and economic security in the process. As the Chamber of Commerce often points out, 95% of the world consumers live outside of the U.S. and our small investment in the International Affairs Budget is essential to growing our economy here at home." [Dan Glickman via USGLC, 7/27/11]

Hurt troops down the line, as "development is a lot cheaper than sending soldiers." As Admiral James Loy, USCG (Ret.). said recently, "The International Affairs Budget is an essential part of our national security funding. As Congress continues their budget debates, our hope is they understand that the price paid in inadequate diplomatic and developmental efforts is usually measured in the lives of soldiers and sailors." A recent letter signed by 70 retired three and four star Generals and Admirals said, "Development and diplomacy keep us safer by addressing threats in the most dangerous corners of the world and by preventing conflicts before they occur." Recently retired Defense Secretary Robert Gates put it more bluntly, saying, "Development is a lot cheaper than sending soldiers." [James Loy, 4/1/11. Letter, 4/1/11. Robert Gates via Stars and Stripes, 12/6/10]

Undercut America's world leadership. Former Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Policy David Rothkopf writes of the Paul Ryan budget, which called for similarly draconian cuts: "At just the moment when aid is most critical on initiatives of vital national security from fighting terrorism to stabilizing the Middle East to winning support for the U.S. in regions where our rivals are spending furiously to tip the scales in their favor, Ryan would effectively shut off the lights in Foggy Bottom and say that America will now do less, be less engaged, be less influential -- right up until the point at which any issue must be resolved with force...Add all this up and what do you get? A powerful statement by Ryan and the Republicans that they don't understand foreign policy and that they don't want America to continue to play a leadership role in the world." [David Rothkopf, 4/6/11]

Kerry introduces legislation investing in America's 21st century power. Yesterday the Cable reported, "Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-MA) unveiled his bill today to authorize funding for the State Department and foreign operations, which represented a direct rebuttal to the legislation approved by the House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) last week that was written by Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)... The bill would fully fund the State Department and USAID operations at the level requested by the White House."  The bill outlines its plans to "Modernize the State Department and Build the Capacity of U.S. Diplomacy; Increase Accountability of Our Diplomatic and Development Programs; Strengthen U.S. Public Diplomacy; Renewed Commitment to Global Development, Cyberspace, and Internet Freedom." Specifically the bill includes important 21st century programs: "The Kerry bill also calls for a new State Department senior cyber-coordinator, includes provisions on Internet freedom that may eventually be transformed into a stand-alone bill, and also provides a permanent authorization for USAID's Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI), which has been funded on an ad hoc basis until now," reports the Cable. [The Cable, 7/27/11. SFRC, 7/27/11]

Conservatives take an axe to important national security funding that does not address deficit issues. The Cable reports, "HFAC [House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee] and the House Appropriations State and Foreign Ops subcommittee... approved an appropriations bill today that would slash the international affairs budget 18 percent from fiscal 2011 levels." The nonpartisan U.S. Council on Global Leadership described the cuts as "deep and disproportionate." USGLC explains, "The subcommittee's $47.2 billion mark makes dramatic reductions in non-war related programs - 20 percent below FY 2010 levels." Included are cuts to strategically important countries such as Pakistan, Lebanon and Yemen. Yet the international affairs budget represents just over one percent of federal spending. As former congressman and Bush administration ambassador to Tanzania Mark Green said about the cuts: "We understand that every part of the government is on the table, but what we're looking at here is a very small part of the budget taking significant cuts." Even conservative Florida Senator Marco Rubio admits, "foreign aid is not why we're running so many dollars in debt." [The Cable, 7/27/11. USGLC, 7/27/11. Mark Green via the Cable, 7/26/11. Marco Rubio, 3/30/11]

What We're Reading

Egypt's deputy justice minister says ousted President Hosni Mubarak will be brought to Cairo for his trial on charges of corruption and ordering the killings of protesters.

At least 12 people have been killed and 28 more wounded after two bombs exploded in the Iraqi city of Tikrit, as police and soldiers were collecting their salaries at a local bank, according to a police official.

At least six people are reported to have been killed in the Somali capital Mogadishu, as African Union and government forces battle to protect the flow of food aid against militant attacks.

Palestinian police raided the West Bank home of a rival of President Mahmoud Abbas, deepening a feud that has shaken the upper ranks of the ruling Fatah Party.

A pilot aboard an Asiana Airlines cargo plane that crashed in waters off a southern South Korean resort island reported a fire just before losing contact with air traffic control, an official said.

Plagued by Mexican drug cartels that have steadily eroded the authority of the national government, Guatemala faces a presidential election in a few weeks that pits a former military officer against a former first lady, but offers little solution to epic problems.

Al Qaeda's newly installed leader, Ayman al Zawahiri, is claiming solidarity with Syria's pro-democracy movement, telling protesters in a new video that they are part of a broader revolution to liberate Muslim lands.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg called on his country to react to the recent attack in Oslo by more tightly embracing, rather than abandoning, the culture of tolerance that attacker Anders Behring Breivik said he was trying to destroy.

Two weeks after a triple bombing in Mumbai, the Indian and Pakistani foreign ministers heralded a "new era" of friendlier and more stable relations between the nuclear-armed neighbors.

Commentary of the Day

Kenan Malik contends that European politicians are helping to strengthen right wing extremist's anti-Islamic xenophobia by failing to challenge their prejudices while instead appropriating their arguments.

Doyle McManus argues that raising the debt ceiling was once a routine piece of fiscal management, but now, for many in the GOP, it's become a matter of principle, and an indispensable point of leverage too.

Bloomberg editorializes that Ambassador Ford's actions show that the U.S. is creatively and smartly supporting the Syrian opposition movement.

Laszlo Bruszt and David Stark argue that Western leaders must actively support democratic transition in the Middle East, just as they supported democratic transition in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Soviet Union.