[House Hearing, 115 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS FOR
2018
_______________________________________________________________________
HEARINGS
BEFORE A
SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
________
SUBCOMMITTEE ON STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS,
AND RELATED PROGRAMS
HAROLD ROGERS, Kentucky, Chairman
KAY GRANGER, Texas NITA M. LOWEY, New York
MARIO DIAZ-BALART, Florida BARBARA LEE, California
CHARLES W. DENT, Pennsylvania C.A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER, Maryland
THOMAS J. ROONEY, Florida GRACE MENG, New York
JEFF FORTENBERRY, Nebraska DAVID E. PRICE, North Carolina
CHRIS STEWART, Utah
NOTE: Under committee rules, Mr. Frelinghuysen, as chairman of the
full committee, and Mrs. Lowey, as ranking minority member of the full
committee, are authorized to sit as members of all subcommittees.
Craig Higgins, Susan Adams, Winnie Chang,
David Bortnick, and Clelia Alvarado
Subcommittee Staff
_________
PART 3
Page
Members' Day Hearing........................................... 1
Written Testimony from Members of Congress..................... 103
Written Testimony from Outside Witnesses....................... 151
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Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations
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U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
28-731 WASHINGTON : 2018
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
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RODNEY P. FRELINGHUYSEN, New Jersey, Chairman
HAROLD ROGERS, Kentucky \1\ NITA M. LOWEY, New York
ROBERT B. ADERHOLT, Alabama MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio
KAY GRANGER, Texas PETER J. VISCLOSKY, Indiana
MICHAEL K. SIMPSON, Idaho JOSE E. SERRANO, New York
JOHN ABNEY CULBERSON, Texas ROSA L. DeLAURO, Connecticut
JOHN R. CARTER, Texas DAVID E. PRICE, North Carolina
KEN CALVERT, California LUCILLE ROYBAL-ALLARD, California
TOM COLE, Oklahoma SANFORD D. BISHOP, Jr., Georgia
MARIO DIAZ-BALART, Florida BARBARA LEE, California
CHARLES W. DENT, Pennsylvania BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota
TOM GRAVES, Georgia TIM RYAN, Ohio
KEVIN YODER, Kansas C.A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER, Maryland
STEVE WOMACK, Arkansas DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Florida
JEFF FORTENBERRY, Nebraska HENRY CUELLAR, Texas
THOMAS J. ROONEY, Florida CHELLIE PINGREE, Maine
CHARLES J. FLEISCHMANN, Tennessee MIKE QUIGLEY, Illinois
JAIME HERRERA BEUTLER, Washington DEREK KILMER, Washington
DAVID P. JOYCE, Ohio MATT CARTWRIGHT, Pennsylvania
DAVID G. VALADAO, California GRACE MENG, New York
ANDY HARRIS, Maryland MARK POCAN, Wisconsin
MARTHA ROBY, Alabama KATHERINE M. CLARK, Massachusetts
MARK E. AMODEI, Nevada PETE AGUILAR, California
CHRIS STEWART, Utah
DAVID YOUNG, Iowa
EVAN H. JENKINS, West Virginia
STEVEN M. PALAZZO, Mississippi
DAN NEWHOUSE, Washington
JOHN R. MOOLENAAR, Michigan
SCOTT TAYLOR, Virginia
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\1\>Chairman Emeritus
Nancy Fox, Clerk and Staff Director
(ii)
STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS FOR 2018
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
MEMBERS' DAY
Opening Statement of Chairman Rogers
Mr. Rogers. Good morning and welcome. The hearing will come
to order. The U.S. has a vital role to play in advancing
democracy, protecting the innocent, helping the displaced and
vulnerable, and offering diplomatic solutions to crises,
unrest, and other challenges abroad. For example, to protect
our national interests, we need an aggressive plan to fight
ISIS, which requires a comprehensive approach, including not
just military engagement, but also the full and responsible use
of all diplomatic tools at our disposal.
Today's release by the administration of a so-called
``skinny budget,'' as we all know, under the Constitution, when
it comes to appropriations, the President proposes but the
Congress disposes. Once the full budget picture emerges in the
weeks ahead, I look forward to working with Secretary
Tillerson, Mrs. Lowey, and other members of the House to ensure
that the necessary resources are available to fulfill these
goals.
In regard to the so-called ``skinny budget,'' there is an
old saying: This, too, shall pass.
To that end, with the encouragement of the Full Committee
Chairman, we are holding this hearing, so we may hear directly
from our colleagues and learn about their priorities for this
subcommittee. The committee has an electronic system for
collecting all fiscal year 2018 requests. That system opened on
March 1st and the deadline for this subcommittee is March 30.
But today, we are pleased to be joined by around a dozen
members who are making their requests in person. The
involvement of all members is valued and will aid the
subcommittee in preparing the 2018 bill and report.
We really appreciate everyone who is here today and look
forward to the testimony that is to come.
First let me recognize Mrs. Lowey, my working partner.
Opening Remarks of Mrs. Lowey
Mrs. Lowey. Well, I want to thank our distinguished chair.
I want to join Chairman Rogers in welcoming our
distinguished colleagues today. I am pleased that the chairman
is holding this hearing and that you have all taken time away
from your very busy schedules to be here and discuss the state
and foreign operations budget for fiscal year 2018.
I believe in--and I know our chair is committed to--
diplomacy and development efforts. They are critical to
maintain U.S. global leadership, protect our national security,
and promote economic growth.
Former President Bush's comments, which I have quoted many
times, are as true as ever: Defense, diplomacy, and development
are equal legs on the stool of American foreign policy.
Yet, dramatic reductions in the President's proposed budget
for the function 150 account would undermine that delicate
balance with damaging impacts from deep, ill-advised cuts. If
we pursue this path, we will gravely undermine our foreign
policy goals and national security.
Therefore, it is now more important than ever to draw
attention to the programs you are here to discuss. I look
forward to hearing from our distinguished colleagues about
their priorities in the state and foreign operations budget.
Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. I thank the gentlelady.
Without objection, the full written statements of all
members will be included in the record.
In order to keep to our schedule, we hope that you can
limit your testimony to no more than 5 minutes.
Mr. Griffith is recognized.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. H. MORGAN GRIFFITH, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
VIRGINIA
Opening Statement of Mr. Griffith
Mr. Griffith. Thank you very much, Chairman Rogers and
Ranking Member Lowey. I do appreciate it.
I am here today to talk about the Green Climate Fund. As
you know, that was first announced at the 2009 Copenhagen
Climate Conference and then set up later with the headquarters
in South Korea by the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change.
In terms of funding, the Copenhagen Accord stated that the
fund would have ``a goal of mobilizing jointly 100 billion U.S.
dollars a year by 2020 to address the needs of developing
countries.'' The Green Climate Fund's executive director stated
in 2015, however, that the estimated funding needed by
developing countries would increase to $450 billion by 2020.
And the United Nations' top climate change official described
the current goal of $100 billion as ``peanuts'' and envisions
trillions of dollars in spending over the next 15 years.
Congress has never authorized nor appropriated funding for
the Green Climate Fund. Yet, on November 15, 2014 President
Obama pledged an initial $3 billion from the United States
during meetings of the G-20. In fact, just 3 days before
President Trump's inauguration President Obama's State
Department cut a check for $500 million as the second of two
payments towards the Green Climate Fund.
This funding was drawn from the fiscal year 2016 Economic
Support Fund appropriation, which was also the source of the
first $500 million payment in 2016. The payments are completely
counter to congressional intent and direction in the
appropriation process.
The United States Government already supports significant
climate change-related spending, including technical and
financial assistance for climate change activities in the
developing world through a variety of bilateral and
multilateral programs. We cannot continue to fund yet another
climate finance program. Congress must instead address the most
pressing priorities for the American people amidst serious
fiscal constraints.
In 2015, I led a letter, with 110 members signing on,
opposing funding for President Obama's initial request for the
Green Climate Fund and following up with this Committee to
reiterate this request for fiscal year 2017. The fiscal year
2016 enacted appropriations legislation did not provide funding
for the Green Climate Fund, despite President Obama's request.
However, neither the fiscal year 2016 appropriations bills nor
the fiscal year 2017 continuing resolutions contained a rider
prohibiting funds being used for the Green Climate Fund,
leaving an opening for the President to shift funding from the
Economic Support Fund appropriation.
I am appreciative of last year's fiscal year 2017 House
Appropriations Committee-passed State and Foreign
Appropriations bill did contain the rider language as follows:
``Green Climate Fund prohibition. None of the funds
appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act or prior
Acts making appropriations for the Department of State, foreign
operations, and related programs may be made available as a
contribution, grant, or any other payment to the Green Climate
Fund.''
On the contrary, however, the fiscal year 2017 Senate
Appropriations Committee-passed State and Foreign Operations
Appropriations bill would have actually appropriated $263
million for the Green Climate Fund. President Trump's budget
blueprint for fiscal year 2018, released this morning, does
eliminate U.S. funding related to the Green Climate Fund and
its two precursor climate investment funds.
I ask this Subcommittee and the full Appropriations
Committee to reflect the will of the House and the President
not only by providing no funds for the Green Climate Fund, but
also including language to specifically prohibit any
appropriated funds from being used for such payments. While I
am encouraged the President does not plan to make these
payments particularly by circumventing the will of Congress and
without specific appropriation, I believe it is important that
Congress make this point clear.
I thank you all again for the opportunity to be here today
and to present this to you all live, and appreciate you all
taking your time to hear those of us that do wish to do a live
presentation.
And with that, I yield back.
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Mr. Rogers. Thank you, Mr. Griffith. Well presented.
Mr. Griffith. I appreciate that. Thank you very much. I
hope you all have a good day. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Mrs. Lowey--would you like to ask a question?
Mrs. Lowey. No, that is fine. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Questions?
Mrs. Lowey. I shouldn't say that is fine because I disagree
with the gentleman--I respectfully disagree with the gentleman,
but I do want to move the hearing along.
Mr. Rogers. Yes, ma'am. Thank you.
Mr. McGovern, welcome.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. JAMES P. McGOVERN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
MASSACHUSETTS
Opening Statement of Mr. McGovern
Mr. McGovern. Thank you very much. And thank you, Chairman
Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey, Mr. Fortenberry. I am happy to
be here. It is kind of like the Rules Committee, all these
members of Congress testifying. How lucky can you get?
But I appreciate the opportunity to testify on priorities
for fiscal year 2018. Look, nobody understands better than you
that the programs under your jurisdiction are central to our
national security and address critical and often urgent needs
around the world. I know that I am preaching to the choir when
I strongly encourage the Committee to talk to their Budget
Committee colleagues and to fight for robust funding for the
150 account in the fiscal year 2018 budget resolution.
I also want to express my support for all your efforts to
move forward a final version of the fiscal year 2017 State and
Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. Too much thoughtful
care and hard work have gone into the House and Senate versions
of that bill to abandon it now to a CR.
Mr. Chairman, there is a long history of bipartisan support
for America's global health, food security, humanitarian, and
development programs. They promote U.S. interests, save lives,
improve livelihoods, and advance the very best American values
and ideals.
And today I want to add my voice in support of our global
food security and nutrition programs. I ask the Committee to
support, at a minimum, funding levels that match or exceed the
fiscal year 2017 appropriations provided for Feed the Future
and for nutrition programs, especially the nutrition sub-
account under the Global Health Programs account in USAID.
I strongly believe that maintaining and expanding a U.S.
commitment to global food security, agricultural development,
and child nutrition must be high on the list of competing
priorities. These programs are central to helping people and
nations become more economically productive and prosperous.
They are an investment in helping nations free themselves from
dependency on international donor assistance.
But to be successful they require a long-term commitment. I
am disappointed by the continued flat funding of the nutrition
sub-account under the Global Health Program. Funding for
nutrition sub-account needs to increase in fiscal year 2018 and
in fiscal year 2017, if that is still possible, in order not to
reduce the scope of its work and the number of beneficiaries
reached.
Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member, Colombia, one of America's
strongest and most important allies in the hemisphere, is in
the midst of profound historic change. With over 50 years of
conflict, nearly 5 million internally displaced people,
hundreds of thousands of victims of unspeakable violence, and
generations growing up knowing only war, the Colombian
government has signed peace accords to bring armed conflict
with the FARC guerillas to an end.
While homicides and conflict are at their lowest levels in
decades, the human rights situation remains perilous. Human
rights defenders and local social leaders--the very human
capital Colombia needs to consolidate peace and promote lasting
reconciliation--are being targeted and murdered in increasing
numbers. It is urgent that the committee signals America's
unwavering support for Colombia and maintains strong and
unequivocal funding to implement the peace agreement.
For both fiscal year 2018 and the pending fiscal year 2017
bill I urge the Committee to be generous to Colombia to the
maximum extent possible, placing the priority of advancing
peace, development, human rights, reconciliation, and the rule
of law. Congress should not, however, seek to impose conditions
that undermine or are directly contrary to provisions of the
signed accords.
One issue I want to highlight in particular is the need to
specifically designate $21 million in the fiscal year 2017
under the nonproliferation, antiterrorism, and demining account
for demining in Colombia, and if that isn't possible, to make
up the shortfall in fiscal year 2018. After Afghanistan,
Colombia has the second-highest number of anti-personnel
landmine casualties in the world.
Norway, Colombia, and the U.S. are providing significant
funding for expanded demining effort so that all Colombians may
one day walk their land without fear of losing their lives and
limbs to this indiscriminate weapon. It is urgent that these
pledged funds of $21 million be provided as quickly as
possible.
Finally, I ask the Committee to maintain robust funding for
Central America. This is vital to U.S. national security.
There should be no doubt that the United States remains
committed to helping our allies in the Northern Triangle
address the violence and lack of opportunity that plague the
region and which drive so many families and young people to
abandon their homes and flee.
Mr. Chairman and ranking member, at the end of January, I
was in El Salvador. I joined an effort by Salvadoran and
Salvadoran-American families to establish a national commission
to account for the thousands of disappeared still missing from
the civil war. The Salvadoran government agreed and is now
getting input on the framework of such a commission.
I respectfully ask the Committee to provide $200,000-
$300,000 from existing ESF funding in fiscal year 2017, if that
is still possible, or in the fiscal year 2018 to support this
humanitarian initiative.
I thank you very much for all your great work. And again, I
believe that the work that is done in this Committee is
essential for our national security all around the world, and I
thank you and your staff for all your efforts.
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Mr. Rogers. Thank you very much for the good statement--it
is--you are on target--we are hoping, praying even, that when
the Senate gets our defense approps bill to be passed on the
floor that they will consider attaching to that bill the
balance of the other bills we have passed through committee.
Six, I think, have been on the floor. Then send that back to
the House, so that we can get 2017 behind us even as we are
embarking on 2018 hearings and process.
General Mattis, Mad Dog, says that if we slash State
Department funding he is going to have to order a lot more
ammunition.
Mr. McGovern. Right.
Mrs. Lowey. Right.
Mr. Rogers. And over 100 retired admirals and generals have
said essentially the same thing.
I am absolutely shocked at the administration's puny
request for this worldwide effort to defeat ISIS--maybe not
necessarily on the battlefield as much as in soft warfare, if
you will. I share your frustration with the so-called skinny
budget.
Mr. McGovern. Well, and as you know, I didn't comment
directly on the budget because I am confident that you are
going to make sure that it is dead on arrival, so that is why.
[Laughter.]
I trust the bipartisan leadership on this Committee.
Mr. Rogers. Mrs. Lowey.
Mrs. Lowey. First of all, I want to say I completely agree.
I completely agree with the chair.
The budget was shocking, disappointing. I can think of many
other adjectives, but I just want to use my minute to thank you
for your lifelong commitment, your knowledge. You have visited
these areas of the world, especially South America, Latin
America, and you have shown by actions your great knowledge.
I, frankly, am in awe of the work you have done, and so
appreciative. And I know the chair and I want to continue to
work with you as we turn this budget upside down. So thank you
so much for being here today and thank you for your work and
commitment.
Mr. Rogers. Questions? Comments?
Thank you, sir.
Mr. McGovern. Thank you. Welcome bipartisian back. We are
sitting bipartisianly, right?
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you. [Laughter.]
Mr. Rogers. We are glad to have the gentleman from Florida,
Mr. Yoho, recognized for 5 minutes.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. TED S. YOHO, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
FLORIDA
Opening Statement of Mr. Yoho
Mr. Yoho. Thank you.
Chairman Rogers, Ranking Member Lowey, and members of the
committee, thank you all for convening this hearing today. I
submitted my full testimony for the record but I wanted to talk
to you about some important aspects.
And I am a guy that came up here to get rid of foreign aid.
You know, I ran on that. We were going to get rid of it. In my
4 years here I have become much more learned, and that is what
I wanted to talk to you about today.
Today America is confronting unprecedented instability and
growing humanitarian crises around the world. Completely
slashing the 150 account will not address our debt crisis; it
will only hinder America's foreign trade, security, and
potentially increase the likelihood of future troubles--trouble
spots popping up that could require even more U.S. involvement.
Like many, I am skeptical of how U.S. taxpayer dollars are
spent overseas. I heard countless stories of America's
generosity funding wasteful projects and enriching corrupt
foreign bureaucrats at the expense of the U.S. taxpayers. I
believe U.S.--up to scrutiny.
As a member of the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee and
the chairman of the Asia Pacific Subcommittee I have developed
a deeper understanding of how strategic investments in
development can be an important tool in maintaining America
leadership while creating strong allies and providing great
economic opportunities for America's businesses here and at
home.
The President has proposed cuts of 28 percent to State
Department and USAID and a 35 percent cut to Treasury and
International programs. These proposed cuts certainly make a
robust reform agenda for foreign assistance necessary.
However, I believe strongly that we cannot balance the
federal budget on discretionary spending alone. If we are to
control our debt we must be willing to tackle and take on our
unsustainable mandatory spending.
Ninety-five percent of the world's customers live outside
of our borders. The global economic leadership and foreign
assistance that the U.S. generates significant returns on
invest at home. Strategic investments in diplomacy and
development help to build and open up new markets by promoting
rule of law, fighting corruption, and strengthening local
institutions, and creating investments in export opportunities
for American businesses.
To this point, 11 of America's top 15 export markets have
been recipients of U.S. foreign assistance. This investment in
foreign aid, when it is targeted and managed correctly, can
yield great returns and can help increase trade that is vital
not only to my State of Florida, where it supports over 2.5
million jobs, but to the entire United States.
The small but cost-effective investments we make in the
international affairs budget help advance U.S. national
security interests at home and abroad and spur American
economic job growth. For example, U.S. foreign assistance
helped move South Korea from an economic collapse after the
Korean War to our sixth-largest trading partner and a key ally
today. The $40 billion we now get back every year in trade in
South Korea is more than what we provided in foreign assistance
to that country over 5 decades.
My goal for U.S. aid is to achieve a level of effectiveness
that every time we provide aid to a region or country it is
with the final aim of transitioning them from trade to aid,
like we have done in South Korea. I am proud that there is a
legacy of strong bipartisan support in Congress for the
international affairs budget and the program it funds,
including PEPFAR, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, OPIC,
USTDA, and Power Africa.
The State Department and U.S. development agencies work
around the country and the world to advance American economic
interests by promoting exports that today make up almost 13
percent of America's $18 trillion economy and support about one
in five American jobs. The U.S. Trade and Development Agency,
for instance, generates $85 in exports of U.S.-manufactured
good and service for every $1 programmed for priority
development projects in the emerging markets. The agency's
programs have generated over $56 billion in U.S. exports,
supporting an estimated 300,000 U.S. jobs, since USTDA was
established in 1992.
More astounding, OPIC--which is an amazing corporation--
which has generated $80 billion in U.S. exports, has supported
more than 280,000 jobs since its creation. In Florida alone,
OPIC currently supports over 2,200 jobs. OPIC's portfolio has a
write-off rate of less than 1 percent and 38 consecutive years
of Federal deficit reduction, including more than $2.6 billion
returned to the U.S. treasury since 2008.
At a time when American leadership is needed more than
ever, we must continue to invest in the international affairs
budget. As such, I ask that you support for a strong 302(b)
allocation in fiscal year 2018 that is close to the levels
approved in the fiscal year 2017 continuing resolution.
This will allow for needed reforms in our international aid
programs while not sacrificing our security or economy for
splashy headlines that say we are cutting American foreign aid,
which will ultimately do nothing to address our current debt
crisis, and creating yet another vacuum by the lack of American
leadership to be filled most likely by a foe to our country and
ideals.
And I thank you.
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Mr. Rogers. Thank you.
We spend less than 1 percent on State and foreign aid, and
it is more or less like a fly on the back of the elephant,
which is defense.
Mr. Yoho. And he doesn't know it is there.
Mr. Rogers. And he doesn't know it is there. That is right.
And as you say, if you erased every penny we spent on
discretionary spending, you erased everything--National Park
Service, agriculture, whatever--you would still be in the red,
because we are not the problem. Discretionary is not the
problem, as you well know. It is mandatory spending, which is
just taking us over and will soon have us all.
Mr. Yoho. Mr. Chairman, if I may interject, if you look at
Electrify Africa and you look at this country back in the early
1900s, if it was not for the investment in the rural coops we
would not have electricity. Electrify Africa is bringing power
to the African people, and when you empower the people the
people will change the government the way they need to.
And that is why, you know, if we invest in those things it
will help the people of that country. Those people will help
change those countries to where they become trading partners of
ours and we will have to--we will be able to back off of some
of the stuff we are spending a lot of money on, trying to prop
up governments by empowering the people.
Mr. Rogers. We hear you.
Mrs. Lowey.
Mrs. Lowey. You have heard the expression ``shock and
awe.'' I cannot tell you how delighted I am because we haven't
had a chance to really interact, and I think, frankly, the
chair--our distinguished chair--could deputize you to speak to
some parts of the caucus of which you are a part, because your
statement is so very critical.
You should give this speech on television, because in all
sincerity, your statement was eloquent, so very important, and
I think there are too many people who don't take the time to
talk about the importance of this account back home.
And I understand everyone has to win their election, but
you expressed my view and the view of many of us on this
committee so eloquently, and I wanted to personally thank you.
Mr. Yoho. Thank you. And, when I took some of those votes,
like Electrify Africa, we had a lot of conservatives got mad at
me.
But when you explain why we do this, we can cut foreign aid
and that vacuum is going to be filled and it will be harder for
us to continue what we do in our own country. So when you
explain to them that, yes, I want to get away from foreign aid;
I want to go to aid, not--I want to go to trade, not aid. And
if we go to that we will be like Korea and have examples of
that all over the world, where they become large trading
partners of ours----
Mrs. Lowey. Whatever parts of the budget you want to talk
about to your colleagues----
Mr. Yoho. Yes, ma'am.
Mrs. Lowey [continuing]. Is fine, but I do hope that you
can build support, and it is a pleasure to have you testify
today.
Mr. Yoho. Thank you, ma'am.
Mr. Rogers. Questions?
Mr. Fortenberry.
Mr. Fortenberry. I almost jumped up and applauded, as
well--well said, as well as the previous member, Mr. McGovern.
And I think this growing sensitivity about the importance of
foreign aid, foreign investment, and the reasons that we do
it--they are three-fold: humanitarian benefit, economically
hopefully, and the military tells us, ``Send us in last. Do
whatever you can to build up good will and friendship and
trust.''
Mr. Yoho. I have got a mentor across the aisle here.
Mr. Fortenberry. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Questions?
Thank you, Mr. Yoho.
Mr. Yoho. Thank you all.
Mr. Rogers. Now we are blessed with the presence of the
ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Mr.
Engel.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEW
YORK
Opening Statement of Mr. Engel
Mr. Engel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Before Mr. Yoho leaves I want to also say on the Foreign
Affairs Committee Chairman Royce and I work very closely
together. We pride ourselves in saying we are the most
bipartisan Committee in the Congress. And I think you just
heard one of the reasons why, when we have our members who work
closely together on both sides of the aisle travel and have a
good knowledge of the budget and what it does. It makes us all
proud, and I told Ted that--I have traveled with him many
times, and I am very proud, just--I didn't hear his whole
speech, but what I heard it is very proud of.
I also want to say I have been in this Congress 29 years. I
never knew this room existed. All these little hiding places,
it is wonderful. Just terrific. So it is worth it to be on the
Appropriations Committee.
Mrs. Lowey. It is reserved for the Chair.
Mr. Rogers. We look at the Foreign Affairs hearing room and
marvel--we are down in the bowels of government knocking on the
pipes----
Mr. Engel. Well, Mrs. Lowey and I have adjoining districts
and we have both served in Congress the exact same time. This
is our 29th year, and we have always had adjoining districts.
Mrs. Lowey. I started when I was 10.
Mr. Engel. Right.
And I was five-and-a-half, so.
But, Mr. Chairman, thank you.
And thank you, Ranking Member Lowey, and all the members of
the Subcommittee. I am very grateful for the opportunity to
talk about the need for continued strong investment in American
security through our international affairs budget.
Congress, as we all say many times, is a co-equal branch of
government and, according to the Constitution, we appropriate
funds or you appropriate funds--we just don't have to roll over
because any White House says so.
This year we are going to have to put that idea to the
test.
This morning we learned that the White House wants to cut
nearly one-third of the international affairs budget next year.
That obviously would be a disaster. In fact, slashing our
international engagement by even a fraction of that at a time
when we are facing serious challenges around the world would be
an absolute disaster.
What is worse, we know from earlier reporting that the
administration wants to cut even more. Senior State Department
officials have told me that rather than getting there in one
stroke they want instead to put the department on a glide path
to achieving greater reductions.
The way I see it, whether you nosedive into the side of a
mountain or you are on a glide path into the side of a
mountain, you still end up on the side of a mountain. And that
is why more than 100 of our colleagues joined me in making the
case to Secretary Tillerson that such cuts would be a
catastrophic mistake.
I ask that this letter be included as part of the record.
It is the same case I am making here this morning.
I also spoke with Secretary Tillerson on the phone last
week and voiced my objections, although we didn't know
specifically how bad these cuts would be.
The world can be a dangerous place, and there will be times
when the only option for keeping America safe is the use of
military force. We have the greatest military in the world, and
I have always supported a strong national defense, even when
people threaten me for doing so.
The men and women who wear our uniform put their lives on
the line to protect our country, so we owe it to them to
exhaust every possible option before we send them into harm's
way. By cutting support for American diplomacy and development
we are betraying that commitment. If we don't give these
efforts their due, we are not exhausting every option and
instead unnecessarily putting our troops at risk.
Because what the State Department does, what USAID and MCC
and the Peace Corps does, and what our funding for the United
Nations supports, we are stopping crises before they start.
And, Mr. Chairman, I brought with me a letter from the AJC
underscoring the need for continued American engagement with
the U.N., and I ask that it be included in the record.
Diplomats work out disagreements across a conference table
or in quiet corners so they don't need to be resolved on the
battlefield with bombs and bullets. Diplomacy makes old
friendships stronger and builds new bridges to connect with new
partners.
Development efforts aren't charity. They are investments in
countries and communities to help them become more stable,
healthy, and prosperous.
Poverty creates hotbeds for violence, crime, and
corruption, and those problems inevitably spill over into
neighboring countries. Development assistance, on the other
hand, builds stronger partners on the world stage, partners who
will share our values and priorities.
As you said before, Mr. Chairman, this kind of aid is less
than 1 percent of the total budget. I know the consensus is
that it is a whole bunch more, but it is less than 1 percent.
What is more, that means these efforts cost pennies on the
dollar compared to military engagement.
Look at the Peace Corps. It is staffed by volunteers who
they have paid dollars a day but work full time to project
American leadership and improve our relationships in some of
the most challenging places in the world. That is a pretty good
bang for our buck.
So if we slash investment in diplomacy and development we
are telling our servicemembers and the American people, ``We
will take our chances down the road, even if that may mean a
much steeper cost in terms of American blood and American
treasure.''
When time comes, what will we say to constituents who want
to know, ``Could you have done more? Did you have a chance to
put out this fire before it burned out of control?''
What will we say to mothers and fathers who ask, ``Did my
son or daughter really have to make the ultimate sacrifice, or
could we have stopped the crisis before it started so that my
child could have come home?''
There is another cost. If the United States draws back from
the world stage, what signal does that send? What does it say
to countries that look to our values and our leadership?
What does it say to other big powers, maybe those that
don't share our values or our interests--think of a country
beginning with an R--when they see the void we have left
behind?
History has shown us what we can get by retreating into a
defensive, isolationist crouch. If we aren't carrying the
mantle of global leadership, make no mistake, someone else will
pick it up and we may not like what we see.
Don't want Russia picking it up. Don't want China picking
it up. Don't want any of these countries that don't share our
values picking it up, and they will if we retreat.
The American people don't want to see that happen to our
country. In fact, recent data shows that 72 percent of
Americans believe our country should play a leading global
role. Nearly six in 10 believe funding levels at the State
Department should stay the same or increase.
AS for military experts, here is a letter signed by more
than 120 retired generals and admirals. They write, quote, ``We
urge you to ensure that resources for the international affairs
budget keep pace with the growing global threats and
opportunities we face. Now is not the time to retreat,''
unquote.
I ask that this letter be included in the record in its
entirety.
Secretary of Defense Mattis himself said in 2013, and I
quote him, ``If you don't fund the State Department fully then
I need to buy more ammunition ultimately.''
So I think it is a cost-benefit ratio. The more that we put
into the State Department's diplomacy, hopefully the less we
have to put into a military budget as we deal with the outcome
of an apparent American withdrawal from the international
scene.
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Lowey, I feel that following
the administration's path forward for our international affairs
budget is the equivalent of retreat.
It is a retreat from our role as a global leader. It is a
retreat from our alliances and our careful diplomatic efforts
to curb proliferation, human rights abuses, and climate change.
It is a retreat from the lifesaving work we do all over the
world, whether it is fighting HIV/AIDS, combatting
tuberculosis, or battling modern slavery. And it is a retreat
from our solemn commitment that military force must always
remain a measure of last resort, not first.
Mr. Chairman, let me close with this question to think
about: If you were an American diplomat or a development expert
or a Peace Corps volunteer and you woke up this morning and
heard the news, what would you think? How would you react to
learning that your government only wants to pay seven cents on
the dollar for your service and sacrifice for your country?
What would you think if you were an American ally relying
on our continued leadership in the world promoting freedom and
democracy and the rule of law?
I fear that this budget request is sending a chilling
shockwave across the globe, and that shockwave will come back
on us. The diseases we don't prevent will reach our shores. The
conflicts we don't help resolve will grow into the wars we need
to fight. The places where we fail to plant the seeds of
friendship today may tomorrow become fertile ground for
violence and hatred toward America.
Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Lowey, you are both in a
unique position to do something about it to guarantee America's
role in the world going forward. I encourage this Committee to
support a strong international affairs budget, and I am again
grateful for the time today.
I yield back.
Mr. Rogers. Well, thank you, Mr. Engel, for your testimony.
Without objection, the committee will include the
gentleman's letters in the record.
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pages 78-101:]
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Mr. Engel. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you very much.
Mr. Engel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Rogers. Questions?
Mr. Engel. Thank you, Madam.
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you very much. We appreciate your
eloquent statement.
Mr. Rogers. Now we recognize the gentleman from Texas, Mr.
Babin.
----------
Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. BRIAN BABIN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF TEXAS
Opening Statement of Mr. Babin
Mr. Babin. Thank you. Thank you very much. This really is a
beautiful little room, which I have never been in, as well.
Great view out there.
Mr. Stewart. Are you looking at me? [Laughter.]
Mr. Babin. I was actually looking past you, Chris. I am
sorry, but looking at the monument.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Chairman Rogers, and Ranking
Member Lowey, and members of the State and Foreign Operations
Appropriations Subcommittee. Thank you for allowing me to come
address you this morning.
At this critical time in our nation I believe it is very
important that Congress does everything within its power to
support the President and his administration's efforts to
strengthen our national security. He has taken strong and
important steps to put the safety and security of the American
people first, and I hope that this subcommittee will build on
those efforts.
I would encourage the committee to provide funding for no
more than 50,000 refugees in fiscal year 2018. This is
consistent with the President's executive order on protecting
the nation from foreign terrorist entry into the United States.
And as much as it is in the purview of the Subcommittee, I
ask that sufficient money be provided to improve screening,
vetting protocols, and procedures associated with the U.S.
Refugee Admission Program (USRAP). There are a number of
troubling aspects about our current refugee admission program.
Among them is the glaring under-representation of religious
minorities--Christians in particular--being admitted from the
Middle East through our nation's refugee program. As they are
currently performed, refugee admissions to the United States
largely come from those being served in refugee camps run and
administered by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.
As they are currently performed, refugee admissions to the
United States largely come from those being served in refugee
camps run and administered by the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Many reports have
demonstrated that Christians simply do not feel safe in UNHCR
refugee camps.
There are fears among Christians that they will face
terrible persecution, rape, extortion, exploitation, and even
murder and death. These are very real and legitimate fears.
Given this fact, it is little wonder that among the refugees
entering the U.S. through this U.N.-run program there are very
few Christians.
There is a way around this for some refugees, but the
Obama--the former Obama administration failed to utilize this
priority 2, or P-2 refugee recognition process.
Given these shortcomings, I believe it is necessary that we
consider other avenues by which we can ensure that persecuted
Christians can gain access to the refugee programs to address
the discriminatory nature that currently characterizes the
admission of refugees from the Middle East region in
particular. Specifically, I ask that the Committee consider
language that would direct embassies to work closely with and
consider prioritizing referrals from nongovernmental
organizations, or NGOs, that are working with persecuted
Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle Eastern
region.
This might help address the glaring underrepresentation of
Christian refugees from Syria, where less than 0.5 percent have
been Christian in the last year, and in the Middle East in
general, and enable these extremely persecuted refugees to
access the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program through an
alternative route. Embassies are already permitted to make
referrals to the USRAP, but my understanding is that this
channel is very rarely used. We should encourage U.S. embassies
to collaborate with these NGOs working in disaster-or war-torn
areas abroad to accept for review nongovernmental organization
refugee recommendations so that religious minorities are not
excluded due to discriminatory practices within these U.N.
camps.
I want to thank you for your consideration of what I
consider a very serious issue. Encouragement by this
subcommittee along the lines that I have suggested may enable
this subcommittee to have a significant impact on the lives of
the most persecuted peoples on the face of the Earth.
I want to thank you for your attention to this issue, and I
look forward to working with you and your staff to address this
issue in the fiscal year 2018's State Foreign Operations
Appropriations Act.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you, Mr. Babin. Appreciate your being
here. Thank you.
Mr. Babin. Glad to be here. Be glad to answer any question,
Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Rogers. Questions?
Mrs. Lowey. I just want to say, the U.S. has the most
rigorous refugee screening process, including biometric tracks,
medical screening, DNA testing. And if your information can be
supplied to us at the committee, I have never heard that
religious minorities were excluded.
And I am happy to look into it, or if you have additional
information it would be very helpful.
Mr. Babin. Well, can I interject----
Mrs. Lowey. Sure.
Mr. Babin [continuing]. One thing here, Mrs. Lowey?
Syria, for example: 10 percent of the Syrian population is
Christian. Less than one-half of 1 percent of the refugees we
have taken in in the last 12 months under the Obama
administration have been Christians. Less than one-half of 1
percent.
Mrs. Lowey. I certainly respect those numbers, but it may
be for many other reasons. Maybe the Christians are staying
there, not leaving.
So I would certainly--and I know the chair and I would
welcome that information.
Mr. Babin. Yes, ma'am.
Mrs. Lowey. And I thank you.
Mr. Babin. You bet. Well, I know that there is great fear.
We have got very good information in our research--very great
fear by--on the part of Christians to even enter these U.N.
refugee camps because of discriminatory practices.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you, Mr. Babin. We appreciate your
testimony.
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. We are running short on time.
Do you have a question?
Mr. Fortenberry. All I was going to do was say that is a
noteworthy comment traced back to the reality of certain
minority populations not being counted as part of the refugee
population because they are not in the camps. They are
dispersed into other areas because of fear or other concerns. I
think it is a reasoned point.
Thank you for raising that, sir.
Mr. Babin. Thank you.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. EARL BLUMENAUER, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
OREGON
Statement of Mr. Blumenauer
Mr. Blumenauer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will attempt to
be brief.
I want to associate myself with the comments that you have
heard about the need to protect the important programs that you
have overseen over the years. And I would just focus my
attention on one area, as I try every year to find my way down
to this room to talk about what we are doing in the area of
water and sanitation.
This subcommittee in the past--I appreciate Mrs. Lowey and
your predecessor, Ms. Granger, helping us beef up these
efforts. We still have two-thirds of a billion people around
the globe that do not have access to safe drinking water. It is
four times that number that do not have access to adequate
sanitation.
It is not just a humanitarian crisis, although those
illnesses actually pose a threat to broader populations,
including Americans, but it is also--has geopolitical--water
insecurity was part of what drove the implosion of civil
society in Syria. Having the drought in the countryside, not
having access to water, moving people to the cities created a
situation.
We have had the strategic assessment from the Pentagon
showing that water instability is a threat to our security,
compromising cross-border conflicts, leading to famine. These
are areas that this subcommittee has supported a refined effort
to improve water and sanitation programs.
And I would just hope that we would be able to think
strategically about how these modest investments have made a
difference for millions of lives and strengthening our
position.
Most recently I have focused attention on what is happening
in Gaza, where we are--have almost 2 million people who are
rapidly approaching a situation where there is no potable
water, and having disease and not having drinkable water in
this flashpoint in the Middle East is going to be destabilizing
for Israel and for the United States.
There has been some progress that has been made with
Israelis moving forward in the international organizations, but
the United States partnership and investment, even though it is
not great in terms of all the things you look at, has helped
leverage, has helped bring people to the table, forced
cooperation, and made amazing progress. It is one of those few
areas where we actually have broad bipartisan support in
Congress.
My partner in the past, the late Henry Hyde, and more
recently with Ted Poe, we have had support in the Senate. But
you have been there with some essential funding to help make it
happen.
And I just hope the committee, with all the difficult
things you are facing, will not have sanitation and water kind
of slip away, because you have made a big impact and it is hard
to think of any area that would affect more lives more
profoundly for such a modest investment.
And I appreciate your courtesy.
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Mr. Rogers. Thank you for that good testimony. I am
particularly sensitive to good water issues. I have spent my
career back home in my district getting water to rural
communities. When I came to this job I think we had like 35
percent of people on city water; now it is up to 92 percent.
When I was growing up in rural, really rural Kentucky, for
water, our family had a well in the yard, which I didn't
realize at the time was just pure sulfur water. That is what we
grew up on.
So we moved to town when I was 8 or 9 years old, started
drinking city water, which tasted awful. [Laughter.]
I had been used to sulfur water.
Anybody have any questions or comment?
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you.
When we see you coming we just say, ``Water, water,
water.'' [Laughter.]
Mr. Blumenauer. Thank you very much.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you very much.
Your statement will be in the record; if you would like to
summarize for us we would appreciate it.
Mr. Foster.
---------- --
--------
Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. BILL FOSTER, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
ILLINOIS
Opening Statement of Mr. Foster
Mr. Foster. Thank you, Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member
Lowey, for having this Members' Day and to all the members of
the subcommittee for allowing me to testify.
I would like to thank you both for your advocacy of
important programs funded through the state and foreign ops
account. We spend money in a variety of ways to make our
country safer, and the return on investment from, in national
security per dollar expended in the State Department I believe
is higher than many other ways that we spend money.
And in that light, the proposed 28 percent cut to the State
Department budget is a step backwards. Far better to look for
cuts in weapon systems that the Pentagon does not want and
bases that it wishes closed.
But I am here for two specific reasons today: first, to
urge robust funding for the accounts that support the
International Atomic Energy Agency, the IAEA, which is the
organization that is tasked with verifying that states comply
with their commitments under both the nonproliferation treaty
and other nuclear nonproliferation agreements, such as the Iran
nuclear deal.
And secondly, to urge a much smaller but symbolically
important support for the Synchrotron-light for Experimental
Science and Application in the Middle East, the so-called
SESAME project, which is a collaboration of scientists from
throughout the Middle East, including Israel and including Iran
and everyone in between, in building a world-class scientific
facility about an hour drive from Amman and an hour drive from
Jerusalem.
It is a unique facility and important to me because of my
history in high-energy physics, where we have seen very often
that when politicians and even people can't get along often
their scientists do, and that scientific facilities like SESAME
can be an important bridge. It is a facility that has been in
construction for a long time. It is nearing completion but
missing a lot of the scientific equipment it needs.
And so even a symbolic contribution from the U.S. would go
a long way towards encouraging the Gulf States and others to
chip in a lot more money.
And now first, with respect to the IAEA, earlier last year
world leaders from more than 50 countries convened in
Washington and participated in a global dialogue to reinforce
our commitment at the highest levels to securing nuclear
materials. And in support of that initiative the Nuclear
Security Summit released an action plan highlighting the IAEA's
need for reliable and sufficient resources.
As you know, each member state of the IAEA is assessed
annual contributions from the IAEA's regular budget. The budget
covers the salaries of agency personnel, operating costs, and
some of its work in the areas of safeguards, nuclear security,
and peaceful uses of nuclear technologies.
However, the regular budget of the IAEA is woefully
inadequate to cover all of the costs that are incurred by the
agency's critical work. And with nuclear threats drawing, for
good cause, increased global attention, members--member states,
including the United States, are expecting more from the IAEA.
This is for several reasons. First, there is an increasing
number of nuclear facilities and an increasing amount of
nuclear material around the world that needs safeguarding and
monitoring. And January 16, 2017 marked the 1-year anniversary
of the Iran deal's implementation, and as a critical part of
this inspection regimen the IAEA inspectors have enhanced
access to all declared Iranian nuclear sites, including uranium
mines and mills, and continuous real-time surveillance of
centrifuge manufacturing and storage locations.
Our ability to monitor and detect illicit nuclear
activities in Iran, including illicit trafficking, is largely
based upon the will and support of the international community
and the capabilities of the IAEA. So that is a--one of the main
reasons why we should, you know, treat very carefully the
budget of the IAEA.
Secondly, since Fukushima the agency has expanded its work
on nuclear safety, and that is a--you know, it is obviously a
very important thing, and a disaster like that costs hundreds
of billions, wherever it happens.
And third, since September 11, 2001 the agency has
increased its work to combat nuclear terrorism, including
setting up a nuclear security fund, which is largely funded by
voluntary contributions from member states like the United
States. Virtually all the agency's technical assistance
programs and projects are funded outside their regular budget.
As a result, the agency relies heavily on member states'
voluntary or extra-budgetary contributions. In fact, much of
what the agency does is in direct support of the U.S.
nonproliferation or other nuclear security objectives.
And so we can specify how our voluntary contributions are
to be spent, thus ensuring that it goes to support our priority
objectives. For example, we currently use the voluntary
contribution to fund projects of specific U.S. interest in the
safeguards of nuclear security programs.
Through the IAEA Peaceful Uses Initiative, our voluntary
contributions promote the peaceful uses of nuclear energy in
both power generation and other applications that include food
security, water, cancer treatment, disease prevention, climate,
and the oceans. The IAEA, for example, played a helpful role in
the recent Ebola and Zika crises by helping use nuclear
technology that enabled faster detection of both the viruses
and quicker treatment. You know, their involvement there
literally saved lives.
And finally, I would like to draw your attention to an
important opportunity to advance U.S. diplomatic goals in the
Middle East through scientific engagement. The SESAME project,
as I mentioned, is a major science facility under construction
in Jordan that both promotes scientific excellence in the
Middle East, an area that historically has led the world and
has been lagging in recent centuries, and also in building
scientific links that foster better understanding and culture
of peace through collaboration.
The U.S. support for SESAME would provide encouragement to
all those who are struggling to collaborate across political,
religious, and cultural divides in the Mid-East and throughout
the world. At this turbulent time in the Mid-East, rapid
action, even at a symbolic level, in support of SESAME would be
enormously valuable in ensuring its success and in furthering
the diplomatic interests of the United States.
Thank you again. I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you very much for your statement.
Mr. Donovan, you are recognized. Your statement will be
included in the record.
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. We hope that you can keep your remarks under 5
minutes.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. DANIEL M. DONOVAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
NEW YORK
Opening Statement of Mr. Donovan
Mr. Donovan. I certainly will, Chairman.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you.
Ranking Member Lowey, my colleague from New York, thank
you.
The United States is a leader in diplomacy and development,
and that leadership helps keep Americans safe. I believe the
commitment to global health, including our work to end
preventable child and maternal deaths and combatting wildlife
trafficking, is critical not only to the survival of millions
of mothers and children around the world but also to the safety
of our nation.
It is to the thanks of the United States Congress, and in
particular this subcommittee, that we have been a world leader
in saving children's and mothers' lives for the past several
decades. Since 1990 an estimated 100 million children have been
saved due in no small part to the United States. In addition,
maternal mortality rates have dropped 44 percent.
With simple, cost-saving interventions like improving
access to skilled assisted deliveries of babies; growth
monitoring; immunizations; treatment for diarrhea, pneumonia,
and malaria; and clean water and sanitation, millions of
children have survived and been saved from tragic death.
Vaccines are one of these key interventions where the
United States' leadership has dramatically changed the
landscape of child survival. Our support for measles and polio
eradication efforts have rapidly reduced child deaths in even
the most report places on the planet.
Additionally, our support of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance,
has helped to immunize over half a billion children, which will
save over 6 million lives. It is important for the United
States to uphold our 2015 commitment to Gavi to help immunize
an additional 300 million children, which will save 5 million
more lives.
This commitment includes getting vaccines to the poorest
countries to drive down some of the leading killers of children
globally: pneumonia and diarrhea. Truly, no child should die
from something completely preventable like diarrhea.
I also believe that nutrition programs which are funded by
the global health account, Food for Peace and Feed the Future,
are also key to child survival. The global health programs
support simple but effective interventions, such as vitamin A,
iron, and other micronutrient supplementation; food
fortification; promotion of good nutrition and hygiene
practices for the first 6 months of life; and treatment for
severe, acute malnutrition. This is particularly important for
a child's first 1,000 days of life, where chronic malnutrition
can lead to physical and cognitive stunting that has
irreversible lifetime effects.
In 2015 alone 18 million children under 5 years of age had
their nutritional intake improved thanks to the United States.
We take pride in this work because children who get the right
nutrition early are 10 times more likely to overcome life-
threatening childhood diseases, such as diarrhea and pneumonia,
and they are more likely to achieve higher levels of education.
Growing evidence has also suggested a strong positive
correlation between nutrition and lifetime earnings. Think of
the impact: for every dollar that we invest in nutrition we see
about a $16 return.
The good news is that we have a lot of success and have
seen great improvements in child survival worldwide. Mortality
for children under 5 years old has dropped by over 50 percent
from where it was 30 years ago.
The bad news is that millions of children still bear the
burden of poor developmental outcomes. An estimated 66 percent
of children under 5 years old in sub-Saharan Africa and 43
percent of children in other low-income areas of the world are
at risk of growing up with stunted bodies and brains.
I am confident that expanding existing maternal and child
health and nutritional services to include interventions that
promote nurturing care, known as early childhood development,
could be an important way to ensure the best outcomes for young
children.
This integration of early childhood development into
maternal and child health could be used as a resource for the
United States Agency for International Development going
forward, as doing so would magnify the already impressive
impact of our U.S. maternal, child health, and nutrition
programs, and ensure that children not only live to see their
next birthday, but thrive.
In addition to that work and investment shown in maternal
and child health, the United States has been leading the effort
to combat wildlife poaching and trafficking. The illegal trade
of wildlife products like elephant tusks, ivory horns, and
shark fins is worth $8 billion to $10 billion annually.
Big profits make it difficult to track the trade and has
attracted criminal and terrorist groups as a way to fund their
heinous activities. I believe it is imperative that we fully
fund the wildlife trafficking program at the State Department
and USAID.
Again, I thank you very much for this opportunity to
testify. I sincerely and respectfully request that the
committee fully fund the programs aimed at global maternal and
child health and nutrition, along with combatting wildlife
trafficking.
Thank you so very, very much for your attention.
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Mr. Rogers. Thank you for your statement.
Mr. Donovan. Thank you, sir.
Mrs. Lowey. And thank you for your statement.
Mr. Donovan. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Mr. Cartwright, you are recognized, and we will
insert your written statement in the record. We invite you to
summarize it for us. Thank you.
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Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. MATT CARTWRIGHT, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
PENNSYLVANIA
Opening Statement of Mr. Cartwright
Mr. Cartwright. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of the
committee. It is a pleasure to be here with you today and it is
an honor to join the House Committee on Appropriations. Look
forward to serving with both of you.
Two broad policy issues I would like to discuss this
morning: Number one, an unceasing chorus in this country
continues to cast doubt on the well-documented and well-settled
science of climate change. And secondly, many of our citizens
and leaders dramatically overestimate how much our country
spends on foreign aid and underestimate both the benefits and
the cost savings from our overseas investments.
I am here to discuss both our pursuit of preserving the
environment and the value of our international aid programs.
First, I urge this committee to support funding for
international activities that seek to fight climate change.
Outside of this country, no significant group doubts the
science of climate change. The U.S. must take responsibility
for our outsized historic emissions and take a leadership role
internationally.
Our nation's top military leaders have long held that
climate change is a threat multiplier, making the work our
military carries out around the world much more difficult. When
more frequent and severe storms devastate other countries, when
droughts and resource shortages destabilize already-fragile
states, when mass migration spurred by the effects of climate
change causes rapid urbanization and economic displacement that
benefits extremist groups, the U.S. military is affected, and
they have to be. They are there to respond.
Given these realities, nearly the entire international
community is rising to the challenge of combatting climate
change. Countries around the world are taking steps to curb
their emissions and shift to green energy alternatives: 132
nations and counting ratified their Paris Agreements, including
the U.S., and we need to honor our commitment.
It is in that spirit that I urge you fully to fund the
Green Climate Fund, which supports the efforts of developing
countries in curbing their emissions. The U.S. has pledged $3
billion of the fund's current $100 billion budget. I request
that we honor that pledge--a pledge that was instrumental in
leading many other countries to pledge. And I think we need to
take our natural leadership role in that fight.
I am also here today to urge you fully to fund U.S.
international development efforts, which have long enjoyed
strong bipartisan support. It is our moral imperative and it is
representative of our American values to help our neighbors.
Just last week the U.N. reported the world is currently
experiencing, quote, ``the largest humanitarian crisis in the
history of the United Nations,'' unquote, with 20 million
people in Yemen, South Sudan, Somalia, and Nigeria facing
starvation and famine. This is not the time to cut
international aid.
Furthermore, U.S. foreign aid is not merely philanthropic.
It is smart strategy. It keeps our nation safe and stimulates
the U.S. economy.
As globalization continues to expand, our nation is
increasingly affected by the activities of other countries. We
saw this when American citizens were infected with Ebola and
Zika, showing how our health is intertwined with the health of
other nations.
We see time and again our own economy improving as the
markets of other nations improve, creating more and stronger
customers for our exports. We also know that terrorist
organizations often target the impoverished for new recruits to
their cause, and foreign aid can build good will and reduce the
need for military intervention.
U.S. foreign aid helps the U.S. as much as it helps the
nation it serves. And it is the right thing to do.
I, therefore, request that the Millennium Challenge
Corporation, the MCC, and the U.S. Agency for International
Development, the USAID, are given full funding in fiscal year
2018 to enable them to continue their important development
work in the name of the United States.
And within USAID, but with its own budget authority, I
specifically request that the Development Credit Authority be
fully funded at $10 million, which will not only allow it to
continue leveraging private sector resources in record numbers,
but also to increase its portfolio management and support banks
in utilizing their guarantees at 100 percent.
I thank you again for your time today, the opportunity to
share my requests, and I do submit my written testimony for the
record. Thank you.
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Mr. Rogers. It will be entered in the record. Thank you for
your statement. Welcome to the Committee.
Mr. Cartwright. Thank you.
Mrs. Lowey. And I thank you. Good to see you.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you very much.
Mr. Espaillat.
----------
Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. ADRIANO ESPAILLAT, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
NEW YORK
Opening Statement of Mr. Espaillat
Mr. Espaillat. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Your written statement will be entered in the
record.
Mr. Espaillat. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. We advise you to summarize it for us in less
than 5 minutes.
Mr. Espaillat. Thank you so much.
Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey, thank you for
allowing me to testify during today's subcommittee hearing to
lay out my priorities as they relate to state and foreign
operations. It is specifically crucial that I raise my voice,
given President Donald Trump's release of the skinny budget, as
they call it, which will cut the State Department by $10.8
billion, or 29 percent.
This heartless budget prioritizes building a border wall
over diplomacy and housing the poor. As I hope you agree,
making an investment abroad is not about charity; it is about
keeping violence and hatred from America's shores.
As the first Dominican-American to serve in Congress and as
a member of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee on the Foreign
Affairs Committee, I have firsthand exposure and insight into
the importance of maintaining our foreign aid commitments in
the region. This is in the interest of helping our brothers and
sisters in Latin America and the Caribbean, and in our best
interest to protect our security and improve our economic
relations with these countries.
Trump's budget request is cold. It is a coldhearted budget,
stripping funding from longstanding federal programs that
assist the poor, working families; funding for scientific
research; and aid to America's allies abroad.
I hope the committee rejects this budget and will instead
prioritize our commitments abroad, including investing in
emergency preparedness in the Caribbean, the U.S. strategy for
engagement in Central America, funding for the Caribbean Basin
Security Initiative, and investing in energy potential in the
Caribbean, and increasing funding for the United States Agency
for International Development, the USAID.
The U.S. strategic--strategy for engagement in Central
America is an important program. Security assistance to these
countries in Central America, particularly in the Northern
Triangle, which includes El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras,
is specifically important.
These countries make up a group of countries that
constitute the deadliest region in the world. El Salvador had
over 100 homicides per 100,000 people in 2015, more than 24
times higher than here in the United States.
This sort of extreme violence is at the root of women and
children risking everything for the prospect of safety. These
immigrants are refugees. Women and children from the Northern
Triangle are coming to the United States for safety.
This is a matter of human rights and dignity.
Our continued assistance would support the U.S. strategy of
engagement in Central America, a program that promotes good
governance, economic advancement, and improved regional
security. This is essential aid, which would help address the
root causes that force too many unaccompanied children to flee
their homes to find refuge in the United States.
I urge the Committee to increase funding to support the
U.S. strategy for engagement in Central America to aid the
Northern Triangle in addressing the underlying causes of
migration from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.
Emergency preparedness in the Caribbean: As we have seen,
natural disasters, including earthquakes and hurricanes, have
become more common and more severe in Latin America, but
specifically in the Caribbean. By increasing our support for
emergency preparedness and investing in building local capacity
to respond to these disasters we can help to improve the
resiliency in managing natural disasters.
This aid can greatly improve the lives of those living in
these countries and will also lessen the burden on us when
responding to natural disasters. I urge the committee to
increase funding for emergency preparedness and capacity-
building in the Caribbean Basin Security.
The Caribbean Basin Security Initiative is particularly
susceptible to drug trade, given its location between drug-
producing countries in South America and the United States. The
Caribbean Basin Security Initiative has been instrumental in
providing the funding needed to help combat crime and violence.
Per the Congressional Research Service, crime and violence
is on the rise in the Caribbean. CRS reports that homicide
rates in several Caribbean countries have increased in recent
years because of gangs and organized crime, competition between
drug trafficking organizations, and the availability of
firearms.
I urge the Committee to provide the same level of funding
for CBSI that was included in the 2016 budget through the
omnibus appropriation bills.
Investing in energy potential in the Caribbean: According
to a study from the World Bank, an average cost of electricity
in the Caribbean is four times higher than in rich nations such
as the United States. High energy costs are a financial
hardship for people in the Caribbean and are also one of the
blockages from--for unleashing economic growth and prosperity
in the region.
Another report shows that the cost of generating
electricity in the Caribbean is higher than much of the rest of
the world, which can impede direct investment. In Jamaica
consumers pay 30 cents per kilowatt an hour for electricity; in
Puerto Rico the figure stands at 25 to 30 cents per kilowatt-
hours. In contrast, the average American household pays 10.13
cents per kilowatt-hours, according to the U.S. Energy
Information Administration.
Investing in new sources of energy, including renewable
energy projects such as wind and solar projects in the
Caribbean, would mean more clean energy jobs, updated
infrastructure, and a more booming economy. That is why I urge
the Appropriations Committee to increase our foreign direct
investment in the Caribbean and to invest in Caribbean's energy
needs.
The United States Agency of International Development, the
USAID: Finally, I would like to discuss the importance of the
United States Agency for International Development and the need
to continue funding its vital programs. The USAID is a premier
facet of our foreign diplomacy and its engagement has brought
us closer with our neighbors in Central and South America
through increasing economic prosperity, promoting good
governance, and engaging in clean energy development in the
face of climate change.
Our assistance to and cooperating with these countries has
proven to be a positive, demonstrable effects. For example, in
the last few years Panama has changed from a country receiving
development aid to a country that is now providing aid to other
Central American countries.
Continued investment through USAID will help to make
countries become more sustainable and prosperous, which will
continue to improve the region in magnitudes beyond our current
aid. That is why I am asking that you support USAID and
increase its funding for programs in Central America.
Thank you for the opportunity to offer my concerns and
priorities to this Committee. Thank you.
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Mr. Rogers. Mr. Espaillat, thank you very much.
Mr. Espaillat. Thank you so much.
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Mr. Kennedy is now recognized. Your written
statement will be inserted in the record. You are invited to
summarize it for us.
----------
Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. JOSEPH P. KENNEDY, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
MASSACHUSETTS
Opening Statement of Mr. Kennedy
Mr. Kennedy. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Rogers. In less than 5 minutes?
Mr. Kennedy. Less than 5 minutes. I will be quick.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Madam Ranking Member, and members
of the Committee. I want to thank you for allowing me to
testify in support of the Peace Corps, a program that is not
only near and dear to my heart but that safeguards our nation's
core values of democracy and human rights.
With 7,200 Peace Corps volunteers currently serving in 63
countries, their impact spans training communities in critical
areas of need, combatting HIV and AIDS, to facilitating girls'
and women's empowerment through education and economic
independence.
But more than that, those volunteers play a--also play a
critical role in our national security. As 121 retired three-
and four-star generals recently wrote in congressional
leadership, quote, ``Peace Corps and other development agencies
are critical to preventing conflict and reducing the need to
put our men and women in uniform in harm's way.''
Yet, despite the Peace Corps' success, overwhelming support
from our military leaders, and strong, consistent support from
Congress, the agency remains as underutilized as it is
extremely effective. Excuse me, nearly 24,000 Americans applied
to the agency in fiscal year 2016, but funding only allowed for
3,800 volunteer openings. As retired General Stanley McChrystal
has said, quote, ``This gaps represents democratic energy
wasted and a generation of patriotism needlessly squandered.''
Even with that broad support, the Peace Corps represents
only 0.01 percent of our Federal budget and 0.7 percent of our
international affairs budget. Simply put, America increasingly
turns down the opportunity to leverage this singular resource.
The number of currently serving Peace Corps volunteers has
steadily declined for years. At a peak of 15,000 volunteers in
1967, the agency has failed to reach 10,000 volunteers since
1969.
That is not because the agency or its model doesn't work.
It perhaps works better than any other.
The shortfall in volunteers is because funding allows the
agency to offer just one in six applicants an opening. Every
year we turn away the opportunity for a young American to
develop--to give a group of girls the gift of reading. Every
year we turn away the opportunity of a retired American to
build a maternity ward. Every year we turn away the opportunity
of a small, remote village in the Ukraine the opportunity to
meet a black American. Or we turn away the opportunity for a
group of university students in China the opportunity to know a
Muslim American.
Since we cannot hear their stories I will briefly summarize
mine.
About a year into my own service in the Dominican Republic
I was on my way back from visiting my host family into the
Peace Corp office in Santo Domingo on a bus that was
essentially a large van meant for about eight with about 20
people hanging out of it. And I was in the second-to-last row
of a bench seat. There was a group behind me.
I had my backpack on my lap and I got tapped on my
shoulder. And I turned around and this gentleman, Dominican,
older Dominican, asked me, ``Cuerpo de Paz,'' wondering if I
was a Peace Corps volunteer in Spanish.
And I said, ``Yes. How did you know?''
And he looked at me like, you don't blend in. You can't
possibly think you blend in.
Fair enough.
He went on, Chairman, to thank me not for the work that I
was doing but for the work that another volunteer had done
decades before when he was a little boy in a village outside of
Santo Domingo that didn't have access to running water. And
that young American had come in and put in a water pipe to
bring clean water to their village.
That older gentleman never asked my name, never asked where
I was from, never asked what I was doing. He just said that he
never got the chance to thank that other volunteer all those
decades before.
A few moments later the bus stopped, he got off. I have
never seen him again.
But that is what this organization does, and that is what
service overseas or at home, I believe, is all about: not any
one person's accomplishments, but the way even the smallest act
of assistance, cooperation, and friendship reverberates across
time, across distance, across language, generations, and, of
course, borders.
And that is what Peace Corps does every single day. And
that is why the only discussions about its funding should focus
on increasing investment and support for its staff and its
volunteers.
I thank you for your consideration.
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Mr. Rogers. Powerful testimony.
Mr. Kennedy. Thank you, sir.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you very much. Thank you for you and your
family's profound commitment to the Peace Corps.
Mr. Kennedy. Appreciate that, sir. Thank you.
Mrs. Lowey. I also want to thank you. Sam Farr used to tap
me on the shoulder probably 10 times a day: Peace Corps, Peace
Corps, Peace Corps. So I am very pleased that you are carrying
the mantle, and we are great supporters and as best as we can
fund it, I'm sure we will. And we need to increase the overall
account.
Mr. Kennedy. Grateful for that. I could never, despite my
deepest attempts, never imitate Sam Farr's tireless advocacy
for the Peace Corps. But by extension----
Mrs. Lowey. You do a good job.
Mr. Kennedy [continuing]. I will tap you 10 times on the
shoulder.
Mrs. Lowey. You do a good job.
Mr. Kennedy. Thank you, Chairman.
Mr. Rogers. Mr. Schiff, your written statement will be
inserted in the record. You are invited to summarize it for us.
---------- --
--------
Thursday, March 16, 2017.
WITNESS
HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF
CALIFORNIA
Opening Statement of Mr. Schiff
Mr. Schiff. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Lowey.
My first request is please never have me speak after Joe
Kennedy again. [Laughter.]
But I guess it will be necessary today.
Mrs. Lowey. We see you on CNN all the time, so you do just
fine.
Mr. Schiff. Madam Chair, you should do what my wife does:
just hit ``mute.''
Having served on the Subcommittee for 8 years, though I am
now on leave, I know the importance of the work that you do
very well. And now more than ever, American interests are at
stake as we confront unprecedented instability and growing
humanitarian crises around the world.
Congress must invest in our national security, which
includes development and diplomacy programs, alongside a strong
defense.
While I will extend and expand on my requests to the
subcommittee in written form, today I want to highlight just
two matters that I hope the subcommittee will prioritize in the
fiscal year 2018 bill. The first involves support for Armenia
and the people of Artsakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh; and the second
involves the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the civilian arm
of the U.S. international media.
First, with respect to Armenia and Artsakh, I urge the
Subcommittee to support economic development, military parity,
and refugee settlement in our important regional partner,
Armenia. I further ask that the subcommittee prioritize
security and development in Nagorno-Karabakh, which faces
imminent threat from Azerbaijan.
Among the steps that I spell out in greater detail in my
written testimony, I ask that the subcommittee provide
humanitarian support for Artsakh in addition to demining
activities currently underway with USAID's support. I would
further request that the Committee include support for the
implementation of monitoring technologies along the line of
contact, which I believe would help deter Azeri provocations
that could easily spiral into a larger conflict.
I finally request the Committee's support of Armenia's
continued development as an important regional partner who is
taking on peacekeeping missions around the world and resettled
thousands of refugees from Syria and Iraq.
Second, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, which I was
concerned to see zeroed out in the President's budget today: I
want to highlight the importance of fully funding the
Broadcasting Board of Governors and specifically prioritizing
counter-propaganda broadcasting.
Russia, as you know, is waging a disinformation campaign to
undermine Western democratic states and values and subvert the
NATO alliance. In addition to invading Georgia and Ukraine and
bombing civilians in Syria, Russia has pumped tens of millions
of dollars into disinformation and propaganda targeting the
United States and Europe.
Russia seeks to create chaos and division in the United
States and E.U. through disinformation campaigns designed to
distract us, divide us, and ultimately paralyze us so Russia
can achieve its foreign policy goals of fracturing the U.S.-led
security order. By providing an alternate to disinformation and
extremist propaganda, the Broadcasting Board of Governors is at
the forefront of combatting the weaponization of information
and disinformation that we see on a global stage.
Through the Voice of America and Radio Liberty the BBG
recently launched Current Time, a 24/7 Russian language digital
television network. So Current Time will be a major determiner
in the outcome of the ongoing struggle between liberal
democracy and the autocratic model favored by Vladimir Putin.
I urge the Committee to prioritize funding for BBG with
these purposes and to provide resources to expand on the
efforts already underway. For instance, Russia's highly
successful propaganda efforts are built in large part on
wrapping news content around entertainment. Our efforts will
need a greater emphasis on providing content that can be
competitive with slickly produced Russian broadcasts.
I appreciate your consideration of these requests and look
forward to following up to further spell out programs that I
believe should be prioritized as we undertake the fiscal year
2018 funding cycle, and I thank you very much.
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Mr. Rogers. Thank you for the very good testimony.
Mrs. Lowey.
Mrs. Lowey. I want to thank you. And as a strong supporter
of the BBG and other similar programs, many of us have had
questions about their effectiveness, but we continue to fund it
and we continue to try to send a message that we look forward
to some changes so we can be more effective. We welcome your
support and your input.
Mr. Schiff. I thank you, and I think you are absolutely
right to question how efficacious these efforts have been in
the past. I think the answer is to figure out, if they haven't
been, how do we retool in the modern information and propaganda
age, rather than deciding that they haven't been successful and
therefore we are not going to try. I think we really have to
combat these efforts.
Mrs. Lowey. I agree. We agree.
Mr. Rogers. We are working on visiting BBG here in the next
couple weeks. I don't think we have the time set yet, but we
want to go down there and soak up a lot of information and
share some views.
But I agree with you, in this new age in which we find
ourselves, a communications age, broadcasting is not the most
effective way to get to someone. So the Internet, cable,
cyberspace is the new battleground.
Mr. Schiff. Exactly right.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you.
Mr. Schiff. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, ranking member.
Mrs. Lowey. Thank you very much.
Mr. Schiff. Thank you.
Mrs. Lowey. What time are you on tonight?
Mr. Schiff. Hopefully not at all. [Laughter.]
Mr. Rogers. I think that is all of the scheduled witnesses
that we have.
Is there anyone waiting to testify?
Anything further, Mrs. Lowey?
Mrs. Lowey. No. Now we just have to get our numbers out. We
depend on your leadership, your leadership and the White House,
so thank you.
Mr. Rogers. Thank you.
Hearing is adjourned.
[The following statements were submitted for the record:]
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