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The Weekly GAB Friday, March 15, 2019
U.S. Global Leadership Coalition | www.usglc.org
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=uRYA5pARLgmABIFi6Bo5qg

USGLC in the News

FOREIGN POLICY

Despite Pompeo's Call for 'Swagger,' Trump Slashes
Diplomatic Budget |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=mCHvOStZpjcqtChbcJCqIQ

Robbie Gramer and Colum Lynch

It was less than a year ago that new Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
spoke of restoring America's diplomatic "swagger"
and projecting the U.S. presence "in every corner, every stretch
of the world." But on Monday, he presented a White House budget
proposal calling for steep cuts to the State Department and U.S.
Agency for International Development that would undercut U.S.
diplomatic clout and foreign aid worldwide, according to Democratic
lawmakers, former officials, and experts... Ahead of the budget
proposal's release, a group of former top U.S. generals urged
Trump not to slash funds to foreign aid and development, saying such
cuts undermine U.S. national security..."Diplomacy and
development are essential to combating threats before they reach our
shores."

NPR

Top Retired Military Officers Urge Caution In Proposed Decrease In
Defense Spending |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=t44N8y6ui697l1wWD5Ci5w

Mary Louise Kelly

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Victor
"Gene" Renuart Jr., former commander of the U.S. Northern Command,
about why he says the mission of the U.S. military is complemented by
diplomatic and development aid: "One of the concerns that I
think military commanders would echo is that we will have crises...we
hope in most of those cases that they can be dealt with through
diplomacy and foreign aid... But if we don't have the diplomatic
tool to use, then the only option left is the military and
that's not necessarily the way we train and equip our [military]
leaders."

THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Third Time a Charm? Trump Tries Again to Slash State Department
Funding by 25 Percent |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=kejCY8GDCh5Horv2Amh-cw

Joel Gehrke

President Trump's administration is proposing a sharp cut in
diplomatic funding for the third year in a row, even though Congress
repudiated his last two State Department budgets and gave the branch
billions more than he requested... The expected cuts to the State
budget provoked a pre-emptive strike from 14 retired four-star
military leaders, including high-profile retired Gen. David Petraeus,
retired Gen. Wesley Clark, and retired Adm. James Stavridis.
"Diplomacy and development are essential to combating threats
before they reach our shores," the former U.S. combatant
commanders said in a joint statement released Sunday.

CQ ROLL CALL
State: Amid Cuts, Funds to Combat Chinese, Russian Influence |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=lnK5Ef2QEnZyZFt5erYI5A

Rachel Oswald

Even as the Trump administration is proposing cuts to the State
Department that are likely to be too steep for Congress, lawmakers may
applaud the proposal to push back on Chinese and Russian influence in
the Asia-Pacific and Europe, respectively... The dynamic of the
White House requesting steep cuts to diplomacy and foreign assistance
and Capitol Hill lawmakers rejecting those reductions is expected to
repeat itself again in fiscal 2020, especially now that Democrats hold
the House..."Clearly, Congress is going to call 'strike
three' when it comes to the administration's latest
attempt to propose dangerous and disproportionate cuts to the
International Affairs budget, particularly after having rejected
similar efforts over the last two years," Liz Schrayer,
president of the USGLC.

Who's in the News

PITTSBURG POST-GAZETTE

Munich Reminds Us the U.S. Must Stand With, Not Alienate, Our Allies |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=4PR1FZms-2tYLskt0YBsNA

Chris Coons, U.S. Senator from Delaware

Last month, I joined more than 50 senators and representatives at the
Munich Security Conference... It is clear from my discussions in
Munich that our allies have serious doubts about American leadership
and the current course of U.S. foreign policy. It's normal for
us to at times disagree with our allies - sometimes it can be a
useful exercise to reach a better outcome. But I am worried that this
administration's treatment of our allies has further alienated
them at a time when we need them most.

Development & Diplomacy

AP NEWS
Donors Pledge $7B in Aid for Syria, Refugees |
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=Nknump9OjgUQREI8pcL-Lw

Lorne Cook

International donors have pledged around $7 billion in aid for Syria
and Syrian refugees who fled the conflict-ravaged country, the
European Union announced Thursday, as the war enters its ninth year.
But it was unclear how or when the money would be made available to
those in need.

THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
US Pledges Almost $400M in Syria Aid |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=_BdG0cpb_-hSHt92owOcFw

Joel Gehrke

President Trump's administration will give $397 million to help
fund humanitarian aid for Syrian refugees, the State Department
announced Thursday. "The United States is providing
urgently-needed food, shelter, sanitation and hygiene, medical care,
education, and other relief to help assist the nearly 12 million
people suffering inside Syria, as well as the nearly 5.7 million
refugees in the region," the State Department said.

THE TELEGRAPH

America First: Trump Boosts Domestic Spending on HIV But Slashes Help
for Those Overseas |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=qnShrP-BB45_g9Fl0d-v8Q

Anne Gulland

The US government has pledged nearly $300m to help end HIV
transmission at home but has also announced a huge cut to foreign aid
programmes fighting the disease around the world... The 2019 budget
promises $291m in the first year, with $50m focused on expanding
access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)... The budget also unveiled
a reduced US contribution to the Global Fund to Fight Aids,
Tuberculosis and Malaria, which this year is looking for its next
three-year tranche of funding.

NPR
Measles Is Spiking Around the Globe. How Worried Should We Be? |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=dbwL3qb_M-6rr6RUMBVWtg

Laurel Wamsley

In low-income countries like Madagascar and in strife-ridden countries
like Yemen, [Measles] takes a toll because vaccines are not available
or accessible or affordable. In Madagascar alone, there have been
nearly 80,000 cases and an estimated 900 deaths since September. And
now there's a rise in measles in other countries, often wealthier
ones, because of what's being called "vaccine hesitancy."

THE GUARDIAN

Doctors in Zimbabwe 'Sending Patients Away to Die' as Drug Shortages
Bite |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=D4qQ-HjWgriRtNFqLpdXlQ

Guardian Staff

A doctors' strike in Zimbabwe entered its second day on
Wednesday with health workers claiming patients in the biggest state
hospital are dying due to a lack of drugs and medical supplies...
Zimbabwe's once vibrant health delivery system has collapsed in
the past two decades, largely due to an economic crisis.

AP NEWS
US Pulling Last Diplomats from Venezuela Amid Power Crisis |
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=p09qvfw4tza5llV2IhENHQ

Fabiola Sanchez and Scott Smith

The U.S. said late Monday that it is pulling its last remaining
diplomats from Venezuela, saying their continued presence at the
country's embassy in Caracas had become a
"constraint" on U.S. policy as the Trump administration
aggressively looks to oust socialist President Nicolas Maduro.

NEW YORK POST
Stop the Central American Migration Wave at Its Source

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=Sxn6Mlzne9lOTDbqmuzUhg

José Cárdenas, former staffer under the George W. Bush Administration

President Trump is right to strengthen border security to deter
smugglers and stanch the flow of illegal ¬migrants. But that is only
half of the solution. The other half is to stem the "push
factors" that ¬impel people, mainly Central Americans, to make
the perilous journey north in the first place. The crisis is real.

THE FINANCIAL TIMES
Trump's Budget Has No Base in Economic Reality |
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=FE4gmOUjSPMcXtqYzDvj0g

Editorial Board

The US budget is as much an expression of the values of a presidency
as a financial statement... Mr Trump's budget proposes a 5 per
cent bite out of domestic programmes. Foreign aid and humanitarian
assistance face cuts in line with Mr Trump's America First
slogan... The cuts to federal agencies, the proposed increases in
military spending and the border wall point to a president with his
eye on a 2020 re-election bid.

Politics & Foreign Policy

THE GLOBE POST

De Facto Ambassador: Kushner's Role in US Relations with Saudi
Arabia |
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=mLtEQ8rVhRu_LP0L9bhNrA

Hannah Leibson

In the wake of Khashoggi's murder, President Trump's
son-in-law Jared Kushner has continued to deepen his personal
relationship with Saudi leaders as he reportedly hopes for their
cooperation with his yet-to-be-unveiled Middle East peace plan. At the
height of the international crisis, Kushner, a former real-estate
executive with no prior foreign policy experience, carried out
discussions with the royal court regarding details of the murder, but
was not stationed in the region permanently as required of a true
ambassador.

BLOOMBERG
Fear of Trump Walking on Xi Haunts China as Trade Talks Near End |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=rivtwo2b4aCm_QH1a1Traw

Shawn Donnan and Kevin Hamlin

Donald Trump regularly touts the strength of his personal relationship
with Xi Jinping, talking about the Chinese leader in the sort of warm
terms U.S. presidents normally reserve for longstanding allies. Yet as
the world's two largest economies inch towards a trade agreement
designed to define and reorder their economic relationship for years
to come, one question looms large: Does Xi trust Trump enough to get
on a plane and seal the deal?

REUTERS

Third Summit Between Trump and North Korea's Kim Likely, No Date Set:
U.S. Official |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=YSXN3jkhj0Kxk2ZRbWbM0Q

Arshad Mohammed and David Brunnstrom

A U.S. Department of State official on Monday said she thinks there
will be a third summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North
Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but no date has been set. Trump and
Kim's second summit in Vietnam last month collapsed over
differences on U.S. demands for Pyongyang's denuclearization and
North Korea's demand for sanctions relief.

AXIOS
Trump's Cash for Troops Plan Has Some Logic, and Big Risks |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=h-e0UU1FPwdjjxh_PFFdLA

Willis Sparks

Being a U.S. ally might soon get a lot more expensive. The Trump
administration is reportedly preparing a plan that would force
countries not only to pay for the full cost of hosting American troops
in their territory, but also to pony up an additional 50% premium on
that bill for the security that the U.S. soldiers provide... The leak
of this plan may merely be the opening bid in a series of tough
negotiations, but let's take it at face value.

AP NEWS
Longest US-Taliban Peace Talks See 'Progress' in Qatar |
http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=voYxtFXE6EmgaUKotdHUtA

Fay Abuelgasim and Kathy Gannon

The longest peace talks between the U.S. and the Taliban to end
America's 17-year war in Afghanistan concluded Tuesday night in
Qatar, with both sides saying progress had been made. The nearly two
weeks of talks produced two draft agreements between the militants and
the U.S. government on a "withdrawal timeline and effective
counterterrorism measures," American envoy Zalmay Khalilzad
wrote on Twitter.

VOX
Senate Passes Resolution to End US Role in Yemen War |

http://action.usglc.org/site/R?i=h74MIiijWjvy-i9R4aMK6A

Alex Ward

The Senate just voted to end America's involvement in Saudi
Arabia's war in Yemen - rebuking President Donald Trump
and likely forcing him to veto the measure within days. Despite a
Republican majority, the resolution passed 54-46. It will now go to
the House of Representatives, where it's very likely to pass, as
Democrats control the chamber. That means Trump will have to veto the
measure to be able to continue US support in the conflict.


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