Author Archive

MCC CEO Outlines Vision

Last week Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Chief Executive Officer Daniel Yohannes issued a statement outlining his strategic vision for MCC, explaining his plans to  internally realign MCC to support the agency’s priorities. “A primary reason for MCC’s success is our focus on one, well-defined mission: reducing poverty through economic growth,” Dr. Yohannes said.  The plan [...]

Passing the War and Haiti Supplemental

Yesterday the House passed (by a 308-114 vote) the $58.8 billion FY 2010 war and Haiti supplemental as originally passed by the Senate in late May.  The supplemental now heads to the President’s desk for signature.  The critically needed funding was stalled for many weeks due to partisan bickering over nearly $23 billion in domestic [...]

Combating HIV/AIDS

Like his predecessor, President Obama has made combating HIV/AIDS a priority, requesting $5.9 billion in the FY 2011 International Affairs budget, including $1 billion for the Global Fund, a slight increase over current levels. Friday marked the end of the International AIDS Conference in Vienna, where more than 20,000 delegates representing scientists, global health leaders [...]

Good News on The Hill

There’s good news to report from the Hill.  Yesterday, the House Appropriations Committee adopted the FY11 302(b) allocations, and voted to restore $1.3 billion of the $4 billion cut they recently made to the State-Foreign Operations bill.  This brings the total allocation for the State-Foreign Operations Appropriations bill to about $54 billion in the House, [...]

10 Questions with Nancy Powell, Director General of the Foreign Service

The USGLC recently sat down with Nancy Powell, the Director General of the Foreign Service, to discuss the State Department’s progress and challenges in meeting the demand for not only more diplomats, but a new generation of diplomats.

House Moving Forward on Supplemental Bill

House Democrats, who sought to add $22 billion in domestic spending to the pending FY 2010 war, disaster and Haiti supplemental, are indicating that they might remove that funding amid objections from Republicans and Senate Democrats. The domestic spending, which included funds for Pell grants and to avert teacher layoffs, has been a sticking point [...]

Development Projects in Pakistan

Gearing up for the Afghanistan Donors Conference tomorrow, the Obama administration announced a flurry of development projects in Pakistan today. Secretary Clinton unveiled two hydroelectric dams, one in the mountains of northern Pakistan and the other in South Waziristan; 13 irrigation, water storage and municipal water projects across the country; renovation or construction of three [...]

Senate Appropriations Committee Approves Cut to the International Affairs Budget

Yesterday the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY11 appropriations allocations that include a $2.6 billion cut to the President’s funding request for the International Affairs Budget. The USGLC released a statement, saying, “While we appreciate Chairman Inouye’s efforts to restore some of the cut that came out of the Budget Committee earlier this year, we [...]

Afghanistan Donors Conference

With concerns mounting in Congress about U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, Secretary Clinton and Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke will attend a donors conference in Kabul July 20 as part of the largest gathering of foreign leaders in Afghanistan since the 1970s. Co-chaired by the Government of Afghanistan and the United Nations, the conference will reinforce U.S. [...]

USGLC Concerned About Funding for International Affairs Budget

USGLC Concerned About Funding for International Affairs Budget

Washington, DC — The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition today released the following statement from Executive Director Liz Schrayer on today’s Senate approval of the FY 2011 appropriations 302(b) allocation for the State-Foreign Operations Appropriations bill, which cuts $2.6 billion from the President’s request for the International Affairs [...]