Latest News
Shah Voted Out of Senate Foreign Relations Committee Unanimously
By Jordan Smith at 8 December, 2009, 5:39 pm
USAID Administrator nominee, Dr. Rajiv Shah, was unanimously approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today after testifying last Tuesday, December 1st. It’s anticipated the full Senate will vote on his confirmation before Congress recesses for the Christmas holiday. During his hearing, Shah provided his views on the need for a strong USAID and the [...]
Update on the State Department’s QDDR
By Jordan Smith at 7 December, 2009, 10:59 am
The Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR) Working Groups turned in their initial interim reports to the Core QDDR team on Dec. 4th. These reports focused on assessing the challenges, opportunities, current policies and policy gaps in each of the five working groups: (1) Building a Global Architecture of Cooperation, (2) Leading and Supporting Whole [...]
Clinton, Gates Testify Before Congress
By Madeleine Pryor at 3 December, 2009, 2:08 pm
On Tuesday, President Obama outlined his new strategy for Afghanistan in a speech at West Point. The comprehensive plan includes sending an additional 30,000 American troops to Afghanistan and strengthening and building the civilian involvement in the region. On Wednesday and Thursday, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Chairman of [...]
Shah Faces Senate Foreign Relations Committee
By Madeleine Pryor at 2 December, 2009, 2:28 pm
USAID Administrator nominee, Dr. Rajiv Shah, testified Tuesday, December 1st before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee providing his views on the need for a strong USAID and the continued role of development in U.S. foreign policy. He stressed his desire to rebuild USAID’s capacity, the need to provide policy and planning support and welcomed the [...]
Interview with President and CEO of Land ‘O Lakes, Chris Policinski
By Madeleine Pryor at 11 November, 2009, 1:00 pm
The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition interviewed Chris Policinski, the President and CEO of Land ‘O Lakes, who discussed issues related to food security and his company’s commitment to international development. However, the most enlightening portion of the interview came when Mr. Policinski described how businesses benefit from U.S. global engagement. He explained that international development [...]
USGLC Applauds Choice of Dr. Rajiv Shah as USAID Administrator
By Jordan Smith at 11 November, 2009, 12:00 pm
Washington, DC — The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition released the following statement from Executive Director Liz Schrayer on President Obama’s announcement of Dr. Rajiv Shah to be Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development:
“The USGLC applauds the President’s nomination of Dr. Rajiv Shah to be USAID Administrator as yet another example of the President’s [...]
Senate Passes USAID Resolution
By Jordan Smith at 11 November, 2009, 11:16 am
On Monday, November 9th, the Senate passed a non-binding resolution (S. Res. 312) calling on the Administration to fill the USAID Administrator position as quickly as possible. Today, the President nominated Dr. Rajiv Shah to be the Administrator. The resolution also called on the Administration to empower USAID to be the primary development agency of [...]
MCC CEO Nominee Testifies Before Congress
By Jordan Smith at 11 November, 2009, 10:50 am
Millennium Challenge Corporation CEO-designate Daniel Yohannes appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on November 3 for his confirmation hearing. In his opening statement he stated, “Smart development assistance that delivers results must be the foundation of effective U.S. global engagement…And this is fundamental to enhancing our collective security and common humanity for a more [...]
Congressional Champions Circulate “Dear Colleague”
By Jordan Smith at 11 November, 2009, 10:45 am
Last week, a strong bipartisan group of 10 Senators and 10 Representatives circulated “Dear Colleague” letters in both chambers urging their fellow Members of Congress to sign-on to a letter to the President in support of a robust FY11 International Affairs Budget. The letters are being led by Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), [...]
FY 2010 Appropriations Slowly Getting to the Finish Line
By Richard Parker at 10 November, 2009, 6:23 pm
More than a month into fiscal year 2010, House and Senate Appropriators would like to finish all the FY10 Appropriations bills sometime before Thanksgiving, but reaching this goal is looking increasingly unlikely. While the House has passed all 12 appropriations bills, the Senate still hasn’t acted on five bills, including the $48.7 billion FY10 State, [...]
