Ranking Member Lee Condemns GOP State and Foreign Operations Bill Text, Extreme Cuts to Diplomacy and Development
Washington, D.C. – Representative Barbara Lee, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations, and Representative Rosa DeLauro, Ranking Member of the Appropriations Committee, reacted to the drastic budget cuts House Appropriations Committee Republicans released in the draft fiscal year 2025 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs funding bill, which was considered in subcommittee Tuesday. The Congresswoman’s opening remarks can be viewed HERE.
House Republicans are proposing a 12 percent cut below 2024 to the bill’s overall funding level. The bill includes $51.7 billion in United States global leadership and cooperation and is $7 billion below 2024 and $12 billion below the Biden Administration’s 2025 request.
“As Ranking Member and former Chair of the House Appropriations State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee, I am appalled by the extreme cuts and policy riders Republicans have proposed for 2025,” State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Ranking Member Barbara Lee (D-CA-12) said. “Yet again, the majority is attempting to load up a critically important bipartisan bill with poison pill riders and cuts that would devastate vulnerable populations, undermine the fight against climate change, reduce diversity, and jeopardize our international standing. The challenges facing America and the world are only escalating; we must be investing more of our resources in diplomacy and development, not gutting the foundations of our national security. I call upon my colleagues to reject these damaging and polarizing provisions and ensure that our government has the funding it needs to allow for active and equitable U.S. leadership.”
“Around the globe, America’s adversaries threaten the peace and prosperity of the free world. Wars in the Middle East and Europe and humanitarian crises on nearly every continent call for America to lead. Not since the Cold War have our diplomatic influence and soft power been more critical to keeping Americans safe, yet House Republicans have proposed a bill that would diminish America’s world leadership to support our allies, deter our adversaries, exceed our competitors, wage our influence as the world’s largest economy and oldest constitutional democracy, and continue leading the free world,” Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) said. “House Republicans are dragging us through the same ridiculous song and dance once again. As I said all of last year, final spending bills will be the product of negotiations between Democrats and the Republicans in the House and Senate. For the sake of our national security, women’s health globally, and our response to the climate crisis, Republicans must abandon this reckless and partisan path and join Democrats at the table to govern.”
This legislation:
- Threatens national security by abdicating U.S. world leadership at the United Nations (UN) and other multilateral and international financial institutions by not including any funding for the UN Regular budget, the UN Development Program, UN Women, and UNICEF.
- Threatens women’s health globally by prohibiting the United States from contributing to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), substantially underfunding bilateral family planning, and reinstating the Global Gag Rule on non-governmental organizations that receive U.S. assistance.
- Hampers the U.S. response to the climate crisis by eliminating support for communities’ ability to adapt to weather changes, sustainable landscapes, and clean energy programming.
- Underfunds the operations and staffing of the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
A summary of House Republicans’ 2025 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs bill is here. A fact sheet is here. The text of the bill is here.