In 2017 the proposed U.S. budget for foreign aid is $34 billion. That's billion, with a b. This is a ridiculous amount of money for us to give away. The entire foreign aid program needs to be revised.
Here is my idea for America's new revised Foreign Aid program:
I propose that, in 2017, ALL foreign aid payments by America be stopped. Payments will then be restarted and made based on BEHAVIOR. Nations who do not do what they agreed to do, or who do not act properly, will not get a dime in foreign aid. If a country fails to undertake agreed upon actions WHY would we give them millions, or billions, of dollars? It's insane! Starting in 2017, America will make foreign aid a "pay for play" system. Only if nations perform properly (according to OUR principles) do they get money from us. Let's say a country like Afghanistan agrees to rid itself of domestic terrorists and does so, they get their $7 billion foreign aid. Yes, $7 BILLION (2014). If they do not eliminate their terrorists as agreed the rulers gets no foreign aid that year. Zero. Nada. Zip. Nothing. Pay for play. And those countries with horrible civil rights violations should get no foreign aid money from the U.S.
Countries that do the right thing can get foreign aid from us. Those that don't don't. It's time to stop "bribing" bad dictators and bad governments with foreign aid only to see them continue to commit atrocities and ignore civilized behavior. And yet we still give them foreign aid, year after year. Why are we rewarding bad behavior??? This has got to stop.
With my new system America will suddenly see many nations finally do what they agreed to do - or should do - and act in the best interests of their people - and our best interests. Why will they suddenly shape up? Because the heads of those countries want our foreign aid, so they can personally get, and stay, rich. Corrupt? Yes. Welcome to the real world. It's time America became part of it.
