In over 180 countries, the State Department and USAID provide the people and programs necessary to promote peace and ensure America’s leadership in the world using just 1% of the entire federal budget. That is why the recently proposed 20% cut to the State Department and USAID budgets is so distressing.

Here are just a few examples of the impact of the proposed cuts:

• A roughly 40% cut to our request for economic and development assistance, dramatically reducing our efforts in countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Mexico, Colombia, South Sudan, Somalia, and Burma.
• Diplomatic and Consular overseas programs would be cut by nearly 40% from their current levels and nearly 50% from the President’s request.

Read more about the effects of these proposed budget cuts on DipNote.