Officials scrap unspent aid plan
White House has abandoned plans to seek the return to the Treasury of up to $4B in unspent foreign aid.
WASHINGTON — The White House has scrapped plans to seek the return to the Treasury of up to $4 billion in unspent foreign aid amid intense pressure from Capitol Hill, according to a senior administration official and others familiar with the decision.
The Office of Management and Budget sent a letter to the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development this month, notifying them of a temporary freeze on funds that Congress had already approved and the potential cancellation of billions of dollars in foreign aid.
Senior Republicans and Democrats said the review threatened to undermine Congress’ authority to appropriate funds, but U.S. officials insisted that they were targeting only projects that are unnecessary or of questionable value.
The OMB letter listed eight areas that cover a variety of assistance: international organizations; peacekeeping operations and activities; international narcotics control and law enforcement; development aid; assistance for Europe, Eurasia and Central Asia; economic support funding; foreign military financing programs; and global health programs.
According to people familiar with the process, the named funds could have amounted to as little as $2 billion and as much as $4 billion.
A senior administration official, who requested anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said the White House was persuaded not to move forward after hearing from lawmakers from both parties.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who fought the cuts, sounded an air of caution while traveling in Ottawa on a diplomatic visit that the fight over the rescissions was over.
“With respect to rescission, the president is still contemplating,” he told reporters. “What I have consistently said, with respect to every penny, the State Department spends, including our foreign assistance budget, we’ve got to get it right and make sure we’re using it in ways that are effective.”
If OMB had gone ahead in seeking to rescind some $4 billion in foreign aid, it would have required the approval of Congress to not spend the money.
But the situation could have become complicated because the money was technically frozen and that would have set up a battle between the White House and Congress on how to allocate the funds before the fiscal year ends.
Aid advocates were exuberant that the proposed cuts were rejected for the second year in a row.
“This is the right ending to a charade that should have never happened,” said Tom Hart, North America head of The ONE Campaign. “Development funding is not a handout, it’s a valuable tool to advance America’s values and foreign policy, national security and economic interests.”
Liz Schrayer, President of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, singled out Secretary of State Mike Pompeo for praise, saying he had fought successfully for maintaining foreign aid.
“After weeks of internal deliberations, smart policy has clearly won the day,” she said.