Senate panel rejects Trump's 'doctrine of retreat' on foreign policy

[Bob The Knob]

[url]http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-diplomacy/senate-panel-rejects-trumps-doctrine-of-retreat-on-foreign-policy-idUSKCN1BJ2PQ[/url]
[quote]A powerful Senate committee blasted the Trump administration on Friday in a report accompanying its spending plan for the State Department, saying its approach to foreign policy weakens U.S. standing in the world.

On Thursday, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted 31-0 for legislation allocating more than $51 billion for the State Department and foreign operations, nearly $11 billion more than requested by President Donald Trump's administration.

In the report released on Friday accompanying the legislation, the committee criticized the administration's request to cut spending on such operations by 30 percent from the year ending on Sept. 30, 2017.

"The lessons learned since September 11, 2001, include the reality that defense alone does not provide for American strength and resolve abroad. Battlefield technology and firepower cannot replace diplomacy and development," it read.[/quote]

[Sableye]

unless they explicitly instruct the state department, trump and tillerson cam dit on it and let the money go to waste.

[editline]9th September 2017[/editline]

you get what you paid for, the senate voted to ramrod tillerson devos pruit zinkie and every other one of trumps horribly unqualified cabinet members through, too drunk on the possibility of obamacare repeals and tax breaks to actually govern responsibly

[Sky King]

Well the past two decades have been spent dis-stabalizing the middle east for US interests.

Not trusting trump to come up with better ideas tho.

[EmperorScorpious]

This is all kinds of stupid.

For one, you're handing money over to an administration that clearly has no idea how to use tax payer money.

For another, while I agree that using military might is no substitute for diplomacy to achieve the US's interests, I don't agree with bloating the state department to diplomacize the hell out of everyone else to push US interests overseas either. We ought to stop sticking our noses in other nation's businesses, whether it be diplomatically or via military.

[elix]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;52664184]This is all kinds of stupid.

For one, you're handing money over to an administration that clearly has no idea how to use tax payer money.

For another, while I agree that using military might is no substitute for diplomacy to achieve the US's interests, I don't agree with bloating the state department to diplomacize the hell out of everyone else to push US interests overseas either. We ought to stop sticking our noses in other nation's businesses, whether it be diplomatically or via military.[/QUOTE]
"Bloating" the State department when the Trump administration's been systematically starving it? Ok.

Trump has nominated as agency heads people who don't believe in the legitimacy of their own agency and seek to transform it into something smaller, more ineffectual, and more condusive to unrestricted business. America First isolationism means the State Department is going to wither and America's soft power projection around the world will be a sad impotent limpdick with a giant tank impatiently waiting to drive around it.

I agree that America should act less like it's the planet's police officer, but gutting the State Dept. does not make America Great Again.

[TheLonelyDonut]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;52664184]This is all kinds of stupid.

For one, you're handing money over to an administration that clearly has no idea how to use tax payer money.

For another, while I agree that using military might is no substitute for diplomacy to achieve the US's interests, I don't agree with bloating the state department to diplomacize the hell out of everyone else to push US interests overseas either. We ought to stop sticking our noses in other nation's businesses, whether it be diplomatically or via military.[/QUOTE]

I'd argue that the state department's functions as mediators and diplomats can advance both other nations' goals of stability and the U.S goals of a more stable (and ultimately more peaceful) world.

America's interests and the world's interests share more commonality than you think.

[Action Frank]

[QUOTE=Bob The Knob;52663647][url]http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-diplomacy/senate-panel-rejects-trumps-doctrine-of-retreat-on-foreign-policy-idUSKCN1BJ2PQ[/url][/QUOTE]

I really wish news sources would stop using terms like "blasted" and "slammed". All I can imagine is the Senate committee hosing down Trump and Co. with a firehose.

[Sableye]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;52664184]This is all kinds of stupid.

For one, you're handing money over to an administration that clearly has no idea how to use tax payer money.

For another, while I agree that using military might is no substitute for diplomacy to achieve the US's interests, I don't agree with bloating the state department to diplomacize the hell out of everyone else to push US interests overseas either. We ought to stop sticking our noses in other nation's businesses, whether it be diplomatically or via military.[/QUOTE]

i'd rather spend 100k a year on someone to stop wars instead of 100k in 5 minutes on guided bombs, and besides the state department is virtually an empty building right now because trump has made it clear he will not fill any more political appointments

[EmperorScorpious]

[QUOTE=TheLonelyDonu;52664310]I'd argue that the state department's functions as mediators and diplomats can advance both other nations' goals of stability and the U.S goals of a more stable (and ultimately more peaceful) world.

America's interests and the world's interests share more commonality than you think.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, Iraq and Afghanistan are the forefront of America's goals for world peace.

[Hail Satan]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;52664438]Yeah, Iraq and Afghanistan are the forefront of America's goals for world peace.[/QUOTE]

That's the defense department?

[Bob The Knob]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;52664184]This is all kinds of stupid.

For one, you're handing money over to an administration that clearly has no idea how to use tax payer money.

For another, while I agree that using military might is no substitute for diplomacy to achieve the US's interests, I don't agree with bloating the state department to diplomacize the hell out of everyone else to push US interests overseas either. We ought to stop sticking our noses in other nation's businesses, whether it be diplomatically or via military.[/QUOTE]

This doesn't bloat the State Department, just continues funding at previous levels rather than implementing the steep cuts proposed in Trump's original budget