Congress Increases Foreign Aid

WASHINGTON (AP) In the midst of dual international crises one military, the other financial Congress has refused to fund the two global agencies trying to solve them.

Outraged Clinton administration officials and even some Republicans deplored the failure as Congress ended a contentious year's session Thursday. Conservative Republicans blamed President Clinton for refusing to accept a ban on family planning aid to groups dealing with abortions.

Abortion politics already had been tied by some to congressional failure to pass legislation designed to give Clinton the ability to submit international trade treaties to Congress for a yes-or-no vote without amendment.

With scant support from his own party, Clinton was offered the votes of several Republicans possibly enough to pass it if he gave in on the family planning restrictions. But he refused.

The final price, set by the House and Senate Republican leadership at the insistence of anti-abortion forces, was large:

Loss of a $3.5 billion credit line for the International Monetary Fund that the Clinton administration had pledged to create a new lending fund for dealing with the Asian currency crisis and for heading off similar financial breakdowns.

Loss of nearly $900 million the Senate had approved for payment of U.S. arrears to the United Nations, where U.S. officials are trying to rally action against Iraq for refusing U.S. weapons inspectors.

Scrapping of accompanying U.N. reform demands negotiated with the administration by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jesse Helms, R-N.C.

Abandonment of a hard-fought plan to abolish U.S. arms control and information agencies and combine their work into a streamlined State Department.

Loss of $50 million in Senate-approved family planning aid, which the Clinton administration has said is needed to slow world population growth. Funding remained at this year's level of $385 million.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Bob Livingston, R-La., said U.N. and IMF funding might be considered in special funding legislation soon after Congress returns at the end of January.

Ironically, the defeat for the Clinton administration overshadowed a relatively generous foreign aid bill that fully funds World Bank loans for the first time in years and provides hundreds of millions of dollars for child-survival, disease-prevention and refugee programs.

The $12.8 billion bill passed by both houses Thursday and sent to Clinton represents a $500 million increase over current funding, the first such increase in years.

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who fought for the U.N. and IMF funding to the last hours, accused Congress of "playing politics with American security, and I deplore it."

House Speaker Newt Gingrich warned the president not to give domestic political interests "higher priority than national security concerns."

The administration insisted that the abortion issue should be separated from issues affecting national security.

Albright spokesman, James P. Rubin, said it would "damage our ability to confront the Iraqi dictator," Saddam Hussein.

White House spokesman Mike McCurry had the most blunt assessment: "It is utterly bone-headed for Congress to fail to meet the commitments that the United States has at the U.N. in terms of our arrears."

Rep. James Leach, R-Iowa, joined in criticizing the funding failure, saying Congress was allowing "single-interest-group" politics to bedevil U.S. foreign policy, jeopardizing the national interest.

The bill sent to Clinton includes:

A first-time cap of $5.4 billion on aid to the Middle East, retaining $3 billion for Israel, $2.1 billion for Egypt, and a new allotment of $225 million for Jordan.

$1 billion for World Bank lending to the world's poorest countries, well above the amount passed by either the House or Senate and equal to the administration's request.

$770 million for former Soviet states, $145 million more than the current level. Half of aid to Russia would be withheld unless it ends cooperation with Iran on missile development.

$700 million for refugee aid.

$650 million for child-survival and disease-prevention programs.

$230 million for international narcotics control.

$222 million for the Peace Corps.

(14 Nov 1997 07:49 EST)

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