Foreign Aid in the Election

Both candidates have said that they want to continue the Bush administration initiative on AIDS and Malaria, and that they want to increase foreign aid to reduce poverty. That is good news. Soft diplomacy must be increased, and U.S. diplomacy should more fully implement the altruism of the American people as well as their assumption of the responsibility incumbent upon us due to our wealth and power. We will regain the respect of the world by acting responsibly.

It is recommended that there be a major reorganization of the foreign aid bureaucracy. I think that is a good idea. The responsibility is spread over too many agencies, and there is no single critical mass of expertise to program and manage the portfolio well. I would also like to see less implemented by the military. And perhaps it is time to elevate the director of foreign aid to the level that it held during the Marshall Plan or the Kennedy administration.