Growing the Debt: US resumes $1.6B in aid to Pakistan

10/21/13
 
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from FoxNews,
10/21/13:

As the national debt tops $17 trillion — thanks to the newly sealed debt-ceiling agreement — America’s costly foreign aid tab is back in the crosshairs.

The federal government in fiscal 2012 spent about $21 billion on non-military foreign assistance and was on track to spend roughly the same in 2013, according to federal records. As Washington enters the new fiscal year, another huge chunk of aid is being released — the Associated Press reported over the weekend that the U.S. is planning to free up more than $1.6 billion in aid to Pakistan following a lengthy hiatus.

Daniel Markey, a senior fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations, suggested Monday that the aid decision was premature. He told FoxNews.com Live that the U.S. should at least be changing the way that money is used.

“We haven’t gotten a lot out of Pakistan … and we’ve spent billions and billions of dollars,” Markey said Monday.

He said new leadership in Pakistan offers a reason to keep trying “but we should be very careful.”

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