Needed Now: A Clear New
Foreign Policy Agenda

Last summer then Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi put forward the platform for the Democrats' fall electoral campaign. It was called "A New Direction for America," or more popularly, "Six for '06," and it focused upon domestic issues that could strengthen the fabric of our daily lives.

Last month Pelosi, now the Speaker of the House, began the process of implementing this ambitious agenda with the passage of a series of bills during the first 100 hours of the 110^th Congress.

It is time for the Democrats to propose an equally far-reaching legislative agenda for our nation's foreign affairs, an agenda that will strengthen our security, further our interests, and refurbish our reputation for global leadership. This agenda could also be called "A New Direction for America," or more popularly, "Seven for '07." Here are some suggestions:

• Adopt Immigration Reform: The President has called for, and last summer the Senate passed, a comprehensive immigration reform bill to meet the business needs of our country; to protect the right of immigrants to equal treatment under the law; to enable those who work hard, pay taxes, and stay out of trouble to become American citizens; and to end the purgatory of those who have entered the country illegally in the past. This bill should be resurrected in the new Congress and sent to the President immediately.

• Terminate Financial Assistance Commitments to Egypt and Israel: As part of the 1979 Camp David Peace Accords, Israel and Egypt became the two largest recipients of U.S. foreign aid. During the last three decades they have received more than half of all our foreign assistance dollars, amounting to over $50 billion for Egypt and over $90 billion for Israel. While ostensibly justified as supporting peace in the region, Egypt has actually used these funds to prop up its autocratic government, and Israel has used them to build illegal settlements in the Palestinian West Bank. Neither of these uses encourages peace in the region, and stopping this funding would demonstrate a more balanced approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

• Repeal the Helms-Burton Act: Ever since the Cuban Revolution in 1956 our government has sought ways to isolate the Castro regime diplomatically and to undermine it economically. The most recent, comprehensive, and onerous act of Congress in this regard was the passage of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (Helms-Burton) Act in 1996. This act tightens the trade embargo; discourages foreign investment; limits educational, cultural, family, and tourist exchanges; and precludes U.S. diplomatic negotiations with Cuba until both Fidel and Raúl Castro are removed from power. These policies have been a complete failure for over 50 years, and they no longer reflect either the regional, geopolitical, or economic interests of our country.

• Acknowledge Global Warming: While the 1997 United Nations-sponsored Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change is in many ways inadequate and unrealistic, endorsing its objective of limiting greenhouse gases would go a long way towards re-establishing the U.S. as a world leader in responsible environmental behavior. Congress could do this by raising the standards for automobile gas-mileage, by adopting both a carbon cap for industry and a carbon tax for consumers, and by removing the barriers to the disposal of nuclear waste. Such actions would not only make us better environmental citizens, they would also contribute greatly to our nation´s energy independence.

• Renew the President´s Fast-track Trade Promotion Authority: Whether a Republican or a Democrat is in the White House, the authority of the President to pursue both multilateral and bilateral trade agreements on an expedited basis is critical to our nation's long-term economic health. This July that authority expires, and Congress should renew it, subject to certain constraints and guidelines. Key among them should be the requirement that all trade agreements meet international standards for labor relations and environmental protection, subject to a high-level adjudication process.

• Redirect "War on Drugs" funding: Although passionately defended by some members of Congress, the funding of drug eradication campaigns in Latin America has proven to be both totally ineffective and detrimental to the social, political, and environmental fabric of the region. Having spent over $4 billion since 2000 on the effort in Colombia alone, neither goal of the program—a reduction in coca production and a rise in the street price of cocaine—has been achieved. These resources should be redirected to treatment and prevention programs within the U.S.

• Refocus the mission of the U.S. military: The health and strength of our armed services suffer from mission creep and poorly defined goals. Instead of staying focused upon protecting the lives and property of American citizens and upon defending the homelands of our friends and allies, they have been committed to pursuing regime change, promoting democracy by force, fighting drug wars, combating genocidal conflicts, and meddling in the domestic affairs of other nations. As worthy as some of these objectives may be, they are not the mission of our military, and Congress should strip the funding for these non-essential activities from the defense budget.

Legislative initiatives on these pressing issues would do more than simply strengthen our security and refurbish our tarnished reputation as a world leader. Congressional leadership would also restore much of the historic balance of power between the legislative and executive branches that was envisioned by our founding fathers.

This balance of power has been largely absent in recent years, and we the people have paid the price in liberty, blood, and treasure for its loss. The cost to our personal freedoms, to our men and women in uniform, and to our pocketbooks has been incalculable. Let us hope that the actions of the 110^th Congress will be different from the recent past; that it will find its independent voice in foreign policy; and that it will pursue its own agenda of "Seven for '07."

JANET: Add the Kendall tag line.