This sort of thing is the purview of the UN - at least in theory.
We contribute huge sums of money to the UN for that purpose and then turn around and spend more money to fund the actiivity directly.
Meanwhile the UN spends our money to promote globalism, anti-American sentiment and anti-semitism.
And why is this issue the problem of the American taxpayer to begin with?
The best thing that could be done with the State Department is to shut 95% of it down and pass responsibility for visas and passports to Homeland Security.
“Why not do something really useful and send $50k to Free Republic to help promote conservative values in America? “
I suspect this is all about who you know (and who you blow.) Politicians have an astonishing amount of “small power.” That’s the power to make a phone call and influence how, say, $50,000 gets spent. Congressman X sits on committee Y and his vote and good will is important to lots and lots of agencies and individuals. So somebody at a party, and no congressman passes up a party, asks him for a favor to (fill-in-blank.) Not only does it make the congressman feal like he’s a wonderful guy, but it gives the congressman a chance to use his power. He makes a call. A solicitation is written in such a way there can only be one winning bidder and the grant is given.
A solicitation may read, “Winning responder will be female, living in Kolkata, and qualified to teach women to blog.”
When I was running a small company I applied for lots of government grants and then followed up to see who had won. It is a very small circle of winners and few of the winners are outside the beltway or certain campuses.
Stop wasting our tax money!
Hey, it's good enough for Star Wars The Last Jedi. Only women can be in charge.
Team Trump needs to find all of these frivolous programs and end them. No exceptions.
What are they doing, that’s my money!!
Another nonsense program by the State Department. It’s not a lot of money but that alone doesn’t mean it is not waste, which it is.
If there ought to be such a program, it would be for the people and governments in India to fund and operate, not the U.S.
Add this small programs to thousands of other small programs run out of the state department and we are likely talking hundreds of millions of dollars if not more than a billion.
Welcome Indian bloggers! It won’t be too long before someone posts their blog here.
Why on earth should the U.S. pay for this nonsense? We have many more urgent needs for OUR taxpayers’ money. Whose idiot idea was this? Some Indian in our government with a sister who has a blogsite?