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Posted on 01/13/2026 8:36:46 PM PST by SeekAndFind
U.S. Senate and House negotiators on Sunday night jointly released the overdue text for the fiscal 2026 foreign aid and diplomacy spending bill. And, somewhat surprisingly, it largely rejects the draconian cuts sought by U.S. President Donald Trump and even provides funding for several journalism organizations and democracy-promotion efforts that billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency tried to shutter.
House Republicans highlighted the $9.3 billion (or 16 percent) in spending cuts that the compromise legislation would make to top-line funding levels compared to fiscal 2025 enacted levels. Senate Democrats, meanwhile, touted that the spending measure is still $3.8 billion higher than the version produced last summer by House Republicans—and $19 billion more than what the White House had requested.
The $50 billion appropriations measure that funds the State Department, foreign assistance accounts, and other smaller international affairs-related programs could still be amended on its way to final passage, which is expected this month. But the legislation was painstakingly negotiated between senior Republican and Democratic appropriators in both chambers and is likely close to the final version.
The legislation represents the first foreign aid bill to be fully negotiated during the second Trump administration and as such bears his influence in numerous areas. Those include the creation of a first-of-its-kind flexible spending account called the America First Opportunity Fund; nearly $1 billion in operational funding for the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation; and a directive for Secretary of State Marco Rubio to start winding down a well-regarded global anti-HIV program, known as PEPFAR.
(Excerpt) Read more at foreignpolicy.com ...
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Congressional negotiators ultimately settled on putting $850 million into the new fund and set some broad funding lines within the account, but they held off on designating specific country or project spending amounts. The legislation does not attempt to address either Trump’s recent unauthorized military operations in Venezuela or his fresh threats to annex Greenland.
For now, the Senate is focused on using the 1973 War Powers Resolution to impose limitations on future military operations in Venezuela.
And while the bill provides no new funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development, it also doesn’t include any official close-out language or wind-down directives, leaving the door ajar for a possible effort to revive the foreign aid agency under a different administration.
VETO
They didn’t do a thing all damned year for normal Americans.
And the minute their newest session begins, they appropriate another barrel of cash to foreigners.
And the GOP lines up the American taxpayer for another solid azz rape to pay for their foreign benevolent savior fantasies.
God damned money laundering pieces of sh#t.
leaving the door ajar for a possible effort to revive the foreign aid agency under a different administration.
Yeah, lets call it a “possible effort”. This is the first thing they do, and soon they will be sternly warning us that it’s critical that we vote for them again at the midterms.
The congress has been nothing but a pain in the a$$.
They insist they should be in on everything and accomplish nothing!
Only one party in America and Trump ain’t a member, at least a welcome one.
Deep state is alive and well. And as long as they continue to control the hiring and firing nothing will change.
And the money laundering continues.....at least they’re letting everyone know who’s in on it.
No more foreign aid to anyone. Period.
Although not publicly announced because of its unpopularity, the US Congress
surreptitiously includes substantial US tax dollars for Isreal’s military and security aid.
Large emergency packages passed by Congress provide billions of US tax dollars for defense, missile defense (Iron Dome), and weapons, over and above long-standing annual tax dollar aid commitments under Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs).
The tax dollars are channeled through the State Department (FMF) and US Defense Department ostensibly to help Israel “defend itself.”
<><>Emergency Supplemental Tax Dollars: Congress passed supplemental funding bills (April 2024) that provided billions of US tax dollars for Israel’s defense, including tax dollars for air defense and replenishing military stockpiles.
<><>Then-president Joe Biden gave Israel an extra $12.7 billion tax dollars in election year 2024.
<><>Long-Term Commitments of tax dollars fulfill multi-year agreements (MOUs) for military financing and missile defense funding, tax dollars Israel gets separate from emergency measures.
<><>Types of Funding include tax dollars to cover Foreign Military Financing for weapons, tax dollar support for missile defense systems (Iron Dome, Iron Beam), and US tax dollars financing for Israel’s own thriving profitable arms sale defense industry.
Tax dollars for Israel are unpopular wrt specific conditions and amounts; congressional tax dollar appropriations are the mechanism through which significant foreign assistance, particularly military aid tax dollars blanket wealthy Israel.
The GOP caucus is a mess and has been for years. The Senate majority under Thune is feckless. The federal judiciary is hollowed out with corruption. The SC has held up pretty well so far, but Trump really is almost on his own in Washington.
HEY YOU CONGRESSCRITTERS!!!
GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF Y’ALL’S ARSE!!!!
MO MONEY HONEY!
I DO NOT CARE IF Y’ALL ARE PAYING OFF SOME SLEAZY UKRAINIAN MAYOR!!
Israel “needing” billions in US tax dollars is a complex, debated issue, but the aid, primarily military (said to be over $3.8 billion annually through 2028) is a substantial chunk of the US budget.
Reasonable people argue the aid fuels conflict and disproportionately benefits Israel’s thriving arms manufacturing business
Israel perpetuates the legend that its strong surplus-laden economy means “less reliance” on direct tax dollars compared to the past (at least according to ForeignAssistance.gov).
Aid is said to “help” Israel maintain its “Qualitative Military Edge” (QME), as required by a US law passed by persistent Israeli lobbyists who control US foreign policy.
Tax dollars support Israel’s Iron Dome and other missile defense systems which protect foreign civilians only. US tax dollars enable Israel to sustain advanced military operations, and maintain its war mongering military.
As Israel’s economy grew, direct economic aid of tax dollars “supposedly decreased,” shifting almost entirely to “military financing. Other US tax dollars go to fund Israeli R&D, education, and foreign citizens’ health.
Tax dollar aid is abundant, since Israel is a wealthy, developed nation (high GDP per capita), leading to debate on how essential the funding truly is and the hollow argument that tax dollars in a foreign country somehow are a “strategic benefit” for the US.
Reasonable people point out that tax dollar aid actually perpetuates regional instability, disadvantages struggling minorities, and therefore isn’t the best use of US tax dollars.
Annual Military Tax Dollars to Israel are significantly more than alluded-to $3.8 billion yearly, part of a $38 billion MOU through 2028. Billions upon billions more tax dollars were provided for “defense” following October 2023 and for other contrived reasons.
If the goverment can send money out of the country, it has too much money.
Yes!
Line
Item
Veto
It’s not too late to try it again.
Total federal spending in 2025 was approximately $7,010,000,000,000.
You claim $3,800,000,000 goes to Israel, and that constitutes a “substantial chunk of the US budget”.
$3,800,000,000 / $7,010,000,000,000 = 0.000542 ==>0.0542%
So aid to Israel is five hundredths of a percent of federal spending.
I’m arguing neither for nor against aid to Israel. I’m demonstrating that it is NOT a substantial chunk of federal spending. It’s a fart in a whirlwind.
✅ We’re done with them
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